HELP YOUR RECRUITER HELP YOU

by Brian Skory

For many candidates, developing a relationship with the right technical recruiter can provide definite advantages to landing that job. Like any relationship, however, there are actions which you can take that will help you to get even more out of that partnership. Following are three that come to mind.

1. Provide as much information as possible as to why you are a fit for that role.

Your recruiter’s job is to make you stand out as much as possible from other candidates applying for that position. Oftentimes, a resume alone will not do that. What will, however, is a paragraph or two highlighting your specific experiences and skills that pertain specifically to the job as described. If the job description states, “Recent experience with MVC in a business application environment preferred,” and you have that experience though it is not specifically called out on your resume, be sure to highlight that in your submission notes. Take the time to do the above for every one of your submissions.

2. Reach out to your recruiter if you have not heard from them for a while.

The technical job market is hopping at the moment with recruiters likely opening up new jobs on a daily basis. This means that they are probably juggling dozens of candidates and upwards of a 100 emails a day. Don’t assume the worst if you haven’t heard from him or her in a while. Chances are you were simply temporarily lost in the shuffle. Send your recruiter an email requesting a status update on your submission. Your recruiter will be glad that you did.

3. Be as timely as you can in returning calls and email.

As mentioned above, the job market is hopping and things are moving very quickly in most cases. When it comes to answering a question, making a resume update, or scheduling an interview, a delay of two or three days in getting back to your recruiter could mean the difference between remaining in the running or losing out on that opportunity.

If you implement the three tips above, I guarantee that you will immensely improve your chances of getting hired.

As always, we at Stout Systems are interested in hearing how your job search is going. Feel free to drop us an e-mail at [email protected].

Brian Skory is Stout’s Technical Talent Manager. Brian began his technical career 20 years ago. Key to Brian’s success throughout his career has been his consistent ability to find and hire the best talent.