This is not a list of Wine Spectator 90 plus point wines… more like a list of whines from a spectator of candidate and client missteps over the last 90 plus years of my recruiting and PR career.
Here we go…
1) Why do some candidates not list their clients in their resume? I can’t think of a reson why you wouldn’t… unless you’re embarassed about them. And if you are.. then maybe it’s time for a new profession. Otherwise, ALWAYS list your clients, it’s what hiring managers want to know. Everything else pretty much reads the same from candidate to candidate… great media and client relations skills, strategic thinker, creative, excellent writer… yada yada yada.
2) Why don’t agency clients sometimes provide recruiters with the accounts that the new hire will work on? This is what sets opportunities — and agencies — apart. And lures top talent. Some clients say they’re afraid to divulge client names for competitive reasons or they’re not sure what the candidate will work on untill they assess their skills. Maybe. But candidates know that happiness and overall job satisfaction is heavily influenced by the types of clients they work on. If they don’t know who they’ll be working on, it’s a pretty tough sell for the recruiter and a pretty weak attempt to land talent by the client.
3) Which brings me to this point. Why can’t agencies, which are paid big $$ to help their clients stand out from the crowd, figure out how to make themselves stand out from the crowd. Agencies need a “sell” to lure talent as much as to lure clients. I know… it’s the Cobbler’s kids with no shoes idiom. That’s weak. Dedicate someone at a higher level than a Sr. AE to come up with a branding campaign for your firm and put some real substance and committed policies behind the empty proclamations of employee-driven culture, fun environment and a wonderful place to learn and grow pablum.
4) Make a decision! Some clients these days are being really slooooooow to pull the trigger. I’ve seen 6 or more rounds of interviews for some candidates and as much as a 4-6 month hiring process. If it’s that tough to make the call maybe you shouldn’t be in a decision-making position.
5) Candidates: trust your recruiter. We’re here to help you get a job that pays you more money and makes you happy. After all, our contracts guarantee that you stick around for a certain amount of time or we don’t get paid. And we want our clients to hire us again. So we want you happy and we want to steer you in the right direction. So trust us and be honest and transparent about your search. And don’t play us or our clients for counter-offers. That burns two bridges.
6) Clients: trust your recruiter. We’re here to get a fee but we’re also here to get you good talent. We’re not here to waste your time or our time. So give us good, honest feedback on the candidates you like and the ones you don’t like. That helps us figure out exactly what you’re looking for. And also please… please give us feedback quickly. We know you’re busy too, but we generally work on a contingency basis, so if a client is not responding or providing feedback within a day or two of receiving candidate resumes, we’re moving on to clients who are responding, engaged and interested in landing great talent.
That’s some fine whine. Enjoy!!