The Old Joel on Software Forum: Part 3 (of 5)

stupid recruiters

Keep getting calls from recruiters but nothign works out, they call up and then never call back again.I'm unemployed,i've got 4 calls in the last 2 weeks, and am absolutely fed up.
How to deal with them?

Anon
Tuesday, October 7, 2003

Be polite but brief, dutifully record your contacts with them for compliance with your unemployment benefits if appropriate, and don't count on them for a damn thing.

The nature of their business is that they talk to more people than they have jobs, and they only make money on the one that does get hired. Yeah, it'd be nice if they followed through when things didn't happen, but it'd also be nice if computers didn't crash. Both sets of tools still have their uses despite the obvious flaws... (=

Sam Livingston-Gray
Tuesday, October 7, 2003

Remember recruiters do some filtering before sending
resumes to employers. And employers do another round
of filtering before interviewing anyone.

Amour Tan
Wednesday, October 8, 2003

But doesn't that just boil down to the fact that people seem to have a hard time saying "no thanks" and think ignoring them will be a better option?

Better Than Being Unemployed...
Wednesday, October 8, 2003

I found it helpful to remember that recruiters, no matter what they say, are looking to make money from you. There are a number of ways they can do this:

1. Get you hired somewhere.
2. Find out what interviews you have been to recently, so they can see who's recruiting.
3. Find out what you (and therefore your company) are programming in so they can send your boss some resumes.
4. Find out what you're up to so they can keep an up to date database of who has what skills.

All four require them to phone you up periodically and come across as your best mate who has got lots of jobs for you. Unfortunately that is not always the case. If I'm not looking I usually give them any helpful information, it's a way of keeping them on side. If I am looking, I'm very careful about what I reveal. Some of them are VERY devious.

While some recruiters respond to every vacancy spamming the company with their entire DB. Other recruiters will only work with 10-12 candidates at any one time. They only have limited time and lots of people wanting a job so when they phone you they're trying to work out how compliant you will be. Ideally, they want a candidate who is prepared to work for low wages, relocate if necessary etc. and is prepared to only work with them. If they get the sense that you're going to be picky about things like technology or that your getting offers through other agents then they wont be interested.

I have always found it best to attract one or two of the non-spammer types. You'll need to give the impression that you're not talking to anyone else and that you're desperate for work, once you get an employer interested, that's when you can be a bit more picky.

Dan
Wednesday, October 8, 2003

<i> You'll need to give the impression that
you're not talking to anyone else </i>

I never understood that one. Why?

DEBEDb
Thursday, October 9, 2003

> You'll need to give the impression that you're not talking to anyone else

More accurately, you need to give the impression that you are not close to landing another job, as that will make recruiters skittish.

It's a little like dating: you want to portray that you're an attractive person who *could* be dating lots of people, but *right now* are only interested in *them*. Let's not push that analogy too far.... :)

Professional JobSeeker
Thursday, October 9, 2003

In addition to all these points, remember that agency recruiters almost always have agendas within agendas. Most agency recruiters can and will aggressively lie about their intentions. The most direct example is the recruiter who pumps you for your references, which the recruiter or their agency uses for their own marketing, who has no position for which you are a match.

Bored Bystander
Thursday, October 9, 2003

Anon, they're often fishing for companies they can send resumes ( not yours ) to. I hope you know not to tell them what companies you've applied to.

Sunday, October 12, 2003