The Old Joel on Software Forum: Part 4 (of 5)

Recruiter question....

I have posted a resume, and been contacted by a few recruiters. Some of them insist on knowing the name of my current employer, for "their records", before they give my resume to prospective employers. This seems underhanded to me, and I don't think the recruiter needs to know at this point? Am I right in believing this?

MJ
Friday, May 14, 2004

Correct, though it does avoid the problem of them passing your resume to your current employer.

Simon Lucy
Friday, May 14, 2004

Is this a headhunter, or an inhouse recruiter?

Why don't you want the headhunter to know where you are currently working?

If you don't trust them to use this information responsibly (to make sure they are not sending out your resume to them, etc), then you probably don't want to use them at all.

Get a recommendation from someone you trust and contact that headhunter directly rather than posting your resume everywhere and waiting for the headhunters to contact you.

Gustavo
Friday, May 14, 2004

They want to know where you're working so they can try to place candidates there.

There are known cases where that leads to the employer finding out you're planning to leave, secretly hiring someone to replace you, and then sacking you.

The recruiter does not need to know where you're currently working. They should not your resume anywhere without asking you first.

.
Friday, May 14, 2004

..should not *send* your resume anywhere ...

.
Friday, May 14, 2004

But once you give your resume to the recruiter, won't they know where you work anyway? Or I am I out of date in actually listing my employers on the resume? Would it be better to concentrate on the resume as a set or skills and types of projects done without naming names?

You know, just say "Consulting work for national law firm." rather than specifcally say MacKenize / Brackman. I can see the danger if new company's HR person knows your HR person etc.

So I guess question is what does everybody else's resume look like?

TJK
Friday, May 14, 2004

I just say that my current company is confidential. I see no reason why he needs my current company. He won't tell me the name of the company that he is submitting my resume to, and I know why he is not doing that, but at the same time, I don't feel he needs to know my current employer.

MJ
Friday, May 14, 2004

Just tell him the first letter of your current company's name. That way, he won't be sending your resume to your existing company, and you still get 25/26 coverage!

Yes, it's Friday.

Edward
Friday, May 14, 2004

And so much the better if your company name starts with Q or X or something.

Kyralessa
Friday, May 14, 2004

I won't give my resume to a recruiter who won't tell me where they're sending my resume. If my resume ends up on the same desk from two separate headhunters, the potential employer will throw it in the trash so they don't have to deal with who submitted me first.

JavaGuy
Friday, May 14, 2004

The recruiters that I've been involved with have all asked which companies I've already applied to. If I had applied there previously, they don't get their percentage.

Might work to just add your current employer to that list.

Edward
Friday, May 14, 2004

> The recruiters that I've been involved with have all asked which companies I've already applied to. If I had applied there previously, they don't get their percentage.

You shouldn't leave the decision to them. They are supposed to ask your permission before sending to any prospective employer.

To answer an earlier remark too, there's no need to put your current employer on your resume. Just leave it generic such as saying it's a large bank or something. If it was the Army or something like that, it would be different.

To confirm JavaGuy's remark too, it certainly does happen that a candidate will be rejected if submitted by more than one broker / recruiter. I've seen this happen.

The IT manager didn't want to risk legal action from the recruiters fighting for the commission, since both would claim they provided the candidate. So any candidates presented by more than one recruiter got ditched.

Inside Job
Friday, May 14, 2004

He who pays the piper calls the tune.

The recruiter is NOT working for you, he/she/it is working for the company that will pay their fees.

If you keep that in mind, you can cope better with all the BS that goes on.

I once had a buyer's realtor show my house to people from her home country, and she was constantly pointing out minor flaws in the house to the potential buyers. I told my realtor to take her out back and explain that I was paying her commissions, so back off or no deal. After I ignored her first few offers, she got the message.

Data Miner
Friday, May 14, 2004

The recruiter gets his money from YOUR work. The rest of it is a mechanism for him to control you.

The fact that recruiters claim you have nothing to do with THEIR arrangement with the employer is outrageous.

What would you say if the real estate agent selling your house told you the price was none of your business, and that the sale of your house was a matter between her and the buyer, not you?

Inside Job
Saturday, May 15, 2004