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Ask HN: How do I contact a recruiter?

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Re: Ask HN: How do I contact a recruiter?

#21

Post by mattchue »

mathattack wrote: post #12

Get an introduction. Go out and meet as many people as you can. (Meetups, Random drinking nights, etc) Connect to everyone you meet on LinkedIn. Have someone introduce you to the recruiter. Not everyone will do it, but enough people out there will be helpful. The recruiter has many more resumes than jobs. A referral will almost always cut the line. If you can the introduction to the hiring manager, even better. By re…

I would absolutely love to attend meetups as Ionic/AngularJS is my core competency (which, as I understand, are big meetup topics), but I am currently seeking a job in Seattle, and I live just far enough away where day tripping on a weeknight doesn't mesh with my work schedule. This sounds like the most direction option for a referral, so taking time away from my current job to attend a meetup may be necessary. The 100% match is a great explanation, I guess if they're getting paid to find people jobs faster money takes a higher priority. Thanks so much for your response!

Re: Ask HN: How do I contact a recruiter?

#22

Post by mattchue »

spicyj wrote: post #17
davismwfl wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I personally 100% agree with you. I always weigh the cover letter or email when I am recruiting. My observation is of lately (last few years), both the last two team leads that worked for me wouldn't read the emails/letters. And now recently I have started my own job search and not a single one of my cover letters has been read unless it went to HR first. I say this because after speaking with the hiring managers it…

Your "cover letter" can also be a direct email to the hiring manager which mostly guarantees that they'll at least skim it.

Honestly, this is kind of what I'm hoping for. I'm a pretty adept writer, and my passion for something tends to come through in my writing. It is definitely good to hear that someone out there is hunting for a stand-out cover letter. Thanks for the responses!

Re: Ask HN: How do I contact a recruiter?

#23

Post by mattchue »

brianwawok wrote: post #14
mattchue wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My LinkedIn has been updated for quite some time now, and I've yet to hear from anybody. I have a little less than two years experience building SPAs in Angular, and an Associate's degree, so perhaps my profile is not as enticing as others.

Wow. I put 0 work into linkedin. Literally a list of jobs and techs. No description on any of my jobs. I get 5 or so LinkedIn emails per week. No idea what they search for though... a lot mention something like Java or Scala which I have n my resume, but no reason people would not also be looking for Angular or JavaScript...

Hmmm, interesting! Do you have things related to Java or Scala in your 'Skills' section on LinkedIn? I have it listed under my experience, but I didn't have it added to 'Skills', which might have been what it was. Oh well, it's updated now. I think the rest of my profile does a pretty good job of explaining my capabilities. Thanks for the response!

Re: Ask HN: How do I contact a recruiter?

#24

Post by mathattack »

mattchue wrote: post #21
mathattack wrote: post #12

Get an introduction. Go out and meet as many people as you can. (Meetups, Random drinking nights, etc) Connect to everyone you meet on LinkedIn. Have someone introduce you to the recruiter. Not everyone will do it, but enough people out there will be helpful. The recruiter has many more resumes than jobs. A referral will almost always cut the line. If you can the introduction to the hiring manager, even better. By re…

I would absolutely love to attend meetups as Ionic/AngularJS is my core competency (which, as I understand, are big meetup topics), but I am currently seeking a job in Seattle, and I live just far enough away where day tripping on a weeknight doesn't mesh with my work schedule. This sounds like the most direction option for a referral, so taking time away from my current job to attend a meetup may be necessary. The 1…

Attend meetups where you are. You never know where the connection you make tomorrow will have connections. I had a friend in India refer me to a job halfway across the country.

Also... The best networkers give before they ask. Volunteer to help at the meetups you attend.

Re: Ask HN: How do I contact a recruiter?

#25

Post by mattchue »

davismwfl wrote: post #16
mattchue wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Noted. I imagine systems like Lever or proprietary hiring platforms usually appear more with companies that have HR, whereas a few sentences for a position that only accepts application materials via email will go a lot further than a multi-section cover letter. I've been trying to stay away from making my cover letter feel too much like a form, but because I'm shorter than most on experience, I feel like it's import…

You might try two things, just as ideas -- even just try it on a few and see if it changes responses any. Or send these to people who never got back to you the first time. 1. In your cover letter quickly describe one/two thing(s) that you have done that is relevant and might open a dialog for further discussion. Or peak someones interest at least. 2. Try reformatting your resume to be less about chronological order a…

I'll definitely play around with this. I hadn't considered trying to turn my cover letter into more of a factsheet, or at least formatting information about technical skill. Really appreciate the specific suggestions you're lending.

I am interested to get into a face-to-face conversation with a potential employer, because I sound significantly older on paper and I'm curious how that'll affect the interaction.

Re: Ask HN: How do I contact a recruiter?

#26

Post by mattchue »

mathattack wrote: post #24
mattchue wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would absolutely love to attend meetups as Ionic/AngularJS is my core competency (which, as I understand, are big meetup topics), but I am currently seeking a job in Seattle, and I live just far enough away where day tripping on a weeknight doesn't mesh with my work schedule. This sounds like the most direction option for a referral, so taking time away from my current job to attend a meetup may be necessary. The 1…

Attend meetups where you are. You never know where the connection you make tomorrow will have connections. I had a friend in India refer me to a job halfway across the country. Also... The best networkers give before they ask. Volunteer to help at the meetups you attend.

With JavaScript and AngularJS as my core competencies, I'm a little intimidated to attend the only meetup I'm aware of in my town, which is for PHP. Are devs of all kinds usually welcome at these sorts of events?

Great note about volunteering, that was something I hadn't otherwise considered.

Re: Ask HN: How do I contact a recruiter?

#28

Post by mathattack »

mattchue wrote: post #26
mathattack wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Attend meetups where you are. You never know where the connection you make tomorrow will have connections. I had a friend in India refer me to a job halfway across the country. Also... The best networkers give before they ask. Volunteer to help at the meetups you attend.

With JavaScript and AngularJS as my core competencies, I'm a little intimidated to attend the only meetup I'm aware of in my town, which is for PHP. Are devs of all kinds usually welcome at these sorts of events? Great note about volunteering, that was something I hadn't otherwise considered.

Yes. Go and learn too. And help!

Re: Ask HN: How do I contact a recruiter?

#29

Post by MalcolmDiggs »

Well, to answer your question: Post your resume on a job board (dice, ziprecruiter, monster, whatever), make sure the text is machine readable, and your contact info is included. If you do that, the recruiters will come.

But as everyone else has mentioned, you probably don't wanna do that. The best feedback comes directly from hiring managers themselves, not recruiters. Recruiters aren't necessarily incentivized to paint you an accurate picture.

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