Ask HN: Why are there still recruiters? • Hacker News Board

Re: Ask HN: Why are there still recruiters?

#41

Post by vfulco » Thu, Feb 01, 2018, 12:11 PM UTC

gt_ wrote: post #27

seem_2211 wrote: post #13

I am a recruiter (albeit for salespeople), and I think there are a few big value points that we provide, when we do our jobs right. 1: Filtering. The downside of the internet making it easy to apply for jobs is that the candidates that do apply, don't tend to be the candidates you want. If you put a job up on Monster / Indeed etc, you're going to get a lot of candidates who aren't remotely qualified for what you're l…

Reading these comments has made me feel very stupid for treating recruiter messages like spam. Better late than never! I have been off the job market for almost a decade and things appear to have changed a lot. Do you have any advice for working with recruiters, beyond basically doing the opposite of what I have been doing?

A bit oblique but don't lose sight of a really well done LI Profile. I admit this is self-serving since I run a firm editing resumes, performing LI Profile enhancement and interview coaching in Shanghai, China. I am not selling here. However, I have had numerous clients with de-minimus LIPs and a bit stuck in their careers. They hired me to spruce theirs to "all-star" status. After turning on the "want to hear from interested parties setting", reaching out to old colleagues for referrals and building a broader network, they started hearing from HHers and HR who they would not have otherwise. And some found new work within the month.

It does work if you pull all the levers. You can CERTAINLY do your own LIP if you are willing to put the time in and have an acute eye for detail. It is an excellent investment to get it presentable.

Re: Ask HN: Why are there still recruiters?

#42

Post by aprdm » Thu, Feb 01, 2018, 3:53 PM UTC

I think you're simplifying too much the role of a recruiter.

I've had some very good coffees with recruiters that gave me a lot of insight in the tech industry, some roles that were a match, weren't. They asked a lot of questions about myself and from there could find roles that would match where I wanted to be.

Recently I sent a CV to a company for an open role I saw because I wanted to work in that company. The internal recruiters of this company saw that my CV was a better match for a role that I hadn't seen announced. They sent it to another department / followed through.

Recruiters that only match buzzwords provide very low value but good recruiters can be career changing.

Re: Ask HN: Why are there still recruiters?

#43

Post by gesman » Fri, Feb 02, 2018, 10:32 AM UTC

Middleman (or any other occupation) exists while it solves the problem.

In recruiting - it is cleaning and filtering effort that saves lots of time and effort for both parties.

Having said that - there are lots of recruiters acting like spammers.

Most of them are getting zero replies from otherwise perfect potential candidates is because they are missing the most important point when crafting their request.

Re: Ask HN: Why are there still recruiters?

#44

Post by matt_the_bass » Sat, Feb 03, 2018, 1:49 PM UTC

vfulco wrote: post #41

gt_ wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Reading these comments has made me feel very stupid for treating recruiter messages like spam. Better late than never! I have been off the job market for almost a decade and things appear to have changed a lot. Do you have any advice for working with recruiters, beyond basically doing the opposite of what I have been doing?

A bit oblique but don't lose sight of a really well done LI Profile. I admit this is self-serving since I run a firm editing resumes, performing LI Profile enhancement and interview coaching in Shanghai, China. I am not selling here. However, I have had numerous clients with de-minimus LIPs and a bit stuck in their careers. They hired me to spruce theirs to "all-star" status. After turning on the "want to hear from i…

I think it is valuable to keep a decent profile before you need/want to use it. That is if you hope to use it in the future.