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Ask HN: Is there anything you like about recruiters?

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Re: Ask HN: Is there anything you like about recruiters?

#41

Post by jerdfelt »

uladzislau wrote: post #15

Completely opposite experience here. Nothing good ever came from the recruiters (unlike the direct contacts with the companies). Usually they are hiring for the most undesirable roles/ problematic companies, they misrepresent the roles to the candidates and the candidates to the companies. The most annoying thing is however when they cold email you saying "I have this great role for an awesome company". Without sayin…

In my experience, do a web search with a unique phrase out of the company or job description. It will often lead to the same job posting directly from the company.

Re: Ask HN: Is there anything you like about recruiters?

#42

Post by siliconc0w »

I think the problem is that the incentives generally aren't aligned and it's in your interest to be informed anyway about the opportunities near you. If you're employable spend a few hours or so and do your own research. Make a list of interesting companies that meet your criteria and contact 'em directly. You get to know you are making the more informed choice and from the money they save on not using a recruiter you can try to leverage a starting bonus or additional compensation.

I'd maybe pay for a recruiter that would be willing to do this for me but that isn't how they work. They get reqs and fill them which works for them and their clients but really isn't in your best interests.

Re: Ask HN: Is there anything you like about recruiters?

#43

Post by bsvalley »

They're always positive people. I always enjoy talking to them even though they do not represent the real culture of a company. As soon as you start the iterviewing process then the tone drops and people are cold and competitive with absolutely zero communication skills. Sometimes I ask myself - am I really working in the right department? Developers really suck. And I'm one of them :)

Re: Ask HN: Is there anything you like about recruiters?

#46

Post by scarface74 »

killnine wrote: post #13
scarface74 wrote: post #9

I think recruiters are great. I've been working with them for almost 20 years. As long as they are local recruiters working with local companies. I have 20 recruiters all from different companies in my contacts. - They have always asked me for permission before submitting me to a company. - My application never goes into a black hole like it would if I were applying for a company directly. I don't think I've ever bee…

I've had trouble finding recruiters in general. How do you find yours? Or do they find you?

A little bit of both. I make sure my LinkedIn profile has the necessary keywords.

I respond to every recruiter that works for a local, reputable agency where I don't have a contact and input them in my contact list.

Three scenarios:

I'm not looking at all - my response is "I'm not looking for a job right now, but let's keep in touch, send me opportunities that match my skill set and pay at least $x. For the right opportunity, I might be able to pulled away or know someone who is looking." This keeps me knowledgeable about market salaries and popular technologies that I need to focus on.

I'm "passively looking". Almost the same as above but usually by now, I'm looking to change jobs within the next three to six months, I've been invited to lunch by one or two companies, and actively preparing. My response then is, "I'm passively looking for a job. Here is my resume, I'm looking to leave in the next three to six months. My salary requirements are $X"

I'm actively looking. By now, I'm proactively sending my resume to recruiters, I've spoken to, telling them what I'm looking for, etc.

Notice, I'm not waiting for my status to change to "actively looking" to start preparing. By that time I've been priming the pump for six months to a year.

Re: Ask HN: Is there anything you like about recruiters?

#47

Post by scarface74 »

aarongeisler wrote: post #25

From my experience (on the hiring side), the good recruiters were autonomous and sourced qualified people. Bad recruiters wasted my team's time and brought and endless stream of unqualified candidates. It seemed like the good ones were 1 in 5.

If you are actually "bringing in" unqualified candidates and interrupting your team by asking them to interview people who are not at all qualified, that is your fault, not the recruiters.

A 30-45 minute phone screen that you do one on one could quickly filter out those who don't meet the minimum bar for the job.

I went to one interview three years ago without a phone screen, a phone screen would have been better for both sides. After 20 minutes in the on site interview, I couldn't even feign interest anymore. I just went through the process after the first 20 minutes so the recruiter -- that I had worked with off and on for years -- wouldn't look bad.

I said I would never waste my time going to an in person interview without a phone screen.

Re: Ask HN: Is there anything you like about recruiters?

#48

Post by scarface74 »

pawelwentpawel wrote: post #40
uladzislau wrote: post #15

Completely opposite experience here. Nothing good ever came from the recruiters (unlike the direct contacts with the companies). Usually they are hiring for the most undesirable roles/ problematic companies, they misrepresent the roles to the candidates and the candidates to the companies. The most annoying thing is however when they cold email you saying "I have this great role for an awesome company". Without sayin…

That is a really good point a truly annoying experience and a very common occurrence. Very often I get messages that specify the requirements and some buzz words but no mention of company or product that the potential candidate would be working at. I'm wondering if it's a thought through technique as it almost seems like a bait just to get people on the phone.

They won't tell you the company up front for a few reasons.

The actually company doesn't want to be inundated with resumes without being filtered by the recruiter.

Most companies don't have an exclusive agreement with the company. If they told you the company up front and you decided to apply directly. They won't get their commission.

In the same vein, if another recruiter caught wind that the target company is hiring, they may try to contact the company directly.

Of course they want to get people on the phone.

Re: Ask HN: Is there anything you like about recruiters?

#49

Post by scarface74 »

siliconc0w wrote: post #42

I think the problem is that the incentives generally aren't aligned and it's in your interest to be informed anyway about the opportunities near you. If you're employable spend a few hours or so and do your own research. Make a list of interesting companies that meet your criteria and contact 'em directly. You get to know you are making the more informed choice and from the money they save on not using a recruiter yo…

I think the problem is that the incentives generally aren't aligned and it's in your interest to be informed anyway about the opportunities near you.

How are their incentives not aligned with yours? They want to find you a job that is a good fit for both you and the company so you stick around for at least a year so they can get their commission. Your incentive is that you want a job that meets your requirements.

They give you the initial lead. It is still your responsibility to close the deal.

Re: Ask HN: Is there anything you like about recruiters?

#50

Post by dyim »

I've had deeply mediocre experiences with recruiters in tech - but my girlfriend was recently looking for a private equity job. She interviewed at ~15 places, and most of these interviews were placed by "headhunters" (i.e. recruiters).

According to her, it is deeply impractical to look for a PE job without enlisting the services of a top-tier recruiting firm.

I like these recruiters! Most people in PE are looking for jobs based on 1) prestige and 2) salary, but she was optimizing for a less rat-race-y function - and they were able to help her find a job that she really likes.

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