Does one bad apple spoil the whole bunch? Maybe when we’re talking about fruit, but the expression falls short when the same standards are applied to people. Though it’s understandable that a poor recruiting experience leaves a bad taste, it’s important to remember that high tech recruiters are not all bad. In fact, that stereotype is just one of many that make finding your next IT consultant job harder than it needs to be. Here are a few myths about working with a recruiter that are getting in the way of your career growth.
Myth #1: Recruiters Should Be Kept in the Dark About Other Opportunities
The myth is that transparency with recruiters about other opportunities puts your job prospects at risk. Some candidates think recruiters who know they are facing direct competition will not work as hard to be your advocate. Since the odds of making a placement have decreased, they are naturally less committed to your success, right? Not in our experience.
Informing recruiters about other job opportunities can work in your favor. The IT candidate market has a higher demand than the current supply can satisfy. The idea that you have spoken with other recruiters is a foregone conclusion. Most high-quality candidates are being bombarded with opportunities and it is the responsibility of an attentive recruiter to present positions that align with their career goals.
If the recruiter you are working with knows you have a few desirable options on your radar, which can help them to accelerate the hiring process. For example, knowledge of other job opportunities is not a deterrent for TransTech recruiters. In fact, we use it to encourage our clients to consider candidates with a sense of urgency, minimize extra hiring steps, and make a strong offer before candidates disappear into a competitor’s workforce. As a result, that will improve the quality of salaried positions and contracts you can get.
Myth #2: Recruiters Don’t Care Who They Place
The term headhunter comes to mind for this myth. The idea is that recruiters are just looking for a warm body with the right skillset, ignoring what the candidate wants out of a position. Your preferences and career goals are a secondary concern, at best. At least, that’s what some will have you believe.
Certainly, there are recruiters who just send out offers without doing their homework, but those people are playing with fire. IT professionals who end up in positions that fail to align with their goals or don’t feel challenged are more likely to leave in six months to a year. That hurts a recruiter’s reputation with both companies and job seekers.
Good recruiters want to foster relationships. By nature, staffing and recruiting is a people business. That is why our recruiters get to know you, your goals, your deal-breakers, and your expectations for working with a recruiter. That way, we can find positions that match your multi-year career plan. Everyone is happiest when you are satisfied by the opportunities you receive. Plus, our team loves seeing IT candidates get excited about their prospects and futures.
Myth #3: Recruiters Take Money Away from You
One persistent myth is associated with a recruiter’s fee. Some will say that working with a recruiter cuts into your potential pay. The thought is that the amount allocated for a recruiter’s fee is removed from your salary or contract rate. Therefore, recruiters limit your earning power. In fact, the opposite is true.
A recruiter’s fee is separate from what gets paid to an IT professional. Budgets that are put aside for IT workers come from the department they’ll be working in. The money that goes toward a recruiter’s fee comes from a company’s HR budget. These separate budgets have no bearing on one another. So, the choice to not work with a recruiter will not increase the offer: it might decrease your compensation.
Thanks to their regular interactions with decision makers and IT professionals, recruiters are knowledgeable about IT salary and IT contract benchmarks. They can help guide job seekers as they search for positions, providing them with the knowledge to get the best possible offers.
The Truth about Working with a Recruiter
Though it’s clear the above myths do not apply to every recruiter, it still can be difficult to find a recruiter who cares about your goals and will speed up your search for amazing positions. One way to simplify your search is to look at their culture, any instances of them winning awards like the Best of Staffing Talent Award, and their overall reputation. It even helps to reach out and learn first-hand what their recruiters are like.
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