How to Find and Work with a Recruiter

By Todd Nilson

Employment Manager

SPR, Inc.

 

As if the daunting task of finishing a four-year degree weren't enough, now that you're out in the job market, what's the most efficient, direct way to land that first job?

Find a few good recruiters.

Of course, there's more than one sort of recruiter to choose from, some of whom will be right for you in your first job market foray, and some of whom will be of less use than that resume copied onto bright, neon lime-colored paper which your career services center suggested would get you attention.

Types of Recruiters

In your initial job search, it's a good idea to get to know the front line of people who will be viewing your resume of splendid college accomplishments and internship experience: the recruiters. Of the several kinds of recruiters you are prone to encounter, here the main categories:

· Corporate Recruiters

· Headhunters

· Staffing Services Recruiters

 

Corporate recruiters may be the most difficult, elusive sorts of folks to reach. They work for the Fortune 1000 companies of the world, usually in teams, and with various specializations. If you are lucky enough to reach them by phone, they will most likely direct you to an applicant web site such as Hire.com or their own corporate site. This is neither good nor bad, so long as you realize that corporate recruiters frequently find themselves more tied to a formal process or method of recruiting than the other two sorts.

Headhunters , or executive recruiters, as some may prefer to be called, are frequently independent business operators or work for a firm specializing in recruiting. They find their clients, frequently large corporate organizations with a recruiting budget, and secure agreements to find a short list of well-matched candidates for that company to interview and hire-all for a fee. Most headhunters, you will find, prefer working with highly experienced candidates with at least five years or more of experience in the corporate jungle, so they may not be your best bet.

Finally, recruiters for staffing services, companies like Adecco, Manpower or Kelly Services, may be your most logical avenues if you are just graduating from college. Recruiters working for staffing services frequently have not only temporary jobs, as they are known for, but also recruit on a contract-for-hire or direct hire basis for their client companies.

There are, of course, other sorts of recruiters, including those who work for management or IT consulting firms, but many of them will be seeking highly skilled consultants who have five or more years of specialized experience in a particular skill or industry.

An Entrance Strategy

What's that? You'd rather interview for a real job than speak to a staffing firm recruiter? If that's your attitude, then you can probably expect to spend the next few months unemployed or flipping burgers. Although the staffing service recruiter may not be able to offer you full medical, dental and 401(k) benefits (some can, though), what they can offer you is a foot in the door at many large, prestigious companies

 

The above is an excerpt from The Last Job Search Guide You'll Ever Need: How to Find and Get the Job or Internship of Your Dreams, which is available for sale for $19.85 in our bookstore or $27.00 at Amazon.com but for free to those who subscriber to our free career newsletter. This hot new book contains job search secrets of the most experienced, most knowledgeable and most respected career experts. Learn career planning, job hunting tools and tactics, interviewing, cover letter and resume writing (lots of samples!), networking, and how to find an internship. Written by 149 career experts. To receive a free copy, subscribe to our free career newsletter.

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