Many people nowadays are growing tired of receiving the same messages from recruitment agencies, telling them about great career opportunities that may be of interest to them – ones with ‘very attractive salaries’, prompting them to ‘get in touch to hear more’ about what is being proposed.
If your line of work is technology, then I would assume you would receive over a couple of messages per week, maybe more. To start with, most agencies behind these messages will immediately ask for a copy of your CV. They will usually then provide you with a brief on the role and the company – very basic information, and then off you go.
Your CV is now out there, with your personal information possibly being shared with a number of their clients’ roles which may in some way or another resemble some of the skills you possess, and are sometimes sent to companies without your consent. Good thing there is GDPR.
However, this is certainly an incorrect approach to the recruitment process, so the question remains: how can you get the most out of recruiters contacting you?
Let’s first start with being human and having some basic, necessary interaction. If you are serious about a move, then use the individual contacting you as much as you can by asking smart questions or for additional, relevant information about the career opportunities they are proposing.
The individual at the other end of that message should be enthusiastic about setting up a meeting, or calling you to discuss your skills and role in more detail. If not, consider asking for one yourself. After all, these recruiters are meant to be providing a service and should therefore take any request by potential candidates in the strictest confidence.
By giving them the opportunity to understand and learn more about your current career situation and ambitions, they would be able to guide you more efficiently. Ask them to clarify what exactly they have to offer you and if they have understood your skills and background.
Clear communication is key throughout the recruitment process
What is the role they are contacting you about? They might say that they have a large number of roles relating to your skills, so you can ask them once again to be more specific. Interview them as much as they are/will be interviewing you. Clear communication is key throughout the recruitment process.
In addition to asking about the proposed career opportunities, be sure to also ask them for advice. If they are professional and know the market well, they will be able to guide you on where they feel your next step should be.
Obviously, you might already know where you are heading in terms of your career, but by asking them to help build your career you could acquire further insight about trends and opportunities within your industry and you will be making the most out of the service they are providing you.
As an example, a good recruiter should know that if you are in a head of development role, then you may be interested in moving into a CTO position (this always depends on skills, background and the number of years spent in your current role). What if you are a senior developer? Then the next step may be as a team lead. QA engineer? You may wish to move into a software developer in test or QA lead role. A senior data analyst? You could perhaps be heading into a data scientist or product owner role. Ask for advice, who knows what greater prospects could arise?
Another question to ask would be about their experience in the current market. Where are they seeing the strongest trend in terms of skills? Which industries are looking for people with your expertise? Are there new concepts relevant to your field happening locally or coming to Malta they can tell you about?
Furthermore, do not hesitate to bring up salary guidance. What types of salaries are they seeing at your level? What kind of benefits or employee packages are being offered by other companies? What do they think about the current package overall and is it in line with the market?
These types of questions should definitely be taken into consideration and asked to recruiters. They should be able to answer them clearly and by doing so they would be guiding you to making the right choice and the right decision for your next move.
Therefore, if you ever receive a message from recruitment agencies, do not reply that you are interested and instantly share your CV. The case may be that you may not wish your CV to be shared at all. A good recruitment partner will not mind this. They will be there for the long term to build a relationship with you so that when the right role does come up, they would have understood what you are looking for and will contact you with the right opportunity.
Clare Barbara is client partner at Castille Resources.