Recruiters are on the phone a lot! Reaching out to clients and candidates on a regular basis is so important for a number of reasons, but most importantly, it helps keep everyone informed. The working-world moves quickly and in order to keep up, recruiters have to hit the phones every day. Depending on if you are a hiring manager or candidate there are several reasons why a recruiter may be calling on you frequently.
Right Place, Right Time
Great recruiters know that finding great people and placing them in perfect roles is a matter of “right place, right time.” You could call it luck, but really it is hard work. Recruiting is always a numbers game, and only a small percentage of people are ready to hire or ready to look for a job when they get a call. Lots of calls have to be made before they get to those people.
Hiring Managers
The title question is most asked by hiring managers. A few reasons why recruiters might call you frequently:
- New business – If you’re getting a lot of calls from a recruiter you’ve never worked with, it’s because they want your business! They’ve identified you as someone they would like to work with and they know the market rewards persistence. Situations can change on a daily basis and they want their name fresh in your mind when it does.
- Job insight – Recruiters need to know as much information up-front as possible to help you avoid reviewing resumes or interviewing candidates that don’t fit. Hiring managers that just provide a job description to a recruiter and expect perfect resumes to roll in are in for some disappointment. Your recruiter is calling you so you both can avoid a longer “education” process.
- Time Kills All Deals – If you’ve engaged a recruiter’s help in a search and are slow to provide information on the role or feedback on resumes or interviews, you can expect many calls from the recruiter who doesn’t want you to lose the candidate and start over again. It’s in everyone’s best interest to focus on getting through the hiring process quickly because good candidates don’t last long in the market.
- Job Fit – If a role is open for an extended period of time, it usually signals that something is off and the recruiter needs to discuss options. A good recruiter will share what challenges they are facing in recruiting for your role and might suggest relaxing some of the requirements or increasing the compensation if the market isn’t responding.
Candidates
Candidates get recruiter calls for ALL of the previously discussed reasons as hiring managers, just from the job seekers point of view. We won’t waste your time repeating them, but here are some additional reasons candidates might get multiple calls from a recruiters:
- Perfect Fit – If your background matches perfectly for a job a recruiter is working on, they might hound you a bit. Best advice is hear them out because many times it can work out great for you. If you know you’re not going to explore the market, just tell the recruiter “no” and they’ll move on.
- Going Dark – If you’ve started the job search process with a recruiter and they keep calling you, there is a good reason and you should call them back. They either have a new role to discuss, new info on a role that’s been discussed, or need your input to respond to a hiring manager. Believe us, they’re not calling you for fun. Time kills all deals.
Communication
Recruiters rely on strong communication with clients and candidates. Information is power and great recruiters know that reporting to their clients and candidates on a regular basis will help to get everyone in a position to be in the “right place, right time.” Be honest with your recruiter and if you only want calls for a specific reason, then they should honor and respect that.
Regardless if you are a candidate or client, a recruiter is going to contact you because they have new information to share and emailing is not always the fastest form of communication. If you can, take the time to call back or pick-up, odds are it will be something you want to hear!
If you have questions about this article or recruiters in general, please don’t hesitate to contact the Talance Group at 713-357-9565.