Ever since I joined LinkedIn, I've noticed that recruiters get a lot of flak from people. But in my view, recruiters are professionals who should be treated with respect - and that respect must go both ways.
As in every profession, there are good recruiters and bad recruiters. And, as with anyone else you encounter in your professional life, you should not disregard someone until they have given you a reason to.
My View
Recruiters are a valid and important part of the employment ecosystem. They are not only there when I need a new job or feel that I need them. They are always there, and they have a memory - probably assisted by whatever notes they have taken about me.
My view is that recruiters and I are in the same boat. We are just doing different jobs in that boat.
The Good
I have many wonderful recruiters in my network who are serious and professional. Many of them are people I have only ever said, "Thanks, but no thanks," to.
They contacted me about a role where, on paper, I was a good fit, but I was not interested in the opportunity. These are people who looked through my profile, matched me against the role, and reached out in a professional manner.
I am sure many of them used a template, but it was a professional template. It usually followed this format:
- Greeting me
- Explaining why they reached out
- Providing a short description of the role
- Inviting me to respond
In these cases, I respond with the same kind of respect and ask any follow-up questions I might have.
If they respond within a reasonable time and continue to act respectfully and professionally, I may also look through my own network. If I know someone who might be looking for a new role, and I would be comfortable putting my name behind them, I try to put the two in contact.
I do not see this as a big problem for me. I might be able to help a friend find a new job. That is a win-win situation: I am happy, my friend is happy, and the recruiter is happy.
I do not start doing the recruiter's job and interviewing my friends. I literally just ask:
"Hey, can you send me a copy of the job description and your contact details? I might know someone who would be interested, and I can tell them to contact you directly."
It is no big thing for me, but it can be a very big thing for both the recruiter and my friend.
All of this is driven by a "you get what you give" philosophy. If they are respectful to me, I am respectful to them. I try to help them, and I ask whether they would be interested in connecting with me on LinkedIn.
The Bad
Then we have a different kind of recruiter.
These are the ones using a broad shotgun approach. They send me a short and very obviously templated message, but it is clear that they have not reviewed my profile.
They might contact me about a role within software engineering, which is at least vaguely within the right area. However, the actual role might be embedded software engineering, requiring deep knowledge of C and C++.
Those are two languages I have never worked with, and there is nothing on my CV or LinkedIn profile suggesting I know anything beyond producing a basic "Hello World" example.
The other possibility is that they send me a role I might actually be interested in, but when I ask a follow-up question, I am met with silence.
What do I do in these cases?
I simply ignore them.
If they are not willing to put in the effort to respond to me, or even do enough homework to understand what roles might suit me, I will not expend any energy nurturing a connection with them.
The Ugly
This is the category that gives me the shivers.
These are the recruiters who can actually cause problems for the people they contact.
What sets them apart from the categories above?
They cold-call. They literally call my phone without warning.
A tip from me to recruiters everywhere: never do this.
Do not call someone out of the blue and, preferably while speaking very loudly, immediately ask whether they are interested in a new role before launching into a job description.
Why is this so bad?
Sit down, children. Grandpa Erik will tell you a story.
I was working as a consultant in Sweden. I was between assignments and sitting at my employer's head office doing training, internal work, and other things that consultants do between client assignments.
Nothing strange or unusual.
I was also chit-chatting with managers and heads of department. Suddenly, my phone rang while I was speaking to a team leader from another team.
I excused myself and answered.
What I was met with was: “HI! My name is X, and I am a recruiter for Y! I would like to talk to you about a position I have open!”
This was loud enough for the team leader to hear every single word.
I immediately started sweating and replied, “Hello, X. I am not currently looking for a new role. How did you get my number?”
X did not seem to hear or care about what I had said, because they immediately started rambling through a job description and continuing their sales pitch.
I repeated, “Sorry, X, but I am not interested.”
Did X accept that?
Nope.
The sales pitch continued.
Eventually, I hung up because I was clearly not getting through to them.
A few moments later, I received a Teams message from—drum roll—the team leader.
They asked, “Are you happy here? Is there any reason you are looking to move?”
I then had to spend time explaining the call and hoping they believed me when I said I was happy, because I genuinely was. Had I stayed in Sweden, I would probably still be working for that company.
The result of that cold call was that I had to explain myself to a team leader because a recruiter had ignored basic professional boundaries.
I also told friends in the industry how that recruitment company had behaved and which number they had called me on. Reputation travels.
Tips for Recruiters
I would like to offer three ground rules that recruiters should follow.
1. Do your homework
If you do not understand the role you are recruiting for, ask the company for clarification.
Questions such as, "What languages must this person have experience with?" should be a baseline.
Then make sure the person you contact actually has those qualifications.
2. Never cold-call a potential candidate
If you think someone is a good match, send them a message on LinkedIn or by email.
Explain why you are contacting them and ask whether they would be interested in arranging a call.
Do not assume that because you have found someone's phone number, you have permission to call them about a new job without warning.
3. Respect my time
When you contact me, make sure I know what you are contacting me about.
Include a description of the role and a short summary of the key qualifications.
For bonus points, explain why you contacted that specific person.
The Grand Finale
The majority of recruiters I have dealt with belong in the good category.
They are respectful, hard-working professionals who do their best to find a good match and help me get a good deal.
A smaller, but still significant, group belongs in the bad category. They are mostly a minor annoyance. They do not harm anyone except themselves, because I will remember them. I probably will not open their next message or take them seriously in the future.
They also contribute to giving their profession a bad reputation.
Then there is a small minority in the ugly category. These recruiters damage the reputation of both themselves and their employer, and they may cause genuine problems for the people they contact.
Why is this important?
Because I genuinely feel bad for the good recruiters I interact with: the ones doing their job to the best of their ability and trying to build a rapport with the people they are matching to roles.
They deserve the same respect as any other professional who puts effort into doing their job well.
Even when I am not interested in a role, I can still look around my network. There may be someone I know who would be a good fit.
We are all in the same boat, and life happens.
Today, you might feel safe and secure and believe you have no need for a recruiter. Tomorrow, you might unexpectedly lose your income.
Professional relationships should not only be treated with respect when you need something from them.