Has Your Head Been Hunted Lately? Working with Recruiters in Your Job Search

My clients often ask me for referrals to a good “headhunter.” After a little Q&A on the subject, I often find that my clients often think of recruiters as “jobs dispensers” or in other words, a magical shortcut around the plain old hard, boring, and frightening work of a job search.

Connecting with a headhunter is simply not an easy way out. Here’s how it doesn’t work: You find a great headhunter, they present your resume to the dozens of open job requisitions they have, and a few smooth interviews later, you are hired. Wouldn’t that be nice? Who wouldn’t want to work with a headhunter? I know I would! Unfortunately, it doesn’t quite work that way for the vast majority of people.

After working with recruiters for years, and working as one for the past few years, here is what I know about recruiters: