What to Look For In a Recruiter.

There are thousands of recruiters and search consultants out there. Some are great, some are not so great: How do you decide which recruiter to work with? Before making such an important decision, it is helpful to know what makes a recruiter a good recruiter.

Here are some things to look for when working with a recruiter to find your next job:

• The recruiter specializes in job searches in the industry you’re in. Because recruiting is a referral business, the more experience a recruiter has in placing candidates with your background the better. Their network of like professionals will be more extensive and can translate into a quicker turnaround time than it would if you work with a recruiter who is a Jack-of-all-trades but a master of none.
• The recruiter is more interested in your career than in finding you a job. With recruiting being a commission-based business, there is constant pressure on recruiters to achieve company-mandated quotas. So look for recruiters who show a keen interest in putting you in the right place, rather than just filling their clients’ positions.
• The recruiter has a long-term relationship with the companies he or she represents. This is important because you will be relying on this recruiter to have in-depth knowledge of important factors like the company’s culture, history and their interview process. The more a recruiter knows about a company in advance, the better prepared you will be to make the right decision.
• The recruiter asks you for references prior to submitting your resume to their clients. This is one of the biggest signs that you are working with a recruiter and firm that focuses on a quality process. If they are diligent in verifying your background, you can trust that they have done the same with the jobs they are presenting to you as well.
• The recruiter maintains a relationship with you long after they’ve found you a job. This is a sure sign of a recruiter who cares about you as a person as opposed to one who sees you as part of their headcount.