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Why do some of you keep emailing candidates from Linkedin or social media websites regarding positions which don't match one's profile? Lately, I have been noticing most of job portal websites and recruiters trying to maintain a database of resumes rather than actually help a candidate find a job?
The worst are the ones who send out mass random one line job requirement from their upgraded linkedin accounts requesting resume only to come back with a short questionnaire with detailed requirement later? Equally worse are the ones who need client references in advance along with resume and then they never get back to you even if the references are good. I have also noticed cases where recruiters are calling the reference managers or directors trying to build a network or connection for themselves.
Are there any ethics or rules as to how these people operate or basically everything goes in the world of commissions & referrals?
Why do some of you keep emailing candidates from Linkedin or social media websites regarding positions which don't match one's profile? Lately, I have been noticing most of job portal websites and recruiters trying to maintain a database of resumes rather than actually help a candidate find a job?
The worst are the ones who send out mass random one line job requirement from their upgraded linkedin accounts requesting resume only to come back with a short questionnaire with detailed requirement later? Equally worse are the ones who need client references in advance along with resume and then they never get back to you even if the references are good. I have also noticed cases where recruiters are calling the reference managers or directors trying to build a network or connection for themselves.
Are there any ethics or rules as to how these people operate or basically everything goes in the world of commissions & referrals?
Bingo! Not a recruiter, but a former colleague of mine was. Say they have a couple of big clients that have variety of jobs to fill. They come up randomly and haphazardly and they need to be filled quickly. One of the advantages of going to a head hunter is that they may already know of good candidates that can be referred quickly without having to post an ad and sort through hundreds of resumes.
If the head hunter doesn't have any leads and has to post the ad to generate resumes and then vet them, well the company could do that and save them the expense of the head hunter. There is no time savings.
That's why headhunters are always trolling for resumes and the way they do it can be shady. It used to be worse. These guys used to bribe secretaries at companies or firms for phone directories and cold call people at their office all the time leaving messages that some big time company wants to offer them lots of money. You'd send your resume to the head hunter, meet them and then find out that job was already filled or probably didn't exist and they would claim to look out for other opportunities for you. Now they just do it by email that you can delete.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TexasTony
Why do some of you keep emailing candidates from Linkedin or social media websites regarding positions which don't match one's profile? Lately, I have been noticing most of job portal websites and recruiters trying to maintain a database of resumes rather than actually help a candidate find a job?
Because in some crappy recruiter agencies they have to have a certain number of "contacts" a day as part of a quota system.
Yea I've been getting connect requests from staffing agency recruiters I usually immediately put them ignore because I'd never work for them again. One snuck past because he was a member of a professional group and his profile was titled Scientific Recruiter instead of Aerotek.
I've also had a few shady looking opportunity In-mails recently.
Why do some of you keep emailing candidates from Linkedin or social media websites regarding positions which don't match one's profile?
[...]
Are there any ethics or rules as to how these people operate or basically everything goes in the world of commissions & referrals?
This.
They didn't check your profile, they just send out mass emails because it's cheap and even if only 1% respond, and only 0.1% are qualified, and only 0.01% are successfully placed, that's still a thousands of dollars made with very little effort when sending out 10,000 emails.
Back in Jan 2014 I had a recruiter connect with me and wanted to have a brief phone call. After taking out time to talk to him for 15-20 mins, he wanted to know my background etc and mentioned that he has a possible position opening up and I might be a good fit. I told him to contact me when that position opens up and until then I would prefer communicating through email.
In April I had a recruiter from the same company try to contact me. She told me that she has taken over the previous account managers position and would like to talk about a job possibility (it sounded similar to previous job description which happens to match my profile so I was interested). I again took some time out to talk to her. As usual she disappeared after asking similar questions (what am I looking for in a job and what are my skills etc) and now in August a 3rd person from same recruiting company comes up and wants to connect with me regarding a possibility of job opening that they might have. This time I refused to talk to him and give him the previous names of account managers who had already spoken to me. This is not the first time this has happened. Its getting so bad that I refuse to pick up my phone during working hours if I don't know who is calling. Linkedin has made it even worse. You have people with 500+ connections trying to add you randomly and send you emails inquiring about your previous clients and work atmosphere or I knew someone by the name of XYZ who worked there.
I don't want to sound rude and unprofessional and I am not someone who is in high demand (I wish). I just feel that these people know that everyone is looking for a better job and good opportunity and they somehow try to exploit this.
1) Delete your LinkedIn account - if an employer or recruiter is only looking to add to the number of connections, they are not worth working for anyway.
2) Research and find a professional resume writer that can make you look like Superman without lying
3) Find companies you wish to work for and contact them directly bypassing a recruiter
4) If you have to use a recruiter, network with folks in your chosen field and find out who the reputable ones are (the list is shrinking)
Equally worse are the ones who need client references in advance along with resume and then they never get back to you even if the references are good.
Do you know why they want your references in advance? Its not because they are interested in placing you in a job. They want your references to get information about who does the hiring at the previous places you worked. The references you give them are an information tool for their own personal use. You should NEVER give references in advance to anyone. Tell them that you only provide that information once you meet them in person.
Its also not very considerate to those who agreed to be your references, to just pass out their names and phone numbers to random people who contact you. References should be guarded carefully and only given to those who have a serious interest in hiring you.
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