Recruiter Follow Through

I hear this often, “The Recruiter led me to believe it was my job, but he never called me back. Why do they do this?”

First of all let me make this statement; I know a lot of recruiters. Many are my friends. Some are not. Many I trust explicitly. Some I don’t. Just like any other industry, there are really good people and there are others who are not really good people. This is a fact of life.

A recruiter may tell you in many different ways “the job is yours, let me get back to you, ” for one of two reasons:

#1 – They want to keep you on the ‘line’ until they finish ‘selling you’ to their client.

If you are working with a third party recruiter, they’ll need to go back to their client and convince them that you are the best possible candidate within the budget. Sometimes the recruiter is competing with other recruiters. This makes this ‘sales process’ even more difficult.

If you are working with an internal HR recruiter, this sales process still occurs, however it’s not as difficult. There could still be budget issues and internal candidates involved in the decision.

They will lead you on so that you don’t go find another job while they are wrapping things up.

#2 – They could be completely sincere with their statement.

However there are still lots of issues that come into play. Budget, changes in business goals, internal candidates, and new or differing opinions from other members of the team that the recruiter did not know about and/or could not share with you.

Many of the good recruiters I know will try to follow through with their candidates. They feel it’s important to treat their candidates the same way they want to be treated. However, some do not follow through.

Regardless of the reason(s) for leading you on, there are many reasons a recruiter will not follow through with you . Here are the reasons I have discovered:

1. They forgot. (Yeah, I’m trying to be nice.)
2. They are too busy. (Again, I’m trying to be nice.)
3. They don’t like giving people bad news. (This is real, many people can’t do this well.)
4. They don’t care about you at this time. (They may care about you when they need you.)
5. They have moved on to another Job Requisition that you can’t do and you’re not important
6. They feel you need them more than they need you. (I’ve heard this said.)
7. They are not nice people.

OK, here is the best advice for dealing with being led on and recruiters who do not follow through.

#1 – You are under no obligation to sit idly and wait for anyone. Work your career transition process. This means, as soon as you are done interviewing, regardless of what the recruiter says, go on to your next task.

Never stop working your career transition process until you have an offer letter in your hand and a firm start date, salary and commitment.

#2 – Ask probing questions about the process. The level of relationship you have with your recruiter will determine how deep you can probe. Here are some examples of probing questions:

1. Are you interviewing other candidates?
2. Are other recruiters presenting candidates?
3. Who else has to review my resume before an offer letter can be presented?
4. Is there any possibility that a budget change is possible?
5. What other issues are in play that may result in me getting this job?
6. What are your next steps on this position?
7. When should I expect to hear back from you next?

The most important question to ask your recruiter is:

If for any reason this opportunity falls apart, will you call me and let me know it is not going to happen?

 

I regularly recommend to career transition folks “NO Expectations.” Work your process. Keep moving forward. However you can manage your expectations if you are willing to ask probing questions.

How have you dealt with a recruiter who has led you on?

How have you dealt with a recruiter who did not follow through?