What to Do When a Headhunters Calls
Receiving a call out of the blue from a headhunter can be a slightly daunting experience. However, you should also feel flattered. It is important to remember from the outset of any discussion that you are the one who holds the cards.
You may have progressed
your career to date in a self-powered and conventional way, by applying for
jobs directly. There is absolutely nothing wrong with doing so, particularly as a recent graduate. Employers are well aware that they can hire new graduates without the need to scour relentlessly for them. Most would be unwilling to pay the search fees to find them, unless they had a degree in an unusual or highly specialised field.
A Headhunters Call is Both Exciting & can Offer Many Benefits
Once your career is on track, however, to get such a call can be an exciting step. A mediating third party between yourself and a prospective employer can produce many benefits. The headhunter should have spent years building up a relationship with the employer and be intimately aware of the needs of their HR department.
Establish the Headhunters Relationship with the Employer
This is the first question you should definitely ask, should an approach be made to you: "How many people have you placed in this company in the past twelve months?" It is important to establish that that headhunter is on close terms, especially with the hiring manager. If there is a relationship of value and trust there, you are going to benefit from it.
You don't want your
CV to land on the desk of someone who has no idea where it came from. With luck, this person will be your next boss. And if they are going to pay a 25% premium to secure your services, they want to feel very confident indeed that they have the
right candidate for their position.
The Role of the Headhunter is not Career Coach or Advice Giver
They have contacted you because they want to make a sale. Of you and your skills. They are brokers. The negative associations some people have about them are because of these assumptions that they have magical powers and job seekers need them. This is not true it is a two-way street.
If you decide to proceed with an executive search partner, they should never try to hustle or spook you into believing you would be lost without them. Should such tactics be used, back away. Getting a call from a headhunter is a sign to you that you have the power and if you choose to work with them to advance your career you can harness that power to your advantage.
