Executive Recruiters Cheat Sheet

Great Tool guys, Thank you for getting

Great Tool guys, Thank you for getting it posted.

Todd- Glad you liked it. I think we

Todd-

Glad you liked it. I think we hit a chord with the latest show. I deal with recruiters all the time, but forget that for many, knowing the basics will make a HUGE difference.

Mark

I listened the first part today.. I

I listened the first part today.. I liked it verymuch. I need to listen the second part immediately. So I'll stop skipping around here... :) bye

Thanks for the great shows and the

Thanks for the great shows and the cheat sheet. The only complaint I have about the show is that this is the only podcast where I have to take notes! :-) The cheat sheet saves me on this one!

Thanks from a fellow podcaster and recent "upgrade" to manager.

--Chuck

Chuck- Thanks for the kind words.

Chuck-

Thanks for the kind words. Mike and I struggle with the notes thing all the time! For now, we're of the mind that we're the only show that people want to, so that's a good thing.

We've got some ideas about how to make some of that easier... will keep you posted.

It's a privilege to serve you and we're glad you're benefiting

Mark

Hey guys... I had a question with

Hey guys...
I had a question with regard to your "make sure you know where they got your name" point. How would you respond to "the person who refered me to you asked asked me not to divulge their name"?
Any ideas?

Pete- GREAT question... one I KNEW

Pete-

GREAT question... one I KNEW was coming. Long answer(s) ahead.

Let me give you a couple of answers, in the interest of wrestling this subtle issue to the ground.

First, my PERSONAL answer, which sometimes has no obvious relationship to my recommendations to clients, because my situation is by definition different. For instance, I never send out my resume. NEVER. If someone needs my resume to know me, I don't have enough of a relationship with them to trust them with my resume. It's the equivalent of, "if you have to ask how much it is, you can't afford it."

Okay. So, personally, FOR ME, in almost all situations, I don't care for this approach AT ALL. As a recruiter, I NEVER did it, and I know others did it, with subterfuge involved. Sure, there were some that were legitimately protecting someone (probably a friend), and so my approach has some limitations. I accept that.

There's something else about this approach that has always bothered me. The recruiter calls me, they want information from me, I don't know them, and only when I ask for the referring party do they admit that THAT is confidential? This just rubs me wrong.

I'm not saying they should divulge anything... but I do think it's reasonable for me to hesitate to engage based on this issue.

For ME, then, it's a deal breaker. Is it possible that this is my boss's boss referring me, and she wants me to come with her to a new company, and she sees me as a great new hire? YES. While this is a clumsy way to do it (it's probably just too early to be obvious), it's happened, and I've seen it. It's also possible that I could have billed one tech company in stock options 10 years ago (versus cash), and never have worked ever again. But I didn't, and no worries. :-)

Now, what's my RECOMMENDATION to the vast majority of managers?

(1). PAUSE. The fact that they're not sharing means either that they truly can't tell you, to honor a commitment to someone who does know you, or they just don't want to say where they got your name.

[For those of you reading this who would consider yourself to be less than expert in this subject, I encourage you to take a moment and visit http://www.jigsaw.com and get a sense of what the world of "name referrals" is like. Caveat isolationists.]

As you pause, ask yourself about the feeling you have thus far in the conversation. How did they respond to your previous questions? Did they balk initially? Did they answer fully? Were they respectful and polite? Did they interrupt you, indicating a lack of respect for your issues and therefore a belief in the primacy of their needs? Do you find them to be relating well to you?

As well, ask yourself, what's YOUR situation? Are layoffs imminent? Do you really need a recruiter's help? Could you work with this person? Have you put off too long calling some other recruiter you've been referred to?

(2) DECIDE. You basically have three choices, and I wouldn't say any are inherently wrong.

(2a). BAIL. Decide to end THIS INSTANCE of this relationship. Say, "Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. Under the circumstances, that makes me a little less willing to go further. I certainly respect your honoring the request, and so I know you'll honor my concern for the time being as well. I'd be happy to chat with you if you can get clear to share that person's name with me. Until then, I'll politely pass, and hope you understand. I'd be happy to talk again under different circumstances." There is nothing wrong about being gracious. Smile at people on your way up - you'll see them on the way back down.

(By the way, if they try to "describe" the person, as in, "someone who knows you well and works near you in the building..." I'd RUN FOR THE HILLS. They want to eat their cake and have it too. That's scary.)

And at this point, I would also start thinking about reaching out to a few friends and developing some relationships with recruiters proactively. Someone thinks you're in play (not thinking about leaving, necessarily, but a good enough performer to be of interest to others.)

(2b). ASK DIFFERENTLY. Ask the recruiter to go back to the person whom they said has referred you and get permission to share their name with you. "I'd like to go forward, but do think it's fair I know who referred me. Would you be willing to go back to them and tell them my concerns, and get their okay for me?" If they won't, okay, they won't, and under these circumstances you really have no choice but to revert to 2a above. If you choose 2c now, you've started the relationship on a sour note, in my opinion.

(2c). GO FORWARD ANYWAY. Maybe you like the recruiter, maybe you really need help, maybe you've heard the name from a friend and the friend trusts this recruiter. That's FINE; GO FOR IT.

And when you refer friends, talk to them first, and let them know BEFORE you give their names to a recruiter.

Hope this helps!

Mark

I'm wondering where I can find bios for

I'm wondering where I can find bios for you and Mike.
Jerry

Jerry- So are a lot of other people.

Jerry-

So are a lot of other people. ;-)

You can hear us talk about our backgrounds at a high level, in our cast titled "the Show About Us":

http://www.manager-tools.com/2005/07/the-show-about-us/

We're both West Pointers ('82), former Army officers, and served together in our first assignment. I left the Army for Procter & Gamble, and then spent several years as a recruiter before forming my own management consulting firm 12 years ago, where I am to this day. I have the greatest job in the world.

Mike became an IT manager and executive in Information Technology after the Army. He spent a number of years becoming quite senior at MCI (where his organization was a client of my firm) before leaving to become an entrepreneur. He now owns 3 Italian restaurants (San Vito) in Northern Virginia. He recently turned down an offer to be CIO of a billion dollar telecom firm.

He and I are passionate about management skills and development, and see Manager Tools as the most important professional endeavor of our lives. We believe we are capable of helping significantly improve the practice of management for all time. Seriously.

I hope that helps... is there a specific question we can answer?

Mark

Hey Guys, Thank you so much for your

Hey Guys,

Thank you so much for your podcasts on recruiters. (I think it's one of your Top 10.) I realize now that I've been handling these calls all wrong. Before I heard what you had to say, I looked at these calls just as an interruption. Now I'm going to use your ideas to try to turn them into something more positive. As a matter of fact, I received two calls today and am already putting your ideas to work. Thanks again!

MessengerBoy- Thanks for the kind

MessengerBoy-

Thanks for the kind words! Glad you're getting value out of our work and putting the recommendations to USE.

It's a privilege to serve you,

Mark