Should you meet with that headhunter who just contacted you?
From past experiences, you have probably dealt with many recruiters who never
called you back, had the attention span of a five year old, and ended up losing
that email you sent them.
Before you begin, consider the position of a
headhunter/recruiter. Their job is to connect you with the employer. The
relationships they want to build are with the employers since they are their
ultimate clients who write them their paycheck. Hence, they will operate in the
best interest of the employer, and not always the candidate seeking employment.
Think of them as the listing agent and you are the prospective home purchaser
going through them.
So why bother with the hassle of having to submit to the
endless forms their agency requires you to fill out with personal and
professional information? Why hassle with those mindless interviews they want
you to come in for? Why begin to enter into an agreement with an agent who
might not have your best interest in mind?
The bottom line is you have to filter them out to save you
both some time. They want you as a client and broaden their database of
candidates, so bringing you in begins that relationship and creates more of a
connection. You should only want to build this relationship if that headhunter
comes highly recommended from a colleague or if there is a job they have posted
where you feel strongly about, and have not already seen. This is a critical
point. If you can locate the same job on a search engine or job aggregator
(such as indeed or simplyhired), you should first apply independently without
using the recruiter. Why you might ask? Everything else being equal, hiring you
will be costlier for the employer to use the recruiter for his/her services. Although
none of this will be explicitly stated by the recruiter or employer, using the recruiter may ultimately lead to a
lower offer during salary negotiations.
If you do not value building a relationship, but applied for
a specific position and the headhunter requires you to meet with his/her agency
first, consider asking a few key questions over the phone with the lead
recruiter (not the receptionist or junior recruiter who knows very little about
the position). You will find cases where
they will be persistent for you to visit their offices. You can be positive and
assertive at the same time, by keeping the conversation focused on the position
until you gather enough information for you to make a go/no-go decision to meet
with them.
Otherwise if you get some random call asking you to come in
to find out more about your background and career goals, you may want to put
that meeting low on your list of priorities. This headhunter has no immediate
position in mind but is hoping to find a fit for you, which will probably waste
your time.
