Headhunters

When the endless applications and resumes don’t seem to do the trick, some companies have sought to enlist the help of a staffing agency – also known as headhunters. Over the past decade, it has become increasingly popular to utilize the job-searching skills of professional headhunters.

By definition, a headhunter searches for suitable candidates to fill particular jobs. Not only is your resume given maximum exposure, but you’re given access to jobs within huge companies that aren’t even listed. Companies will pay headhunters thousands of dollars to find suitable candidates for particular positions, and for some job openings, they’ll pay up to tens of thousands for a good professional. Moreover, since you hold the checkbook, it’s in the best interest of these headhunters to find you a great job.

Headhunters that you’ll work with personally most likely work on commission or get paid a high salary and are expected to meet a quota. They’re power networkers, with thousands of people on their LinkedIn, and talk to dozens of candidates every day to match with job openings.

If the thought interests you, keep this in mind:

Work with one headhunter, not multiple.

If you work with multiple headhunters, you’re getting pitched numerous times throughout the week – and from a company perspective, imagine getting spammed with the same product over and over in your email inbox. In the business world, that can be summed up in two terms: unprofessional, and embarrassing.

No headhunter wants to compete against another.

If you want the best job, find the best headhunter suited towards that industry. For instance, if you were interested in a marketing position for the largest PR firm in the nation, you’d find a headhunter familiar with the company, the employees, the recruiters – not someone who has no idea what a PR firm does.

Weigh the cost against the benefit.

It’s no lie – headhunters can be expensive. If obtaining a headhunter seems is a bit out of your range, keep in mind the type of position you’re looking for. If you want a Wall Street, Main Street-type position with little experience in those areas, consider the chances of getting an interview without a headhunter. If it’s impossible, the price may just be worth it.

But, that said…some headhunters are free.

That’s right. Most headhunters will be paid a portion of your first year’s annual salary by that company, rather than directly out of your pocket.

Turn on the TV and let the calls roll in.

Headhunters get paid to make sure you find an amazing job. It saves time, effort, worry, and disappointment on your part…so sit back and prepare for the interviews.

The Jobs No One Applies For

Some of the best jobs out there for you are the ones that aren’t listed.

This past weekend, an Eagle Scout impressed me at a local job fair. As a company that specializes in career search services, we were looking for experienced HR professionals –  he was a senior at the University of St. Thomas, and he wanted to be our accountant.

But, we weren’t hiring an accountant. Mr. Eagle Scout gave quite the pitch on his skills, including how he doesn’t know anything about QuickBooks – but, if we created a position, he’d be the best bookkeeper we’d ever have. After uncertainty and a little bargaining, we had a deal.

Our company went in looking for HR, and instead came out with an accountant. It’s like a trip to the grocery store – walk in for the milk, but you walk out with everything that can fit in the cart. We had a new accountant we’d fit in.

This kind of situation isn’t rare. With an unemployment rate of 7%, Galvestonians are bouncing back with more jobs after years of loss from hurricanes, oil spills, and bad publicity that took a toll on the city’s small businesses – but now, there’s a job growth rate of 2.4%. Still a commuter city, professionals are looking towards Houston and suburbs in between for employment, instead of right here on the Gulf Coast, with hundreds of small businesses and a future job growth rate of over 35%.

With that said, jobs don’t need to be advertised for them to be available. Sometimes, small business owners here in Galveston don’t realize the need for a particular position, until you walk up with an Eagle Scout badge and present a pitch – to hire you, and you’ll make them infinitely better.

Sounds easy on paper, but how is it done?

Create a list of companies that interest you. 

Research companies, observe their needs, and fulfill them. Very few candidates take initiative in wanting to help companies rather than themselves. If you can offer stable growth and business, why wouldn’t companies hire you?

Make a pitch tailored to why companies should create a position for you. 

If you have the skills, you have the power of change to their business. Explain who you are, and what you can accomplish. 

When employers can match your face, words, and mission, they’ll know you better – and people hire those they know and trust.

As a candidate, you have nothing to lose. At the very least, you’ll be fresh on their minds when businesses are looking to hire. To top it off, it’s likely that no one is doing the same thing as you.

Aim to be the needle, not the haystack.

What’s Wrong With 89% of You?

You need a job for whatever reason. You either don’t have one, you’re stuck in the position you have now, it’s not a good fit for your family, it doesn’t pay enough, etc. etc.

Did you know 68% of candidates tell their network they’re looking for a job just once a month and 89% feel embarrassed to indicate they’re looking for a new position?

Are those numbers hitting home?

You have Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, email, Reddit, text messaging and more. The world is connected more now than it was ever before in the history of the human race.

Harness those connections and the ability to communicate in the blink of an eye. Let people know that you’re looking for a job by posting weekly. Create a list of those with jobs in your industry, and contact them once a week to check-in and see if any new positions have opened up.

Make sure your entire network knows that if a related position opens, that you want to be kept in the loop, and if they meet someone in the industry you’re looking to be employed in, that they inquire about job openings.

More than anything, what helps the most in a job search, is good old fashioned kindness. When was the last time you had a friend who was absolutely amazing and was in need? Didn’t you try to do something for them, even if it was just a prayer or a kind thought? Being kind to others, even before you have to search for a job, will keep you front and center in other people’s minds.

If you’re always kind to others, chances are, they’ll always be kind to you.

Shameless plug: Get your friends to send in their resumes to us for a complimentary analysis. It’ll help them, and it’s seriously good karma.

Pass this link around please! :http://smashingresumes.com/complimentary-resume-analysis

Mistakes You’re Likely Making On LinkedIn

Did you know that 71% of hiring managers view a candidate’s background on LinkedIn before they actually decide to schedule an interview? Did you know it’s cheaper to find a candidate on LinkedIn rather than go through a job board such as Monster or CareerBuilder?

Either way, you have to be on LinkedIn. Consider it the Facebook for professionals looking to network. You add different friends, colleagues, family, and managers to reach out into their networks connecting yourself to tens of thousands of people with just a couple hundred connections.

Mistake #1: Copy and paste? Booooring

Hiring managers have likely already seen your resume, that’s why they’re on your profile. Give them something completely new and bold to look at. Provide them with a convincing reason to call you for the interview instead of the other candidate, and aim to impress with every section of your profile.

Because LinkedIn is a social service, it gives you the opportunity to add in information about your personality. Add in your hobbies, interests, and paint your summary with multiple colors, but never make the mistake of just copying and pasting your resume.

Mistake #2: Congratulations: You’re part of a clique on and offline

Try doing a LinkedIn search for any profession. You know what comes up first? People in your network, then people in the second circle, then people in your third circle, and people who are in the same groups as you.

That’s right. The closer you are to the person searching for someone just like you in terms of connections, the higher you’ll come on their results page. The larger your network, the larger your chance of being found.

Mistake #3: You’re not using it

It’s not enough to be on it, you have to use it as well. Endorse and recommend friends and colleagues, and even post updates in Groups. The best feature overall is InMail, LinkedIn’s messaging service. Consider it email with a read receipt feature. You purchase InMail credits, send a hiring manager a thoughtful appeal, and you get a little note the moment they open it. If they don’t open it in 7 days, you get a credit.

That’s right. Sending hiring managers messages with a guarantee that it’ll be read. Now think about the possibilities. ☺

If you’re not on LinkedIn, or you are and you’re not getting the results you need, consider grabbing our LinkedIn Makeover service.

After a phone consultation, our Social Media Strategists will tailor your profile every step of the way for specific keywords, a colorful summary, and work to position you so you have a profile that stands out with every search and with every view.

Not sure what to do with an amazing profile after we’re done with it? We’ll help you there too.

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Thank You Letters = Sucking Up?

My dad would write Thank You letters when he was searching for a job. I likened it to brown-nosing the teacher, and surveys and reviews have shown that’s what most of you think.

Dead. Wrong.

Two things you need to know about a Thank You Letter:

1. It’s an opportunity for you to re-state all your skills, what happened in the interview, and why you’re the best fit for the job.
2. Because it’s a norm, hiring managers won’t see it as a nuisance, and they’ll actually read it.

You know what else is great about Thank You Letters? Every hiring manager loves them. You know what else? The MAJORITY of candidates do NOT send them.

It also keeps you front and center of any hiring managers mind especially when they have 20 other candidates to interview for the same position who all have more experience than you.

It’s not brown-nosing. It’s impressive.

If you don’t have one yet, we’ll gladly write you a custom-fit Thank You Letter for your resume for $30. Click here to get started!