Let’s make one thing clear right from the start – executive search firms, recruiters, and employment agencies are not in business to help you land a job. The recruiter is not your advocate, your friend, or your agent. Recruiters, employment agencies, and search firms are merely channels through which you may secure an opportunity for an interview!
Contrary to popular belief, most executive recruiters do not “hold onto” your resume, look for opportunities that will suit you, and eventually contact you when they find a “perfect match.” The process is much more immediate and transactional than that. If you happen to send your resume to a recruiter right at the time that they’re conducting a search for someone just like you, then you’re in luck and you might get an interview! But if the recruiter does not have an “open order” appropriate to your background at the time when he or she receives your resume, you’ll usually be treated almost like you were “invisible” – and your resume will tend to “disappear.” Unfortunately, you are not the most important thing on the recruiter’s mind, which is why it’s wise to contact your search firms periodically to “check in.”
When recruiters ignore you or reject you, don’t take it personally! This is just the way the business works, and it’s no reflection on you or your qualifications. I have worked with too many clients who get despondent when they don’t hear back from executive recruiters. It’s vitally important that you do not get “emotionally attached” to any recruiter, job opening, or prospective employer.
On the positive side, recruiters and search firms can be quite helpful in your job search, as long as you know how to manage the process! But again, never forget that they work for the organizations that pay them to find candidates – not for you.
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