How Do You Spot a Bad Recruiter?

By Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter

An easy question with a complicated answer.

So the question for today is, how do you recognize a bad recruiter?

And I think it’s a wonderful question, but I’m not going to give you the answer that you expect. Here’s what my thinking is.

Most of you think a bad recruiter is someone who doesn’t get a job for you, who isn’t helpful to you—not helpful, but isn’t someone who finds you work. Matter of fact, they may never get you an interview. And the problem with that is you’re confused about what a recruiter is supposed to be doing for you.

Again, you make the mistake of thinking that recruiters work for you, when in point of fact, recruiters are paid by employers to find positions for someone.

Now, you know, I I read an answer on Quora, and I want to acknowledge it and kind of poke holes in it.

So they start by questioning, they say, “From the beginning, when you get a first email or a LinkedIn message from a recruiter, skim it to the bottom. Was it written to you? If you could change the name at the top and send it to hundreds of people, that’s the sign of a bad recruiter.”

No, it’s one who’s casting a wide net. They don’t know if you’re going to be interested. As a matter of fact, most people are going to never respond. It’s not that they sent out bulk email, because in some way, shape, or form, you’ve probably had contact with them that indicates that, at one point, you did the kind of work that’s involved, and they’re presenting an opportunity. You don’t have to accept that opportunity, that’s fine.

They use buzzwords and pickup lines. Bad recruiters send messages and have conversations that are filled with buzzwords and weak pickup lines.

Now, I have no clue what this person means by weak pickup lines, except that they’re being sarcastic. But buzzwords reflect technology and functionality within a particular profession that a client may require. You have to find out whether a person has those skills pretty quickly in order to see whether you’re wasting your time.

They don’t understand the structure of an interview. They ask questions out of left field that seem like they’re out of order.

No, something may have popped into their mind that they forgot to cover. Like, I’m a human being, I do make mistakes, and if you think I’m a bad recruiter, having filled 1,200 positions, done 1,500-plus YouTube videos, having done three podcasts, ezines, and a whole host of things, because I asked a question that popped into my mind that I forgot to cover, well, how do you feel if someone criticized you for that in your line of work, okay? I’m an imperfect being, so are you. Give me a break, huh? Don’t expect perfection.

Hard sell.

Well, that might be the sign of a bad recruiter. I want to concede that point. Some people sell hard. Now, if the reason they’re selling hard is because you’ve changed your story a little bit, well, excuse me. You know, there’s an inconsistency there that you haven’t communicated about, that you’ve changed your mind. We’ve gone to bat, and as you know, contingency recruiters are only paid if you are hired and you last a certain period of time at an employer.

As a result, your change uncommunicated is a surprise, and when we are surprised, we’re looking at a substantial portion of our income going away. I know that doesn’t mean anything to you, but you have to expect it is a human reaction to that.

You know, the questions that they ask are dumb, okay? Who’s the judge of a dumb question? An employer often asks, requires that we ask questions as a way of determining whether someone’s qualified.

We don’t follow up.

Okay? Recruiters who don’t follow up, well, do they do all the talking? Do they interrupt you? Are they listening to what you’re saying? Do they do the things they say they will when they say they will? Do you?

I’ll simply say, again, recruiters are imperfect beings, and we are sometimes held up by our clients, who change their mind, who have their circumstances change. At the end of the day, we don’t work for you; we work for an employer who is paying us, just like you work for your firm who is paying you.

And, you know, when push has to come to shove, you can do whatever you wish. However, what you interpret as being a bad recruiter often isn’t.

Now, I will give you one thing, and one of the best indicators of a good recruiter is longevity. They have had success in their field. They have worked for their organization or organizations in general for lengthy periods of time.

Now, I’m not going to say this to blow my own horn, but I will say that I have survived and thrived through one recession after another for more than 40 years. That’s got to send a message to you.

Will I be perfect for everyone? Absolutely not, and a lot of people will judge me as a bad recruiter because I haven’t helped them. Okay, your background doesn’t fit what my clients want to hire. Do you think I’m going to get on the phone and call a thousand firms for free, because you’re not paying me anything, to find a job for you? No.

I am paid by organizations to find talent for individuals, not to find you a job.

So remember, who does a recruiter work for is the basis of the question, and the answer is an employer. And they’re the ones who make that judgment by hiring that firm time and again, hiring that individual recruiter time and again to fill positions.

Have a great day.

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