If you’ve dealt with recruiters, you’ve probably asked yourself, why don’t these recruiters just disclose the client companies on their job postings? Of course, as potential candidates, we all want to know who a recruiter is representing as it’s one of the biggest factors in our decision-making process. So, what gives with all the cloak and daggers?
As recruiters, there are a few reasons why we do this. We hope this article will help you gain more insight into the recruitment process and the reasons behind why public job postings are typically kept anonymous.
Client Privacy
Sometimes searches are confidential because the client has asked us to keep them confidential. A client may have made the difficult decision to replace someone who is functioning (or working) in the role today. Another reason why a client may want privacy is that they may not want the broader market to know about strategic moves they are about to make. This is especially common when a search firm is engaged for a VP or C-Suite level search.
Selling the Opportunity
When a company engages us, there is often a reason why they chose to give the search to a recruitment firm, like Martyn Bassett Associates. As our client’s dedicated recruitment team, it becomes our job to take their story to the candidates they have asked us to target.
An engaged search partner is in the unique position of being able to expand an employer’s story to include the why behind the hire. Delving into these reasons provides a potential candidate with much more information than a simple Google or company website search. For many candidates, the why of an opportunity becomes the main reason why they are interested in the job, or not.
Streamlining the Process
When a company has a strong brand, lots of candidates who may be a cultural fit but not a technical fit apply simply because they just really want to work there. Executive recruiters, on the other hand, are engaged to find, reach out and connect only with those who are line-up technically as well as culturally.
Job searches posted online or promoted on LinkedIn can receive hundreds of applicants. Our recruiters also get a lot of LinkedIn direct messages; often from those who are unfortunately just not a fit. The average recruiter already struggles to keep up with LinkedIn inboxes filled with 40-50 new messages a day. The same goes for HR leads at companies with open positions. All of these extra messages require extra work for a client which prompts many to outsource the recruitment process to a recruitment firm to streamline this process.
Conversation Starter
Last but not least, the one you all knew was coming. It’s true, a candidate is more likely to reach out to ask “can you tell me more about the XYZ role.” Recruiters are in charge of attracting top-performing candidates; adding a little mystery never hurts to capture attention and imagination.
This stimulates conversation, a phone call, which is an outcome a recruitment professional seeks. When evaluating potential candidates, we need to learn what they are currently working on, what they desire to do next, and what parameters we need to consider before we reach out to them about potential roles.
These short phone calls are critical. They allow an executive recruiter to introduce themselves, their firm, and their area of practice. Our product recruitment expert, Heidi Ram is a 20-year recruitment veteran – when speaking with her about this, she says:
“I always take a long-game/marathon outlook to my work. I might chat with someone today, and there is no alignment to their experiences and our searches; however, once we have spoken and I know more about them, I will know when to be proactive when I do have a search for which they could be a fit.”
Candidate Benefit
Being ‘top of mind’ with a recruiter is always a great place to be. It’s not unusual for the first round of candidates to be presented to a client before it’s even promoted publicly. Sometimes searches even wrap up without being advertised – this is the “hidden job market” many executives want access to and can be done through one short initial introductory call.
We hope this article has helped to answer this nagging question and provide more insights. If you’re looking to make a career move, connect with us today – you never know where it might lead in the future.