Choosing a Recruiter: How to tell the Good from the Bad
Whether you are newly qualified and looking for a role that will fulfil your long-term career ambitions, or you are an experienced life sciences professional who is looking for your next move, working with a recruiter can accelerate your job search and help you to secure the role of your dreams.
However, choosing a recruiter can be a challenging task and one which should not be left to chance. When you partner with the right recruiter, they will work closely with you to understand your aspirations and restrictions. They can identify relevant opportunities and match you to firms who share your ethos and vision. They will see success as being the creation of a long-term match.
Conversely, a bad recruiter may simply try to convince you to fill any role so that they can get paid and move on to the next vacancy. They will have little interest in satisfying your long-term needs and could, in fact, stifle your passion for biotech.
In this blog, we will share our insights to assist you in making an informed decision the next time you engage the services of a recruiter to help you up the next step of your career ladder.
How to find a recruiter
Many startup, scaleup and early stage European biotech companies employ the services of a recruiter to help them fill their vacancies, as they have yet to establish a reputation and may lack the funding that is necessary to maintain a dedicated HR team of their own.
If you are interested in working with an up-and-coming organisation, making yourself visible to the right recruiters is a powerful strategy for job-hunting success.
It is likely that some of your colleagues will have worked with a recruiter in the past and may be willing to share their recommendations. If you will not jeopardise your current role by asking the question, this is a great place to start to find out which recruiters are operating successfully within your areas of interest and expertise.
If you don't want to flag to anybody within your current organisation that you are considering a move, you could seek out recruiters through networking and corporate events or review the membership list of any professional associations of which you are a member in order to identify anyone with links to recruiting agencies.
You can use social media to identify recruiters operating within your chosen speciality area, or who are known to partner with organisations that are of interest to you. You will also be able to find testimonials and recommendations online from others who have used their services to help you determine whether they may be a suitable fit for your skills and ambitions.
It is important to select a recruiter whose aims and objectives best align with your own, so there are some key questions that you should ask when narrowing the field and deciding which recruiter to partner with.
Questions to ask recruiters
Ask the recruiter for information pertaining to their experience and success rate in placing candidates in appropriate roles in your particular field. There is little point in opting for a company with a poor track record for making lasting matches within your area of speciality.
Ask the recruiter with which life sciences organisations they work. You will be able to determine whether they are going to be able to help you achieve your ambitions based upon whether you have any interest in the companies or venture capital investors for which they recruit.
Ask the recruiter how they will work with you to achieve your ambitions. Check how often they will touch base with you and by what means. Ensure that they will seek your approval prior to presenting your CV for any vacancies that arise and that they will not put you forward for roles which do not satisfy your work location, job role, culture and salary expectations.
What a recruiter should ask of you
A good recruiter will be as interested in you as you are in them. They will want to know what attributes you possess that make you a stand-out candidate. They will want to understand your background, education, qualifications, relevant experience and employment history.
They should verify your expectations, both of their service and of the type of role for which you wish to be put forward. They should be interested in your professional goals and career aspirations so that they can match you with an appropriate vacancy.
You should trust your instincts when speaking with recruiters. The right recruiter will be invaluable in identifying suitable opportunities and can streamline your job search, so if you are not feeling the chemistry, the chances are that that recruiter is not for you.
What a recruiter will do
A good recruiter will enthusiastically reach out to any candidates who satisfy the criteria of their client's search. They will seek your approval to recommend you to their client, forwarding on your resume and any supporting information that the client requests.
A good recruiter will work with you to update and refine your CV, prepare you for interviews and seek feedback from your experiences. They will use this information to continually strive to achieve the best possible match for both you and their client, since improving a client's retention rates is the ultimate success criteria.
Get in touch with Gold Group today and have a chat with one of our expert consultants.