Recruiter/HR question

[Hammer]

Calling all HR professionals,

I have a job-seeker etiquette question. I applied with a company in January and made it through two interviews before they decided an internal candidate was going to be promoted to fill the position. Now, that company is advertising the opportunity again. I submitted my resume because I am still VERY interested in this position but I am wondering if it would be proper to call the recruiter that I was working with in the past. I don't want to screw it up right from the start here so I am looking for some opinions.

Thanks,

Hammer

[PrestigeWorldwide]

I work in HR (though not in recruiting). Unless the job ad says something like "no phone calls please" there should be no problem with you placing a call to the recruiter you worked with before. If that recruiter is the one assigned to this opening you are actually making their job easier by making it known how interested you are. If they are not assigned to the opening, then it will be up to them whether they want to connect with the assigned recruiter. Either way, it really can't hurt.

[JimH5]

Yes--definitely call. There's nothing wrong with expressing continued interest in the that job.

 

Assertiveness is a good trait 95 percent of the time.

 

PS--I was a recruiter for 10 years.

[Bankjob]

I am also a fellow HR person, not working in recruiting any more though. My advice would definitely call and ask the recruiter what the situation with the job is. Calling and asking about a position once or twice is never a bad thing. However when a person starts to call and leave messages constantly it is an instant turnoff to a recruiter.

[Hammer]

Thanks for the advice all! I called and landed a "let's get reacquainted" phone interview for tomorrow morning!

[Paul77]

My advice would definitely call and ask the recruiter what the situation with the job is. Calling and asking about a position once or twice is never a bad thing. However when a person starts to call and leave messages constantly it is an instant turnoff to a recruiter.

Ding! Ding! Ding! Truer words have never been spoken.

[jhart05]

How about when a recruiter keeps calling you, even after you tell them you are not interested in working with them?

[Paul77]

How about when a recruiter keeps calling you, even after you tell them you are not interested in working with them?

Thats odd. Just tell them you have a new job or let them know you're not interested in anything on between the hours of noon and 6pm, and nothing on 3rd shift. Or easier yet, just call them and ask to update your contact info and give them a bogus phone number. Make sure to give them at least 3 "new" (fake) numbers.

 

If you really want to fall off the radar, tell them you were arrested and you're facing multiple felony counts.

[dadofandrew]

Many recruiters are paid by commission. They are calling because they figure it can't hurt. Same reason I call clients if I think they may be looking for something, or interested in a new product.

[Hammer]

One last question for the HR types: Do any of you know a good resume writing service in the Fox Valley? I was just told by someone at "The Ladders" that my resume leaves a lot to be desired. While I know that they are doing that so I go with their service I do know that my resume is not giving the WOW factor needed for a sales resume...

[dadofandrew]

There are dozens of templates online. If you use spellcheck, you can do as good a job as they can.

[MHgb]

There are dozens of templates online. If you use spellcheck, you can do as good a job as they can.

I'm going to disagree slightly here. Spelling words correctly is extremely important, yes. Your writing style is equally as important, and spellcheck and templates can't help you there.

 

Doesn't mean you have to go to a resume service. Just means you should get opinions from some people who handle resumes frequently or have knowledge of how they should be written. But even then, HR people/recruiters have different preferences.

 

You can please some people some of the time, but you can please all people all of the time.

[ajgodson]

If you're a mid to high-level sales professional, the service may well be worth the $. There is a lot of difference in resumes that shine and those that don't, and it's not spell-check. There's also a lot of difference in "your resume isn't impressive" and "your work history isn't impressive". The former is fixable short-term, but the latter will take much longer to repair, even with a great wordsmith.