Why a recruiter should not lie...
recruiter...@gmail.com
Looking at such inactivity in an inspiration drawn group, I regret to
see such wonderful talent being under utilized. So, I thought I should
bring back some life to this group and give people more opportunities
to express their thoughts.
As recruiters, I am sure that everyone would have come across a
situation where the industry is devoid of talent, and the few available
are hyper-critical with what they are looking for. In such situations,
I, honestly, have resorted to some tweaky little statements, that
candiadtes 'might' call 'lies' over a period of time. Yes, selling
something with a twist is what I mean. Such as, a promised growth to a
senior cadre where none such possibilities exist.
Such as,
1) on-site.... "Yes, after one year!" Oh yeah! once the billing of a
year is in the good few tens of thousand dollars, well, who cares.
2) My client.. is growing.. like wild-fire. They want to double in
strength in 4 months, so the chances that you will be a team lead in 4
months is highly probable... oh yeah! (and boy, did I failed to mention
that they are just a little over a dozen currently!)
A recruiter is least often remembered by candidates, and that, my
friends, is what that saves us, inspite of lying so blatantly. It is a
choice now, to lie, or to be remembered. I guess everyone wants to be
remembered as "The recruiter" who got me the job (from every
candidate's perspective), and hence must realise that such obligatory
relations come with a certain degree of trust, which does not go
hand-in-hand with lies pertaining to anyone's career. That is reason
number one for a recruiter not to lie.
Being remembered has its own advantages in recruitment (typically for
freelancers, recruitment consultants, and those working for placement
agencies, over the long long long run)
The reason I started writing on this topic is that I was speaking to a
candidate a while back, and I was not very certain whether I should
mark him in my short-list or not. The candidate had rejected an offer
with HP (no offense meant, but there are certain jobs in HP that people
would desire to get, like the architect positions.. all of them, name
it, enterprise, solutions...etc etc) because of the reason that the
question of growth was not answered satisfactorily by the "HR" ('HR
madam" I assume!!) properly/satisfactorily.
Now the question here that came to my mind is, should I pitch the same
old story, doubling head-count, you will lead twice the people you lead
now, in another 4 months, etc etc.. Well, I did not. I told him about
the company, the vision and mission etc, the change in business
strategy over the last 5 years and so on. And asked him.."would you
want to proceed with your application for this company :-D"? (well, I
was speaking on the phone, how could he see me baring my teeth with the
"biscuit" that I offered in my words. To my lack-of-surprise, he said
"Yes!!!, I want you to proceed further". I said to myself, "Boy! my job
is easy!"
Now the point is, did I lie? 8-) not really! (copy paste the emoticon
on MSN chat to see what I mean to express!!) But, I did give him a
false impression, though, without lying. I guess I should not have done
that, but at the same time, I just needed his consent before applying
on his behalf. Rest, is left to the HR (madam, I know!) and the
concerned managers to sell the job to him. Hey! thats a recruiters job,
right?.. and I sold him the company, and confirmed that he is worth an
offer, thats it. Let me wait till I have to raise an invoice.
Okay, so, should we lie or not?
I would say "NO". And I hope it is unanimous.
Again, "please pool in your thoughts!" (How incorrigible could one
person's determination be.. I have been saying the same thing over and
over in every post and taking all dismay in a stride, and yet I wait
patiently waiting for some one to speak out. Remember guys.. (I hope
'guys' is non-sexist in the modern english lingo... well anyways)
ladies and gentlemen, it is democracy with a cause... so, speak out
your thoughts.
Peace, Love and Empathy