Posts Tagged ‘property’

Linkedin frustrations – Leave me alone !

You arrive at work nice and early, with the intention of getting on top of your tasks.  TFrustrationhe phone rings.. “Hi, it’s Harry the happy headhunter calling, I wanted to …” without further ado, you are cornered by this person who hasn’t asked whether it’s convenient to speak and who launches himself into selling mode about a great job he’s working on. What do you say? How do you deal with these amateurs? Your morning gets busier and you’re checking your email. You have messages via Linkedin from recruiters, you have messages being sent via text or voicemail, you are under attack ! You hear about the same job from 3 or 4 recruiters offering to present you to their client. Each recruiter describes the job in a slightly different way, but we all know it’s likely to be the same job regurgitated to meet their needs. Why are you being approached when you’re not looking for a new job? Certainly not at 8.30 in the morning  ! Calls and emails continue to flood-in for the whole day and even through the week. It’s ridiculous. Someone walks into your office doing a similar job role and asks whether you’ve had Harry the happy headhunter on the phone as they too are being annoyed.. Is any of this sounding remotely familiar? If so, you are suffering from Recruiter overload. I’ve seen people registered with Linkedin who state within their profile; “I’m not looking for a new job!” It must be a serious problem. Linkedin is a wonderful idea of connecting the business world, but I wish recruitment companies would spend time training their people about how to engage with people in a professional way. It makes my job 50 times more difficult, as I am automatically classified as the same annoying recruiter type. Linkedin can be a very powerful business tool. Most people only scratch the surface, whilst the seasoned search professionals will know how to dig deep into the back-office system and get the information they need. Usually, recruiters at a lower level of experience will almost certainly not know how to “forensic search” and probably don’t have the time to build profiles properly or to build relationships either. It must be a nightmare being employed, having to deal with unprofessionalism. On the flip-side, linkedin members also have problems being targeted for dating purposes. Glamourous people all over the world are being asked whether they would like to date or go for lunch/drinks etc. Linkedin really should monitor this behavior and deal with the offenders. My other big concern is the way Linkedin could quite easily become another Facebook. You could argue that if Linkedin did become another facebook, they would have achieved great success. I always try to encourage ‘business’ use with Linkedin and keep the lighter side of life with other social networks. How do you deal with unsolicited approaches from recruitment companies without seeming to be rude? I would always acknowledge the approach with a polite “no thank you” or “let’s speak after hours”.  If the recruiter is serious about speaking with you, they will find the time after hours to make contact. When you engage with a recruiter, watch out for the obvious “I don’t know what I’m doing, but I’ll make it sound as though I do” routine. Recruiters have a habit of trying to uncover whether you will move from your current role for something else more exciting or rewarding. Be careful, because they also have an agenda to back-fill your own job. If they get you on the hook, then they could easily start  searching for candidates to fill your role. It’s a horrible business and trust is vital. In fact , trust and confidentiality are the two things that become the most important elements of dealing with recruiters, yet in so many cases, neither play a part. Linkedin allows recruiters to search in detail for specific skills, locations, companies – both current or past, titles, geographic radius etc. With such power, calls from recruiters should be well researched, not hit and miss. I often get asked questions about Linkedin and here are some of the most common; A recruiter has looked at my profile, what should I do? Nothing. Wait for them to initiate contact via the inmail system. A recruiter has sent a connection request, should I accept it. No. Not unless you trust them with all of your connections and personal details. My inbox at work is full of Linkedin requests and emails. How do I minimise disruption? Create a free email account with someone like gmail and use it specifically for Linkedin. At least you will only see things when you login and it won’t affect any other personal email accounts. I’m searching for a job. How do I get maximum attention with Linkedin? Connect with as many recruiters operating in your niche as you wish. Look at profiles of people who might be responsible for hiring you at some stage. When they look at the option of “who’s viewed my profile” you will appear and they will be interested to see who you are. Automatically, if they are considering hiring, you’re on their radar. Connect to as many people as possible that work in your sector. On the drop down menu, look for groups. Join as many groups in your niche as possible. You’re allowed to join 50 groups. Make sure you follow current relevant topics and either, ‘like’ or comment on posts. This gives you visibility and a chance to engage in a dialogue with others. There are many more ideas to help, so if you’ve covered all of these and want to learn more, go to youtube and search for ‘linkedin improve my profile’ or something of that nature. There’s bound to be loads of videos to view. Make Linkedin work for you. See it as a way to improve your life, not frustrate it.

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Simon Wilkins

Simon Wilkins

The Headhunter

simon@wilkins.today

07554 234 567