How a Recruiter works with a Hiring Manager

And some intel about salary ranges too

I’ve done my best to help you understand recruiters don’t work for YOU (the jobseeker) and who pays us for what .

When I have my recruiting hat on I’m looking to meet the needs of the company and hiring manager that pay me to find them the top talent available for their opening.

Some people interpret that to mean that I’m looking for a reason to reject you. They start a hate campaign on LinkedIn and other social media sites talking about how cruel and inhumane recruiters are because they reject 80% of candidates who apply for openings. Well, truthfully, the company rejects 99% of the candidates if you think about it. One role is open for one person to fill. If 100 apply and one is hired – you do the math.

That doesn’t mean that I (or any other recruiter who aims to stay employed) is unceremoniously (virtually) dumping resumes and applications in the trash bin. [We have a very serious ceremony with candles, soft music and chanting. Heh. J/K]

Seriously. A recruiter who aims to stay employed is eager to get to know the ins and outs of what their Hiring Managers are looking for beyond some catchphrases on the resume. That happens through ongoing communication and a build up of trust.

While each company has different nuances, most company (internal) recruiters go through a similar process when they are assigned a job:

1.       The job assignment comes through.

2.       Recruiter looks for documentation to ensure the job assignment has been approved and fits the company hiring parameters.

3.       Recruiter sends a message to the Hiring Manager (HM) to let them know the role has been assigned and to give a heads-up that a Teams meeting invite is going to show up on their calendar to discuss the role in depth. (Even if I’ve worked the same type of role multiple times with the same HM, I still send this note and set up the meeting to make sure nothing has changed and to discuss how the previous placements are working out.)

4.       Hiring Manager and Recruiter meet to review the approved job posting, and to discuss the nuances that would make someone a top candidate. This is where the Recruiter takes the lead and asks questions about flexibility on various skills sets (i.e., what are requirements and what are pluses) I’ll also gather names, titles and contact info for the preferred interview team and how best to present top candidates. When I say “best present top candidates” I’m referring to whether the HM wants me to send one weekly email with the name, LinkedIn Profile, a one-line assessment of why I think the candidate is a fit and resume or if they prefer I send each candidate as I find them. I also confirm if any other members of the interview team should receive the initial presentation. During this meeting we also set up cadence meetings (usually weekly) to touch base on candidates submitted and interviewing.

5.       Recruiter edits (checking for typos, logic and any company requirements) the job posting. Recruiter posts the job using the internal ATS and distributes to the company’s career page as well as to the various job boards, including the internal job postings. I also make sure to send the link to the internal and external posting to the Hiring Manager along with brief copy they can use to post on their personal social media accounts and internal emails. Ideally, this happens within 24 business hours of the meeting with the HM.

There is constant communication between the HM and the recruiter from the moment the assignment comes in until an offer has been negotiated and the new hire has their first day.  Throughout the process the recruiter is the intermediary to move you from an applicant to a contender to the hired employee.

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How we come up with salary ranges and what you need to know to make it work for you