ACA 30 Years of Experience: How candidates can capitalise on using a recruiter

Candidates seeking a new role can benefit hugely from being registered with a recruiter, here we draw on 30 years of experience in the industry to share our tips on how to get the most from your recruiter whether you’re currently searching for your next challenge or just wanting to keep an eye on the market.

Have a plan or know what you want

Recruiters can be invaluable for career progression, especially if they’re putting you forward for a role which is not being advertised. In order to do that, they need to know what your career plans are and that you have an idea of what you want to achieve. Even if you’re not certain about how you want your career to progress, if you at least know what area you’d like to work in, or what type of role you’d like to have, then a recruiter can advise you on what experience you need to gain and how to make your career plan. Our recruiters know the industry landscape thoroughly and we’ve built up clients over three decades, which gives us unique insight into the roles for which we recruit.

Get to know each other

Many recruitment companies rely solely on algorithms to match potential candidates with the roles they recruit for, we meet all of our clients and all of the candidates that we put forward for roles. By meeting both sides we’re able to see if a particular candidate will be a good fit for a role and vice versa; it’s only by meeting and talking things through that such a level of acuity can be achieved. Get to know your recruiter at this kind of meeting and allow them to get to know you, it will help the whole process to go more smoothly.

Maximise Briefing Opportunities

One of the main benefits of using a recruitment consultant to find your next role is the information they can provide on the company and what they’re seeking in a candidate. There’s very little you can glean when independently applying for a job you’ve seen advertised, but we sit down with all our clients and discuss with them in detail what type of person would be their ideal candidate. Therefore, when we meet our candidates prior to interview we can give them pointers on which elements of their experience are of most relevance, how the candidates future aspirations might mesh with the clients plans for development etc. What job advertisement can give you information that valuable?

Stay in touch

It’s important to stay in touch and keep your details updated whether or not your actively looking for a new role. A recruiter might hear of an opening and think it might be just what you need to help with your career plan, but if they can’t reach you they won’t know whether to put you forward or not and you likely miss out. Obviously, this is even more critical if you’ve recently put yourself forward for a role that your recruiter has offered you! Ensure that your telephone number and email address are up to date on your recruiter’s system and check in with them now and again if you’d like to update them on your career plans or if you’re progressing within your company and want to be kept in mind for opportunities.