How to be Headhunted

So, you keep hearing about people getting these great jobs through headhunters. But your phone never rings. Is there anything you can do to get yourself on a headhunter's radar?

Absolutely.

As a headhunter, I get paid to find the best people for the job. That breaks down into two parts 1) finding the people and 2) making sure they are the best people out there for the position. So first, I need to be able to find you. Second, I like to have evidence that you are good at what you do. The best way I can do this is to have other people in your field recommend you. The second best way is for me to see evidence that you are passionate about your career. This allows me to go to bat for you with my client and say with confidence that you are one of the best out there and it's worth offering flex hours or making a salary stretch to bring you onto their team.

So, how can you show me how great you are when you have no idea I'm conducting a search?

LinkedIn. I can never say this too many times: get your profile on LinkedIn. Some people are nervous about putting their profile on LinkedIn because they think it indicates to their employer that they are looking for a job. Repeat after me, LinkedIn is not a job hunting tool. There are far better tools for that such as the myriad of job boards that exist. LinkedIn is career networking tool. If you have a career, you should be using LinkedIn regularly. Join relevant industry groups and participate in the discussions. You will gain credibility as an expert in your field and build out your contacts -- something that your employers, present and future, will value.

Industry Associations. If you are a very passionate digital marketer, I assume you are a member of your local digital marketing association so you can find out the latest and greatest. Not only are you attending association events, but you are probably helping to organize them. Headhunters are very good at getting their hands on association lists. If you are not participating, you are difficult to find. And even if I do track you down, I wonder how committed you are to your industry if you seem to have no interest in it beyond 9-5.

Conferences. If you are an engaged and valued employee, you probably attend a conference from time to time. If you are perceived as an expert in your field, you probably speak at these conferences too. Often I will get hold of conference agendas and track down the speakers to find out about an industry.

Stay in touch with former colleagues. When someone leaves your group for other employment, make a point of staying in touch with them. That way, when I call them, they'll give me your name. It's like getting a soft reference right up front. It builds my confidence in your skills.

Twitter. Lots of people have their own twitter accounts where they tweet industry-relevant information. Use hash-tags, tweet often. Trust me, I'll find you.

Happy Hunting!

Nancy