[Anonymous]

Happy Saturday everyone!
I would like to get some feedback from others who have used a recruiter. Did you use multiple recruiters? Do you think it’s better to use a recruiter or do apply for a job yourself? Any other tips you may have for someone with 2 years of public experience (audit) looking to move into industry?

[Skynet]

You're better off just networking. Many recruiters will often tell you what you want to hear but then once you are in their database, you will rarely hear from them again. Be very WARY of the ones that contact you out of the blue and starts demanding all kinds of personal information like salary information because some of them often will try to bully you. This is based on my personal experience.

Liz Ryan is a regular contributor on the Leadership topic on Forbes.com and was a former recruiter. She gives a lot of good insight in the process.

[Missy]

There are great recruiters but there are more that really are used car salespeople. I had my cpa license, 20 years experience, four of which were management. I had recruiters asking me to consider entry level positions and one who told me I wasn't “qualified” to be a manager even though I had been. There were one or two that listened to what I was looking for, said they had nothing that matched at the time but would keep me in mind. Ultimately one of those had a job that perfectly matched my ideal job (about a year after we initially spoke) and that's where I am today.

Licensed Massachusetts Non Reporting CPA since 2012
Finance/Admin/HR Manager

[Missy]

And you're better off to both reach out to recruiters and conduct your own search simultaneously. Half the time recruiters are just cold calling employers who have jobs listed saying they've got a candidate, you can do that yourself.

Licensed Massachusetts Non Reporting CPA since 2012
Finance/Admin/HR Manager

[Anonymous]

I have had good experiences with recruiters. The thing is you want to limit your use to 1-2 good recruiters, you don't want to give your resume out to any recruiter and have them all send your resume out to various employers. It doesn't increase your chances of getting a job or look good if multiple recruiters are sending your resume to the same employers either. For each position you are interested in, they should confirm with you permission that you want them to send your resume to the employer.

Also as with any job search, it is best to already be in a position rather than unemployed or “in between” jobs. If you are not currently employed, you have basically lost your leverage and it's basically impossible to negotiate any salary.

There are some good recruiters out there with great connections and relationships, but they make money off of you. If they can undersell you to an employer (take a cut in salary) they basically make the difference that the employer originally offered. Also I believe some recruiters make money if you are with the employer for at least 3 months, so they will be nice and helpful the first few months, and then basically cut you loose because they've made their money off of you.

Robert Half is obviously the largest professional accounting recruiter. Don't really have anything negative to say, but in most cases, by using a recruiter you will be taking a cut in your potential salary.

[Missy]

Most of the time what recruiters get paid is based on the first year total compensation of the candidates. Their fee is anywhere between 18% and 50% of the offer to the candidate. It's not payable until 90 days after the start date and most recruiters will offer a six month guarantee that if it doesn't work out they will conduct a new search free of charge.

Licensed Massachusetts Non Reporting CPA since 2012
Finance/Admin/HR Manager

[Excel14]

My experience has been nothing but bad. Trying to get any of them to get back to you, even when you're proactive and do your part, seems like a tall order. And the ones who do get back with you, promise an active search on your behalf, but I have found I'm better off on my own.

BEC (2/28/16) ----- 78
FAR (09/10/16)-----
AUD
REG

CIA, CGAP, CFE

[Anonymous]

One of the recruiters I spoke to said they take a cut of whatever my salary is. Which at the end of the day I don't care about as long as I get the salary I'm looking for. The problem I'm running into is, when a recruiter sends me a job description and I give permission for them to send my info to the company it takes a while to hear back. Then when I follow up with the status I get told, I'm following up with the VP here or the contact here and will keep you posted. Or I get, the Company is interviewing a few candidates I'm not sure if they will interview anymore. Another thing I was told by recruiters is if I find a job I'm interested in to let them know before applying incase they got a contact. Which I understand why they say that but at the same time if I'm going to go out there and search for jobs I might as well apply myself. What good are you?

[Missy]

The REAL reason they ask you to let them know is because if you apply to an employer before they present you they can't collect the fee even if they do ultimately help but if they present you to an employer and you apply there anytime in the next 12 months on your own, and get hired they can still per the terms of their contract charge their fee. So they want to be able to prove they put your name in first even if they do none of the legwork.

They're notorious for creating fictitious jobs to get resumes, or like I mentioned looking at ads on craigslist and indeed and trying to phish for opportunities that the hiring companies have no intention of using a recruiters to fill. When I post a job I'm BOMBARDED by recruiters that I won't give the time of day to but are telling candidates they're working with me.

Licensed Massachusetts Non Reporting CPA since 2012
Finance/Admin/HR Manager

[maloney021]

I worked with Accounting Principles (formerly known as Parker&Lynch) about 7-8 months ago in the DFW area. I got a very poor initial first impression when they gave me an address to their old location when they had just moved a couple months prior. However, that was my only negative impression.

After meeting with the recruiter, they laid out different positions available in different industries for me, and was able to pick and choose which positions I could have them send my resume to. The recruiter sent my resume for a retail position with a company I had a unique interest in, and I was set up with an interview about a week later. After one interview, I had a job offer the very next morning that offered a significant salary increase from what my prior salary was. The recruiter kept my expectations low regarding a salary increase, however, the offer that came in was significantly beyond both our expectations and was accepted.

To be honest, if I were to leave for another position anytime in the future, I would probably be willing to work with the same recruiter again. I thought that highly of them. I know not all recruiters are the same, and perhaps I just happened to have a very good experience compared to others. However, if you keep expectations reasonable and keep e-mail communication every week or so, your experience should also be fairly positive. Good luck if you are in a job search!

FAR - (8/20) 70, (10/28) 72, (2/22) 76
REG - (6/8) 69...
BEC - (11/18) 77
AUD - (4/14) 72...

[Author]

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