[Yaz88]

Hi all,

I would like to hear about experiences or if you know something..

A little background (Accounting Undergrad, then 2 years in audit PwC (Audit, in Dubai my home town) then went back to school in the US for my masters.. Now that I am close to graduation I will be looking for jobs. I wasn’t lucky enough to land a job and I believe it’s because of the paper work and the hustle in employing a non US citizen).

Now since I came back here for Masters, I have been approached by many headhunters (Via LinkedIn) but they don’t know that I am non US citizen,

Anyways, my questions now, how different is it to be employed by a headhunter VS directly from the company?

My biggest concern is getting less salary than the market

[Claudia408]

you will always get paid less if your employer is the headhunter, but are working at the client site. most likely you won't get any benefits and if you aren't working, you aren't getting paid. however sometimes the headhunter is your only way into the company or employment. the best way to work with a headhunter is for them to match you with the employer… the employer pays the headhunter's fee, and you work directly for their client. i think headhunters have their purpose, but be cautious where they place you, they work on commission.

BEC - 75 (3x)
AUD - 78 (3x)
REG - 67, 66, Aug 1
FAR - 54, Sept 8

[jessica8926]

@Yaz: when i was looking to get out of public accounting i contacted a few recruiters or headhunters as you say who had also contacted me via linkedin. If i liked the job they had to offer I would work with them to get more details etc and then an interview if i got that far. For the most part though I did not like the salary base they were trying to get me to agree to, it was less than what i wanted. so in the end i decided to talk to a few mentors etc and apply directly with companies. that way i could go for the jobs that would pay me what i wanted without having a recruiter telling me what i should want. in your case it might be helpful to use a recruiter because you are from out of the country and may not have as many connections as i did. for the most part you do not have to pay a recruiter to help you or their fees. they get paid by someone in the background and work to just get you an interview. yes they work off of commission and yes some are greedy and will try to push you to jobs they know arent right for you but that would benefit them. you just need to stand your ground and find a recruiter who actually cares more about placing you in a good fit rather than making commission off of you. the less salary than market could be a thing, but i felt the jobs recruiters sent me were on par with the market salary. you also have to look at the company and do your research on the company and see if what people are saying is the salary matches to what the recruiter is saying. i would do my own research by going to glassdoor.com and seeing if they had a salary up for my company etc. that way i knew if i was being scammed.

AUD - 69, 77
REG - 74, 81
FAR - 75!
BEC - 71, 82

IL candidate!

Finally done (5/24/16)!! Yahooooooo!

[Yaz88]

Thanks everyone for your responses. And yeah, I plan to research the companies myself but I see recruiters having way better access and that makes me go the headhunter route especially that I am not a US citizen. I am disappointed though that my experience in PwC wasn't enough for the companies to overlook the immigration aspect…

PwC contacted me saying to contact them 3 months before graduation but nothing is certain, and I don't really want to go back public accounting, it's plan C for me..

Do headhunter take a commission for the monthly salary ?

[Anonymous]

Will you require sponsorship to be employed in the US? I'm assuming so from your first post, but wasn't 100% sure. If so, then the expense to the employer of providing the sponsorship, as well as the paperwork involved in that, may be a big part of why you're having difficulties, even though the PwC experience is valuable on your resume. It's not a matter of whether or not an employer likes the idea of employer a non-citizen, but a matter of at times quite significant expense and paperwork burden. Sometimes you've got to look for a large employer (like the Big 4) that deals with this quite frequently so is better able to handle it. For example, my first job out of college was for a tiny accounting firm that had 3 employees (including the owner) when I was hired. I can't imagine the owner ever hiring someone who required sponsorship, because the paperwork and the expense would be way too burdensome for him to ever handle! However, a company like PwC has enough sponsored employees that they have people who are experts at the process and can ensure that it is handled with minimal impact to the employer's bottom line. Of course my 3-employee firm that I worked at is an extreme example, but it illustrates the point well. 🙂

If you don't require sponsorship, then the immigration aspect shouldn't have as big of an impact on your job search, though it might still be.

As far as the headhunter question, though, I'd say if you're concerned about whether or not you can get a job, then it'd be better to investigate all options, so I'd give them a shot. If they don't offer anything that interests you, then you're not required to take their offerings, but they might offer something good. Worst case scenario, they offer a job that interests you but you get paid below market due to their commission. However, taking the job could enable you to begin to build a resume with US experience which, even if it's not fair, will probably make you more marketable for future jobs. So, it may be worth taking something with a lower salary through a headhunter just to start building the resume. I'd advise the same thing for a US citizen, too, who was fresh out of school to start building their resume even at a lower salary just to put experience on the resume. Given that you have some experience already, the advice doesn't apply quite the same as a recent grad with no experience, but since it's experience from your home country, there's an extent to which adding some US experience will help your future prospects. Again, I realize it's not fair that it would make a difference, but it probably will so probably worth considering a lower paying job if you're having a hard time finding a job that offers what you would anticipate.

[EuroAddict]

If you choose the recruiter option make sure you find one you trust. Keep in the back of your mind they don't make money till they find you a job. So some will just send your resume out to every client they have.

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BEC - 77, 03/2015 (first try)
FAR - 79, 05/2015 (second try)
REG - 83, 12/2015 (first try)
AUD - 84, 03/2015 (first try)

I got 99 problems but the CPA ain't one.

[se98]

I've worked with good recruiters and bad recruiters. Make sure you like and trust your recruiter and don't be afraid to tell them no, or to push back on salary if you can justify that it's not market rate. You should take into account any financial responsibilities the company may have to assume to take you on as a non citizen in determining this. The company I work for now only hires certain positions temp to hire through recruiters to avoid bearing the turnover risks. I'm sure while they are contracted the people aren't making very much, but once they get hired on full time they make a decent wage. Presuming you are multilingual, and wish to work in private, I would try to find a company where your language skills would be a great advantage. In my company when we had someone who could speak fluently on technical points in the native language of our subsidiary, it was an enormous benefit for which the person was compensated.

FAR 84
REG 7/2016
BEC 8/2016
AUD 10/2016

[Missy]

I'm not sure where the idea that an employee placed by a headhunter gets paid less came from but let's just nip that fiction in the bud.

IF an employer chooses to use a headhunter to fill a role, the headhunter asks “what are you looking to pay?” The headhunter commission is based on salary, so they're not going to impress the client (hiring company) by sending someone with a lower salary requirement. If anything they want to get the highest salary that the employer is willing to pay. This is why they're more likely to send someone who is overqualified, but it's up to you to take or decline the interview. As a candidate you manage the recruiter not the other way around. The danger is usually employers are conducting their own search in addition to the headhunter efforts and if considering two similar candidates but one is direct and the other is through an agency, save the fee and hire the direct applicant.

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

[Son]

Yaz88, as a person who went through the whole ordeal of getting an H1B visa myself, PWC should be your plan A, not C. Check the list of companies who sponsored the most applicants last year – all Big4 companies are on the list, even if you ignore the consulting side of business the numbers are still staggering. In the past few years there have been at least three times as many applicants as available visas, so the chances are against you – and many employers are not willing to sponsor and train someone who might not be there in a year.

All Big4s have a standard process for applying people for H1B visas and then sponsor them for green cards. I've talked to many foreigners working for respectable companies, but you'd be hard-pressed to find an employer in industry going to the lengths that Big4s go to to help their employees get work visas.

AUD - passed
REG - passed
BEC - passed
FAR - passed

[Anonymous]

Yaz88, there are some good comments on the dangers of working with headhunters. As a CFO, I will give you some advice from the other side of the fence; as a senior hiring manager. Rarely, and I mean very rarely, do I ever hire from the direct applicants coming from HR. Something I've learned in 20+ years of leadership is that successful leaders hire first on fit; unless there's a very rare situation where someone comes in with a very specific technical skill set. In short, successful teams are full of “likable rockstars” (A phrase a mentor of mine coined) and in good teams everyone “fits.”

To the point of why would I prefer to hire directly from a recruiter versus through HR, recruiters are generally in the relationship business. Over years I've developed relationships with recruiters who know me, know specifically the talent I'm looking for regarding technical abilities, and most importantly, the soft-skills and intangibles that I want in my teams. Without fail, almost all of them have graduate degrees, 20+ years in finance, a CPA or CMA type designation, and been the trenches. While I truly respect the HR teams who do screening interviews, etc, they generally don't have the technical background to ask the right questions and can easily be snowballed by someone who may only interview well. Recruiters spend the time necessary to help me find the candidates that simply “fit” my teams.

Recruiters are tremendously plugged into the finance community in every city. They know who's currently looking and who may possibly jump ship for the right opportunity. They know who's solid and who to stay away from. That's because, again, they are master connectors and relationship-builders. If there's a great talent out there but they're not currently looking for a new, HR isn't likely to get that resume by simply advertising. Recruiters can get those folks to your office to interview because they have the relationships.

Regarding fees, I will tell you that those fees are very negotiable between the company and the recruiter. The good ones out there will keep that off the candidate's radar and will negotiate those salaries directly. Something to understand is that although a company pays a fee to the recruiter for finding you, the company is saving money in advertising and dramatically reducing the hiring timeline. Hiring managers want to get a good candidate in quickly because their teams have a hole to fill and everyone on that team is currently doing their job plus more. If I were to pay a 20% fee on the base salary of a $50K, I would GLADLY pay that to get a great talent in and not burn out my team!

Regarding salaries, recruiters are generally armed with the “true” salary information out there in your market and the good ones will know your value better than you (and generally the hiring manager). And honestly, I would prefer to negotiate a candidate's salary directly with a recruiter than directly with the candidate. Salary negotiations are just awkward for most people and I've never met anyone who's said they feel they're paid what their worth. It's hard having to break someone's heart and tell them that the market for their position just doesn't currently justify $100K. The “good” recruiters out there want to find you the best possible position to help you succeed and want to continue building a relationship with you. You just need to find them.

Lastly, know that your career and future is in YOUR hands. While you can say “yes” or “no” to anything a recruiter brings to you, you also have a responsibility to bring opportunities to them. If you see something advertised on the inter-webs that sparks your interest? Call your recruiter! They likely have a relationship with someone at that company and can get you plugged in, or tell you to “stay away” from that company because they have a bad reputation. YOU will need to do the research on recruiters in your area, reach out to them (they want to hear from you!), and you need to put the time and effort in networking for yourself. Go to AICPA, IMA, and community events. The “master connectors” will likely be there and don't be afraid to talk to the ones who only deal with executive-level. Ask for their advice, they'll be genuinely flattered and will generally give you some very good connections. When you ultimately do find that good position, kick some butt and build your reputation and your personal brand. Continue to network within the recruiter community. Your relationships with those recruiters will pay off as you'll likely be that next “great candidate that's not currently looking” that they call for that next awesome position.

I hope this information is helpful to see if from the other side and I truly wish you the best of luck!

[a BEC too FAR]

There are two completely different situations being discussed, so some people are talking past each other.

1. Third party agency places you at a company. You work for the company.

2. Third party agency places you at a company. You work for the agency.

Both situations become more complex if you don't have a legal right to work in the country where you're looking for a job.

Whats the best way to take a bridge?
Both ends at once...

[Author]

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