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Hmm I've worked with about 6 different recruiters so far, and all of them have been really helpful. It seems that only the bad apples make it on HN's front page

by gt565k 12y ago

Hmm I've worked with about 6 different recruiters so far, and all of them have been really helpful. It seems that only the bad apples make it on HN's front page, and a lot of people ride the hate-train. I really don't understand why the majority dislikes recruiters. I've had the pleasure of working with a recruiter who spent the time to get to know me personally and to make sure I get exactly what I'm looking for. He back-channeled and worked as a mediator giving me details and information. It was actually a very pleasant experience. Everyone that hates on recruiters should be thankful that our industry is full of opportunities and embrace the fact that it's pretty damn nice to be able to have the jobs come to you. Who cares if you got a few emails or messages on LinkedIn. Change your LinkedIn privacy settings and email them explaining you're not interested instead of writing a shitty blog post trying to bash people. I bet if you were in a different industry, you'd be on HN bitching about how hard it is to find a job and how unfair employers were. So shut the fuck up and stop complaining. No one wants to hear your childish rants.

chimeracoder 12y ago
I agree that we should be thankful that our skills are in such high demand, and aggressive recruiters are just a sign of that. That said, I've seen my fair share of horror stories with bad recruiters. I think the award for "worst recruiter ever" goes to one who blasted a developer Meetup mailing list, then (upon being told off by the group) proceeded to harass them and send death treats to them, copying the entire mailing list (eg "I will be waiting for you on Monday morning at <your office address> ready to push you off the balcony). That was certainly an extreme example, but unfortunately there are enough recruiters that, even if bad apples are relatively rare, everyone has had horror stories, just by the sheer number alone. The bad recruiters are the most visible because they're the ones who send generic spam and blast developer lists, whereas the good recruiters contact fewer people and are more personal and targeted in their approach. In other words, a person is more likely to interact with bad recruiters, not necessarily because most recruiters are bad, but because the bad ones interact with more people.
doodpants 12y ago
I'm thankful that our industry is full of opportunities, but that's not because of recruiters; they're just middlemen. The opportunities still exist without them. If there weren't so many recruiters doing a less effective job of matching qualified candidates with available positions than the candidates could do by searching on their own, there wouldn't be so much ridicule and hostility towards recruiters.
logfromblammo 12y ago
I had exactly one good experience with a recruiter. It got all the way to the offer stage, and then the CEO of the prospective employer told me point blank that he could not offer me more than 75% of what I was already earning at my existing job, because I was working with a recruiter, who would be paid based on that rate. He also subtly implied that I might be offered a fat pay raise after six months. With great difficulty, I avoided calling him an unethical asshole to his face. Then I told my recruiter about it, her company summarily dropped the client, and she went on medical leave with a Lupus diagnosis. In that case, it was not the recruiter who was the sleazy douchebag, but it still didn't result in a new job. Employers are unfair, too. We complain because we want life to be fair, no matter how often it shows itself to be otherwise.
dneronique 12y ago
I've had similar experiences with recruiters, so I don't really understand all the hate. If you're not looking you can be direct and get rid of them quickly without being rude, and if you are looking you just need to be smart like any other business transaction and keep an eye out for time-wasters and scams. The more I work with them, the more I appreciate their services and the better I get at spotting the 'real' professionals.
- mech55 12y ago
  My biggest two problems with recruiters. 1. They aren't technical in the least (90% of the time) and waste my time by trying to act like they are. You should understand the field your recruiting for. Not saying they have to know much, but have a basic understanding of programming and can write a 'hello world' app. 2. At least part of their commission would go to me if they weren't there. I'm not saying it would be everything, but I'm losing out on some pay everytime I go through a recruiter.

by gt565k 12y ago

chimeracoder 12y ago

I agree that we should be thankful that our skills are in such high demand, and aggressive recruiters are just a sign of that. That said, I've seen my fair share of horror stories with bad recruiters. I think the award for "worst recruiter ever" goes to one who blasted a developer Meetup mailing list, then (upon being told off by the group) proceeded to harass them and send death treats to them, copying the entire mailing list (eg "I will be waiting for you on Monday morning at <your office address> ready to push you off the balcony). That was certainly an extreme example, but unfortunately there are enough recruiters that, even if bad apples are relatively rare, everyone has had horror stories, just by the sheer number alone. The bad recruiters are the most visible because they're the ones who send generic spam and blast developer lists, whereas the good recruiters contact fewer people and are more personal and targeted in their approach. In other words, a person is more likely to interact with bad recruiters, not necessarily because most recruiters are bad, but because the bad ones interact with more people.

doodpants 12y ago

I'm thankful that our industry is full of opportunities, but that's not because of recruiters; they're just middlemen. The opportunities still exist without them. If there weren't so many recruiters doing a less effective job of matching qualified candidates with available positions than the candidates could do by searching on their own, there wouldn't be so much ridicule and hostility towards recruiters.

logfromblammo 12y ago

I had exactly one good experience with a recruiter. It got all the way to the offer stage, and then the CEO of the prospective employer told me point blank that he could not offer me more than 75% of what I was already earning at my existing job, because I was working with a recruiter, who would be paid based on that rate. He also subtly implied that I might be offered a fat pay raise after six months. With great difficulty, I avoided calling him an unethical asshole to his face. Then I told my recruiter about it, her company summarily dropped the client, and she went on medical leave with a Lupus diagnosis. In that case, it was not the recruiter who was the sleazy douchebag, but it still didn't result in a new job. Employers are unfair, too. We complain because we want life to be fair, no matter how often it shows itself to be otherwise.

dneronique 12y ago

I've had similar experiences with recruiters, so I don't really understand all the hate. If you're not looking you can be direct and get rid of them quickly without being rude, and if you are looking you just need to be smart like any other business transaction and keep an eye out for time-wasters and scams. The more I work with them, the more I appreciate their services and the better I get at spotting the 'real' professionals.

mech55 12y ago
My biggest two problems with recruiters. 1. They aren't technical in the least (90% of the time) and waste my time by trying to act like they are. You should understand the field your recruiting for. Not saying they have to know much, but have a basic understanding of programming and can write a 'hello world' app. 2. At least part of their commission would go to me if they weren't there. I'm not saying it would be everything, but I'm losing out on some pay everytime I go through a recruiter.