Tag Archives: IT staffing

Make Yourself Available for IT Recruiters

When you are a job seeker working with IT recruiters, you need to be easily accessible.  When an AVID Technical Resources’ Account Manager identifies a new IT job opportunity, our IT recruiting team immediately begins looking for prospective candidates.  At AVID Technical Resources we try to submit candidates within the first few days the IT job position becomes available.  The IT Staffing Industry is fast-paced, therefore in order to beat out the other IT recruiting companies, we need to respond to our clients as quickly as possible.

If you miss a call or email, you might be missing out on your dream IT job.  If you don’t have a PDA (Blackberry, iPhone), it might be worth the investment.   In today’s age, whether good or bad, people must be accessible and able to respond immediately to emails.  Another reality is that clients typically needed candidates “yesterday.”  Therefore, the IT recruiters will go with the first candidate or candidates that respond to them.

So when one of our IT recruiters contacts you about a new IT job position, give them a call or return their email as soon as you can.  You never know what new opportunity is waiting for you.

Keywords, the main ingredient to being found

In the IT staffing, there are keywords that are specific to a certain job position.  Each one varies and allows them to find the appropriate candidates.  Some keywords for example would be ‘Java’ or ‘.NET’.

When IT recruiters go on websites such as Career Builder and Monster, they type in keywords (such as skill sets) to search for resumes.  Technical recruiters are usually well versed in using Boolean searching techniques in order to optimize their resume searches.  Therefore, in order to make sure you come up in relevant searches, use the skills keywords that will help IT recruiters find you.  Do not use terms that are not commonly used or synonyms.  Be direct on your resume and include exactly what it is that you are skilled in.

IT recruiting agencies train their IT recruiters to pay close attention to keywords in IT job descriptions.  Therefore take a look at a job description that interests you and model your resume using the relevant keywords.

Healthcare IT Opportunities

A recent article in the Boston Business Journal discussed the high demand for IT products and IT services in the healthcare industry.  IT contractor hiring needs will subsequently open up, as clients will need healthcare IT specialists to implement and train on the new technologies.  Many doctors have been waiting on the new federal regulations that have just been released.  One CEO mentioned that they would most likely double the amount of employees they currently have by the end of the year.  For IT recruiters and IT recruitment firms, this equates to significant contract IT staffing opportunities.

Some IT staffing agencies, like AVID Technical Resources, have embraced the Healthcare IT movement.  AVID created a Healthcare IT staffing division a couple of years ago.  Since the division’s inception, they have secured a number of local healthcare clients (including Boston-based hospitals) as well as national healthcare IT vendors such as Siemens Medical.

Don’t Be Afraid To Fail – Just Learn From It

I found myself at a crossroads just over 7 years ago.  I wasn’t happy with my current employer (one of the leading IT recruiting firms); yet I knew I could succeed in the IT staffing industry.  Therefore, I gave my notice and started my own IT recruiting agency called AVID Technical Resources.

Whether you’re starting your own IT staffing companies, relocating for a new IT job or starting a new career, risks are part of life.  If you don’t take them, you may find that other people, who are willing to, may pass you by.

Don’t fear failure.  “The only real failure in life is the failure to try.”  To me, this quote sums it up.  To those who are so afraid to fail that they pass up an opportunity to take a chance, then they have actually failed without even trying.  Know that everybody fails at something.  It’s learning from the failure that is important and persevering.

Look at one of the greatest, most influential man in US history:

  • 1831 – Lost his job
  • 1832 – Defeated in run for State Legislature
  • 1833 – Failed in business
  • 1836 – Had nervous breakdown
  • 1838 – Defeated in run for House Speaker
  • 1843 – Defeated in run for nomination for U.S. Congress
  • 1848 – Lost re-nomination
  • 1849 – Rejected for land officer position
  • 1854 – Defeated in run for U.S. Senate
  • 1856 – Defeated in run for nomination for Vice President
  • 1858 – Again defeated in run for U.S. Senate

1860 – Elected the 16th President of the United States

Where to find your candidates

IT recruiting companies need to be aware of where their IT staffing competitors are looking for candidates, as well as where candidates are posting their resumes themselves.  You may think everyone is just using job boards such as Monster or CareerBuilder.  However, there are many more options depending on what specific IT staffing industry you are looking at.  Some of these options are websites such as LinkedIn and Twitter that are now being used for networking instead of socializing.  Others include niche websites and/or those specific to local geographies.

So how do you choose the right place to look for candidates to fill IT jobs?  To start, you need to test some of these websites out.  During the trial period it would be a good idea to keep track of where the candidates are coming from.  This will help you decide how many candidates you got from each IT job board and the quality of the candidates coming from each.  Once you gather your data, you will be able to analyze each IT job board based on metrics IT recruiting companies keep in mind.

Put yourself in the candidate’s shoes and think about where they are looking for IT jobs

Networking & Remaining Organized

IT staffing is a very fast paced industry.  IT recruiters meet and speak with prospective candidates everyday.  They tell you about their family, work, and sometimes their hobbies. Business cards and phone numbers are constantly given out.  In addition, there are always new companies and technologies that IT recruiters need to keep up with in order to identify the right candidates for the IT jobs.  Technical recruiters also need to make sure their candidates have the proper certifications.   Now how do you keep up with all of these people?

From IT recruiters to prospective candidates, networking is essential.  However, it doesn’t do you any good if you continue to network, yet fail to remain organized or follow up with the people you meet. If the person gives you a business card, make sure you jot down a few notes after they walk away so that when you pick up that card again you’ll know what you discussed when you first met.  Another good idea is to keep a list on your computer of all the people you have met.  Some examples of information you should note are where and when you met, as well as a few interesting topics you discussed.

So make sure that once you take note of the person and have their contact information, that you send them an email periodically in regards to their industry or a hobby they told you they were interested in.  Just by checking in on them every once in awhile without referring to work could eventually land you a job that normally would have been hard to find.

A day in the Life of an IT recruiter

The IT staffing is a very fast-paced, sometimes hectic industry.  IT recruiters are speaking to hundreds of prospective candidates each week.  Even the very best IT recruiters can find it challenging to ensure they keep all of their candidates organized and within reach.  Additionally, in the IT recruiting world, clients typically needed IT contractors “yesterday.”  Therefore, when an IT job order gets called in, IT recruiters need to tap into their candidate network immediately and/or begin their IT recruiting process as quickly as possible.  Days are hectic and nights can be long depending upon the client’s sense of urgency.  Therefore, the IT staffing industry is not for everyone.  Those who do not do well under pressure or thrive in a hectic environment, best not enter the IT recruiting world.  On the flip side, people who like to be busy and thrive on an ever-changing job, tend to fare very well in the IT staffing industry.

A typical day for an IT recruiter….is anything but typical.  They will usually be assigned to one IT job order.  As they search the IT staffing agency’s database, and other IT job boards such as Monster, Dice, CareerBuilder, Hot Jobs, they will make dozens (if not hundreds) of calls.  Or they will send out countless emails every day.  As people respond, the IT recruiter works to communicate with each person via email or phone.  As the IT recruiter is taking the time to respond to every person, additional prospective candidates continue to flood in via postings or responses.  On many occasions, as these tasks are keeping an IT recruiter busy, he or she may have a handful of internal candidate interviews as well.  This adds more work to an already busy day.

As you can see, a day in the life of an IT recruiter is typically hectic.  However, for the right person who thrives on the fast-paced, exciting work environment, the IT staffing industry can be extremely rewarding (both in terms of monetarily and intrinsic satisfaction as the IT recruiter is ultimately helping people find work).

Twitter Crashes

As IT recruiters, we use Twitter to post new IT jobs, relevant IT staffing articles, and keep up with our followers.  It has become a very important tool to reach candidates who are constantly using social media networks such as this one.  The problem with this is that over the past week or so, Twitter has been acting up.  So while we are trying to update our followers, we have to wait for the Twitter overload instead of giving information live.

As the amount of Twitter users increase, will there be a problem for IT recruiting companies like AVID Technical Resources, who rely on it to provide updates to our followers?  The IT staffing industry specifically relies on getting new IT job postings out there to candidates to make sure they have an opportunity to apply for a job that they qualify as quickly as possible.  If the Twitter crashes continue, those IT jobs will not be seen by our candidates right away, thus giving them less of a chance of qualifying for a position. Hopefully the usefulness of Twitter’s capabilities will not diminish as time goes on.

How to Optimize Your Success on LinkedIn

Some would argue that LinkedIn is the most essential resource IT recruiting agencies use in their search. Massive job boards like Career Builder, Monster, and Craigslist can sometimes fall short in providing IT Recruiters with the highest quality of candidates. As a result, LinkedIn is constantly used by IT staffing companies to locate the best-hidden talent in the industry. Below are ten tips that will assure your page comes up in their search and engages IT recruiters enough to keep reading.

  1. Make your profile public: The point is to be seen right? Though it seems pretty obvious, this is the number one rule. To make sure your information is seen by the right people, you must make it accessible to them. IT recruiting companies won’t find you if they can’t.
  2. Join Groups: Engage in these small communities. You never know who might have gone to the same school, have experience in the same technology/held a similar IT job, worked at the same company, etc. Moreover, participate via discussion forums. The more you connect in a way that is personal, the more likely it is you’ll network with the right people. IT Recruiters are members of countless groups and often look towards other members for IT specialization in a certain area.
  3. Link Personal Blogs, Twitter, etc: The more you can show of yourself, the better. Linking personal sites allow IT recruiters to see a little more into who YOU are as a person. Many times client companies have particular environments or personalities conducive to a specific type of person. Any clues you can give IT staffing firms about your character could set you apart from the rest.
  4. Full out as much information as possible: LinkedIn is set up in the way that you can make as much of it as you want. As an IT recruiting agency who uses this valuable resource to find candidates daily, our advice is to make your profile the best and most full depiction of you. Add a picture. Get recommendations. Post former IT jobs, education, affiliations.
  5. Log in/Update your page frequently: Staying on top of things is crucial during any IT job search, especially given our current economic climate. Even something as simple as logging in regularly could increase your chances at landing the perfect IT job. IT recruiters always post open positions on LinkedIn, specifically to groups (Refer to Tip #2). Given the swift nature of filling positions, it’s integral to remain connected.
  6. Avoid simply uploading your resume:  While LinkedIn is a great resource to use, it should not be just another place to upload your resume. Your profile is a brief, eye-catching summary of your experience. Don’t add numerous bullets for every past IT job that you’ve held.  Your profile should be detailed enough to understand your background, but concise and interesting enough to keep readers and IT recruiters engaged.
  7. Remain professional: It’s extremely important to remember this is a professional, not a social networking site. While advancements now allow for facets of LinkedIn to be similar to Facebook (events, updating status, etc.), they are not meant to be used in the same way. Information should be pertinent to the workplace and remain tasteful. If you do choose to link personal sites, make sure you are aware of what is being made accessible.   IT recruiters screen for this and continually disqualify candidates who provide inappropriate content on their personal social media pages.
  8. Include personal notes in invitations to link. Sometimes reach is only successful when made personal. Including a message might jog someone’s memory or catch the eye of technical recruiters.  This will increase your chances make of someone accepting your invitation to connect. In general, adding a personal touch to networking makes you come across as more professional and invested.
  9. Take suggestions from “People you might know” or “People who have viewed this profile also viewed” : Networking is most successful when there is some common thread. These two features allow you very easy access to a pool of people you are connected to in some way. IT staffing companies are often successful because of referrals by clients or candidates. Get to know these IT recruiting agencies and recruiters through tools right in front of you.
  10. Create a personalized URL for your page that includes your full name.  LinkedIn gives you the option to keep the URL they give you, or personalize it. Find anything familiar about most of these tips? Personalize, personalize, personalize. Don’t be www.linkedin.in/4238942, be www.linkedin.in./YOURNAME. Take ownership of your talents, credentials and experience. Even more than that, it’s going to increase the likelihood of you appearing in search results. If you want to be seen, you must increase visibility – it’s that simple.

Damaging Information Could Cost You the Job

Social media has revolutionized the way IT recruiting companies operate. From sourcing candidates, to background checks, to the type of jobs that come across our desks, IT Recruiters use these resources daily. Just the other day a position came in for a client looking for an applications developer. Like every other opportunity we receive, our technical recruiters began pounding the pavement in search of the perfect candidate. After an extensive search we were sure we found him: young, bright, articulate, vast experience in social media and more specifically – applicable applications development exposure.

Unfortunately for the candidate, the access IT staffing firms have can be both a blessing and a curse. While it led us to this talented individual, it also led us to information he wouldn’t have wanted us to find. Information that portrayed him as a person we would not want to represent our IT Recruiting Agency. This was information that ultimately cost him the IT job.

This unpleasant outcome happens all too often. People are constantly cautioned to filter what they put on the internet, and as IT Recruiters we can only reinforce that message. It has become too easy to uncover damaging info and regardless of privacy settings or controls, there are ways to find anything. As a successful IT recruiting company with years of experience under our belt, I can guarantee you we will do the research before submitting any candidate. Before we can agree to put AVID Technical Resources on your credentials, we must be sure it’s a safe investment.

Our advice? Google yourself. Get rid of anything questionable. Don’t rely on privacy controls. If it’s there, IT staffing agencies will find it. You want to be portrayed in the best light to land that perfect IT job.  Your fate is in your hands.