How to be Headhunted
For many years, headhunting has been a well established means of recruiting top talent to the higher
For many years, headhunting has been a well established means of recruiting top talent to the higher, well-paid echelons of several industries, including financial services, IT, engineering, the media and retailing.
Now, with historically high levels of employment and a lack of qualified and experienced individuals in many fields, headhunting has spread to the public sectors - a reflection of rising salaries in the fields of health, education and infrastructure projects, from transport to building.
Headhunting has traditionally been seen as a secretive business, partly because of headhunters’ ‘conspiratorial’ operating methods. Most potential recruits are simply phoned at work out of the blue.
There is prestige to being headhunted because many people assume that the individual being targeted is a highly prized commodity earning a big salary. So what can you do to attract the attention of headhunters and win a whopping wage and an advanced status?
The book How to be Headhunted, by City headhunters John Purkiss and Barbara Edlmair, claims to reveal all you need to know if you are looking to be recruited to a senior executive position or a seat on the board.
The process, according to the authors, is becoming much more transparent and accepted as part of routine
A bit of discreet advertising can go far. There’s no harm in promoting yourself, but you need to be careful about which companies you give your details to. It’s important to be convinced of a headhunter’s confidentiality and integrity and their expertise in the employment sector in which you work.
Identify half a dozen individual headhunters working in your areas of expertise. This can be done by internet research – via such sites as Google (http://www.google.co.uk) and Yell (http://www.yell.com) and discreetly talking to colleagues and contacts in your business.
Have a hard think about how you are going to present yourself and how you will compile your CV. Focus on your unique attributes. Forget vague generalisations, such as “I’m a good team player”, and concentrate on your achievements: “I manage a team of 12 software developers” or “I increased revenue in my department by 10% in one year”. (For more information on writing the perfect CV see UK Net Guide’s feature on the subject.)
With this pitch prominent on your CV, you can then approach headhunters directly, and they can clearly see what you have to offer.
Another way of catching the attention of headhunters is to approach them through a third party known to both of you. This makes you harder to be ignored and more likely to be done a favour.
In the end, however, the best way to come to a headhunter’s attention is to be good at your current job. Always think about how you can become more visible. Speak at conferences and join any relevant bodies or organisations. Be polite and civil to people you meet through your job. You never know who you might be talking to.
Seek out ways to hone and enhance your current skills. Good headhunters make it their business to identify potential stars of the future years before they make an approach. If you are good at your job, headhunters are far more likely to come calling on you.
If you are not good enough to be headhunted why not use our job search to find a new role.
