1. Recruiters in your niche will have credibility with potential employers. Employers won’t know you, but your representation by a known recruiter will go a long way in selling your candidacy.
2. Niche recruiters will give you insider information. From years of working with companies and filling positions in one specialty they know the structure of departments, the culture of the company and the backgrounds and styles of the people you will be working for.
3. Niche recruiters will provide career guidance. Choices that you make and choices that are available to you will be clarified by working with a specialty recruiter. They know what will best for your career long-term. What skill sets you are missing and what skills you have which are in great demand.
4. Recruiters will provide resume advice and interviewing tips. As a strong candidate in the niche, recruiters will want your resume and your interview to be the best they can be. They will assist you in making sure that happens.
5. Niche recruiters have in-depth compensation expertise. They know whether you are underpaid or overpaid and what your options are for changing that. They can talk insightfully about bonus, long term incentives and benefits at each of their clients. You can also use them to ask questions of the client that you might not be comfortable asking.
6. Your job search will be far more confidential. Job boards and LinkedIn might work in your job search but everyone can see you are looking. Working with a recruiter will keep your search off the radar of your boss and your co-workers. You maintain control of your resume.
7. Niche Recruiters have unbelievable contacts. Do you have a firm you are interested in working for? Even if they don’t have a current opening, a niche recruiter can introduce you to that firm and open doors. Do you want to work in only one location? A good recruiter can target a number of potential employers and work with you over time to make that move happen.
8. You will have a personal promotor. Finding a specialty recruiter can pay off for you over your entire career. Because they are as specialized as you are, they are happy to talk through choices you are thinking of making or want to make. They may not work with you on every job change, but they keep in touch for when you do need them.
9. You gain access to the “hidden” job market. Many positions are never posted. Niche recruiters know when their clients are open to seeing candidates even when they don’t have an open position. Recruiter’s partnership with employers can pay off for you.
10. Recruiters will work for you for free! Employers pay the recruiter’s fee. Recruiters are very motivated to find you a job as they only earn their fee once an offer is accepted.
Ready to start a job search? Contact Jacque Paige, Managing Director, Smith Hanley Associates at 203-319-4310 or jpaige@smithhanley.com. Put our services and expertise to work for you.