How Can I Start Headhunting with No Experience as an IT Recruiter?

Hi Suma,

I am Suma, working as an IT Recruiter for over 1 year. I mainly work on portals, but now I want to enhance my skills in headhunting. Could you please advise me on how to get started as I have no prior experience in headhunting?

Regards,
Suma

Hi Suma,

There are various methods apart from job portals to source potential resources. Kindly find below a few headhunting and networking methods:

1. Project mapping - Map projects related to the technology. For example, if you are working on mainframes requirements, kindly make a list of companies working on mainframe technologies, their clients for whom they are working, domain, city where the project is carried out, etc. Based on that, when you require a resource for company A (project is in BFSI domain, client is M, location is ABC), find similar companies working with the same client M. This way, you could generate resources.

2. Get references - Getting references would really mean a lot. Make it a habit to get at least two references of any skill set with each candidate you speak to. Maintain an Excel sheet so that it would be really helpful.

3. Social networking sites - Build your network in social networking groups and maintain a healthy network.

4. Headhunting - Collecting the board numbers and making cold calls.

5. Get references from the candidates whom you have already placed. Keep a positive and healthy relationship with them, so that they would refer your name to their colleagues when they are in need of a job shift.

These are a few methods apart from portals that would help you in generating resources. Trust me, in all these methods, the duplication ratio is comparatively less than profiles sourced from job portals.

Dear Rajan,

Don't worry about mapping. It is a kind of your own creativity and your working style. Think in different ways; that is mapping. Before that, you have to set the target.

Dear Suma,

Whatever I know, I am sharing. Headhunting is a personal attitude to hit the target. It's not easy to become a good headhunter. When you start working with headhunting, you will feel happy. Initially, you may feel like a failure for the first few days, but you will learn how to do it. Just touch the emotional activities of that person. In the first minute, you have to talk. After that, listen to what he/she is saying. Avoid asking open-ended questions and don't ask for one-line answers; that is not ideal. Give the person time to speak. Before headhunting, you have to know the particulars of that position inside and out. Only then can you succeed.

Warm regards

Could anybody tell me if headhunting can only be done at the CEO/MD level, or if it is also done at middle management levels?