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5 Red Flags Recruiters Watch for When Poaching Top Talent
If you are looking to make your way to the top of the employment ladder – upper management and the C-suite, for example – you will need to catch the attention of your existing management and prove yourself to them, hoping that advancement will beckon, sooner rather than later. But if the existing management suite is well-supplied with long-term, contented personnel, you could do worse than making a lateral upward move: change jobs and leave your existing position into an upward trajectory in the next company. In order to pull this off, you will need to prove yourself to headhunters in the recruitment world – companies like the executives headhunters here – so they keep you in mind when suitable positions open up. But all recruiters will have a list of red flags that they look out for that will keep you off their shortlists. Let’s have a look at the top five recruitment red flags for high-level positions.
No Verifiable Background
While aspirational job-hopping can be a legitimate way to proceed a little faster than normal through the ranks of management, take care that you don’t cut corners to do so. Recruiters and employers alike will want to see references backing up your claims of skills earned and experience you’ve gained. If you’ve burned your bridges with too many companies: breaking contracts, not giving the right amount of notice, or worse, behaving cavalierly with proprietary information as few examples , you are unlikely to receive the praise or affirmations that are necessary when it comes to high-level positions.
Too Much of a Good Thing
If a candidate presents too perfect on their resume or CV, this can raise concerns. Few people have exactly the criteria needed to fulfil a job description, and the younger you are, the less likely you are to have a huge wealth of experience, lots of (reputable) certifications and so on. Be honest about training gaps – apart from this being the right thing to do ethically, sometimes they can actually be an advantage, allowing the new company to train you very precisely in their niche and unusual way of working, instead of having to ‘unlearn’ other ways of doing things.
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Unexplained Job Hopping
Being able to explain that you moved from Company A to Company B because there was no prospect of advancement, and then to Company C because you had a great offer from them that made it your dream job is one thing. Having a list of companies that you’ve worked at for various periods, with no reasonable explanation as to why, makes recruiters wonder if you were let go for poor performance, for example, or if your work ethic was so poor that you continually failed your probation period. Job hopping itself is not necessarily a bad thing – not so long ago, employers were recommended to change jobs every two to five years as a way to stay on top of salary offers – but unexplained job hopping absolutely is.
Not My Fault!
Make sure you own up to your failings and flaws. While you don’t have to fall on your sword for every error you or your subordinates have made, being able to identify flaws in – for example – the training process, allows you to make sure that these errors don’t happen again, and that subordinates are brought up to speed. Refusing to acknowledge responsibility for failings, and going out of your way to point the finger elsewhere, is very unhelpful, not only to the company who cannot then implement a fix to ensure it doesn’t happen again, but also does you no favours, waving a red flag across your name when it comes to recruiter’s little black books.
Communication Issues
Finally, effective communication is vital, no matter if it is done in person, on the phone or by email or text message. If you don’t understand the importance of clear communication, from expressing what you want to say to acknowledging the content and importance of what others say, you are unlikely to rate highly when headhunters are looking for someone to poach away to a prestigious position.
