Dear Nicky
I have been in NPA for just over a year and I routinely send candidates to my partners for their posted roles. Some say thanks, some give me good feedback, others tell me to vet my candidate on the job specs and others I never hear from. I'm frustrated with the lack of placements and don't know what I'm doing wrong. Any good advice?
Struggling in Speaker
Dear Speaker,
The first piece of advice I always offer is to make sure you TALK to your partner BEFORE undertaking any search activity. You may find out the job is closed, or there are already 3 candidates on interview, or there is an internal candidate, or the specs have changed … any of which would mean wasted time on your part. The other advantage of doing this is that you will "prime the pump" - the partner will know who you are, they'll be expecting to see records from you, and you'll (hopefully) have defined a process and expectations so that each side understands what is happening.
My next suggestion is to make sure your email makes it very clear you are an NPAworldwide partner. Recruiters get a LOT of email. It's easy to miss some. Some recruiters will only split within NPAworldwide so candidates that appear to come from "random" sources might get ignored. So make sure you have an accurate profile on Matchmaker, make sure you're listed on NPA Central, and make sure you reference NPAworldwide in the subject line of your email. And don't forget to include full contact details in your email signature! No one wants to go on a treasure hunt for your company name or phone number.
Here are a few other tips to consider:
Vetted passive candidates get the most attention.
Don’t just look at keywords and forward along a resume; make sure the candidate ticks all the "must-haves” on the job.
If you are not getting good feedback, call and ask for it. If you don’t hear back, move on to someone else.
Nicky
send letters to: nanderson@npaworldwide.com