Stacy Pursell
The VET Recruiter ®
Professionals in the Animal Health industry and Veterinary profession occasionally make mistakes in the employment marketplace. I know this because I’ve witnessed some of these mistakes. In some cases, I’ve been an unwilling participant in these mistakes.
That’s one of the reasons why I write newsletter articles and blog posts every month, as cautionary tales. I want to tell professionals about the mistakes that other people make, so they can avoid the same mistakes. After all, there are two ways to learn:
- You can learn from your own mistakes.
- You can learn from the mistakes made by others.
In my experience, it’s almost always better to learn from the mistakes made by others. It’s both less time-consuming and less painful. So I encourage you to read this particular article and learn from the mistakes that some of your colleagues may have made.
A 5-pack of false assumptions
Many times, the mistakes that professionals make are based upon assumptions. The reason that they make the mistake is that their assumption was a false one. I’d like to address a few false assumptions now, ones that have caused other professionals to make the same mistake.
First, though, let’s start with the mistake and work backwards. The mistake is this:
At some point during the hiring process, a professional in the Animal Health industry or Veterinary profession will circumvent the recruiter who told them about an opportunity and instead attempt to communicate directly with the hiring manager of the organization that has the opportunity.
Whereas in some instances, one false assumption leads to one mistake, in this case, multiple false assumptions lead to this one mistake. Below is a list of five such assumptions:
- The candidate believes that by circumventing the recruiter, they’re going to get more information about the position and/or where they stand in the process.
- The candidate believes they should circumvent the recruiter because the recruiter is slowing them down in their pursuit of the position.
- The candidate believes that by circumventing the recruiter, they’re going to show the hiring manager that they have initiative and they’re the right person for the position.
- The candidate believes that the hiring manager actually wants them to circumvent the recruiter, so the company won’t have to pay the recruiting fee if they hire the candidate.
- The candidate believes that by circumventing the recruiter, they are somehow enhancing their candidacy and increasing the chances that they will be offered the job.
All of these assumptions are absolutely false. Circumventing the recruiter will NOT accomplish any of these things, least of all enhance the candidacy of the professional who believes the assumptions and commits the mistake. In other words, circumventing the recruiter doesn’t do you any favors.
The reality check breakdown
The reason that these assumptions is false is because the company is NOT waiting for you to go around your recruiter’s back. The hiring manager does not expect you to do so. In fact, I can tell you with certainty that their reaction to such an occurrence is one of annoyance.
It’s at this point where I’d like to present a breakdown of the reality of the situation. This way, I can further dispel notions that could convince professionals just like you to make false assumptions that can lead to costly mistakes. Below are four reality checks that dispel these notions.
Reality Check #1—The company has hired the recruiter to do a job.
The Animal Health or Veterinary employer has hired your recruiter to find suitable candidates for its open position. As such, the hiring manager fully expects candidates to work with the recruiter during the process. This is especially the case regarding any candidates that the recruiter presents to the hiring manager. They want me their recruiter to do the job for which their organization has hired the recruiter. They are not interested in doing extra work.
Reality Check #2—The organization is fully prepared to pay the recruiter for doing the job for which it hired the recruiter.
The company nor the hiring manager is trying to “get out” of paying the recruiting fee. The organization hired the recruiter with the understanding that it would be paying a fee if it hired a candidate that the recruiter presented. So the hiring manager is not going to view you as a more attractive candidate because they think you’re trying to save them a recruiting fee.
Reality Check #3—The organization (i.e., the hiring manager) trusts the recruiter more than they trust you.
The hiring manager has worked with the recruiter before more than likely. In some cases, the hiring manager has worked with the recruiter for years. On the other hand, they more than likely don’t know who you are. The only reason they know about your existence is that the recruiter brought their attention to it. Subsequently, they are not going to all of a sudden trust you more than they trust their recruiter simply because you contacted them directly. That’s not how it works.
Reality Check #4—Circumventing the recruiter (i.e., going around the recruiter’s back) casts you in a poor light.
When you contact the hiring manager directly, they’re not going to think that you have initiative. They’re not going to think that you’re a “go getter.” Instead, they’re going to think that you have no respect for the process. You might even come across as a little desperate to them, and the last thing you want to do is brand yourself as desperate during the hiring process.
The bottom line is this: there is NO good reason to circumvent the recruiter and go around their back at any point in the hiring process. The only thing you’re accomplishing is to hurt your candidacy. That’s because:
- The hiring manager is annoyed that you’ve wasted time (even though you think that you saved time).
- The recruiter is annoyed because now they have to explain your actions to the hiring manager.
- You’ve branded yourself in a negative fashion with the hiring manager, which might be a factor in their decision down the road.
- You’ve branded yourself in a negative fashion with the recruiter, who has the ability to find the perfect job for you down the road.
Why would you want to do any of these things?
Heed these words carefully and learn from this mistake. Don’t make false assumptions. Have respect for the hiring process. And trust your Animal Health recruiter or Veterinary recruiter to do the job for which their client has hired them.
We help support careers in one of two ways: 1. By helping Animal Health and Veterinary professionals to find the right opportunity when the time is right, and 2. By helping to recruit top talent for the critical needs of Animal Health and Veterinary organizations. If this is something that you would like to explore further, please send an email to stacy@thevetrecruiter.com.
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