Episode #249 – 10 Good Reasons to Talk with an Animal Health Recruiter or Veterinary Recruiter
Julea: Welcome to “The Animal Health and Veterinary Employment Insider,” brought to you by The VET Recruiter. In this podcast, Animal Health executive recruiter and Veterinary recruiter Stacy Pursell of The VET Recruiter provides insight and practical advice for both employers and job seekers in the Animal Health and Veterinary industries. The VET Recruiter’s focus is to solve talent-centric problems for the Animal Health industry and Veterinary profession. In fact, The VET Recruiter’s mission is to help Animal Health and Veterinary companies hire top talent, while helping Animal Health and Veterinary professionals attain career-enhancing opportunities that increase their quality of life.
Today, we will be talking about 10 good reasons to talk with an Animal Health or Veterinary recruiter. Hello, Stacy, and thank you for joining us today.
Stacy: Hello, Julea. As always, I am glad to be here with you Julea.
Julea: Stacy, we have talked about working with a recruiter on recent episodes of the podcast. Some titles that come to mind are “This is the Perfect Time to Use a Recruiter as the Talent Agent for Your Career” and “Why Experienced Animal Health and Veterinary Recruiters Are More Important Than Ever.” How will today’s podcast episode differ from those?
Stacy: That is a great question, Julea. I still get questions from professionals who ask why they should work with a recruiter if the job market is so good, especially in the Veterinary profession. On the surface, that sounds like a logical question.
Julea: Right, because if the job market is really good, then some people probably figure they can get a job on their own and they don’t need a recruiter.
Stacy: Yes, that is correct, but it’s short-sighted thinking, and I want to dispel some myths today about working with a recruiter, why you should consider working with one even if the job market is good, and the benefits of working with one.
Julea: Okay, that sounds great. Where would you like to start Stacy?
Stacy: I would like to start by saying that talking with a recruiter is not a waste of time and in fact can reap big rewards. And I get it, everyone is busy with both their personal life and their professional life. Not only that, but if a person is not actively looking for a new job right now, I can understand why they would be hesitant to take the time to talk with an Animal Health or Veterinary recruiter.
Julea: Some people may not realize the benefits of taking the time to talk with a recruiter or to hear what they have to say.
Stacy: Yes, there are some people who don’t understand the value that good, experienced recruiters can contribute to their career, which is a shame, because an experienced recruiter can provide a tremendous amount of value to a person. Talking with a recruiter is NOT a waste of time. Instead, it is an investment of time that can bring many benefits and can pay off in a big way down the road.
Julea: Stacy, after nearly 25 years as a recruiter, you have probably heard just about everything from people when you’ve contacted them that could come up in a conversation.
Stacy: Yes, you are correct! I have heard just about everything a recruiter can hear when contacting a potential candidate about an employment opportunity. Some people have said they are not interested without even hearing about the opportunity. Some people have said “no” without knowing what they were saying “no” to. A few have claimed to be offended that a recruiter contacted them at work. A few have claimed to be offended that a recruiter contacted them at home.
Julea: Wow, that is puzzling why that would be offensive to get a call with what could potentially be a better opportunity in one’s career. It never hurts to have a conversation even if you are not looking for another position.
Stacy: As we have discussed more than once on this podcast, the job market is good right now. Because of that, I am sure there are people who feel as though they don’t need to talk to an Animal Health recruiter or Veterinary recruiter. Many of them have a job they like, or at the very least, they have a job that they don’t dislike.
And don’t get me wrong. I do not think that professionals should pursue every employment opportunity that comes along or every job that is presented to them. That is not practical, for one reason. For another reason, there are benefits of talking to a recruiter other than the prospect of a new job in the near future. And these are the benefits that I want to discuss and highlight today.
Julea: And judging by the title of today’s podcast episode, I am guessing that you have 10 such benefits.
Stacy: That is right, I do. I have ten good reasons to talk with an Animal Health or Veterinary recruiter.
The first reason is that you can improve your networking reach. I am a big proponent of networking to achieve more career growth, and I have said it before, but career success is not just about what you know, but it’s also about who you know.
Julea: And recruiters know A LOT of people. In fact, it is their job to know A LOT of people.
Stacy: They do! Talking with a recruiter is an excellent exercise in networking. And if you speak with them on the phone, then you should probably connect with them on LinkedIn, too. I can’t overstate the importance of networking in a person’s efforts to grow their career.
The second reason to talk with a recruiter is that you can collect marketplace intelligence. Not only do recruiters know A LOT of people, but they are also a wealth of information. That is because they’re in the “trenches” of the employment marketplace all day long. Recruiters know things that many professionals may not know, some of which would be a challenge for them to find out on their own.
Julea: What are some of the things that a person can find out when they talk to a recruiter?
Stacy: They can find out about the state of the job market, the current trends that exist in the employment marketplace and within their profession, and how to take advantage of those trends. They know who is hiring and they know what companies people want to work for.
Julea: Is there anything that a recruiter will not share with a job seeker or professional?
Stacy: Well, if they are presenting a job opportunity, they will not disclose the name of the employer, at least not at the beginning of the process, especially if it is a confidential search. However, if the professional becomes a serious candidate for the position, then the recruiter will share the name of the employer. The recruiter’s job is to find the most qualified people for their client.
But one of the best pieces of information that a recruiter can provide for a professional is the third reason to speak with an Animal Health or Veterinary recruiter.
Julea: Which information is that?
Stacy: Information that will allow you to benchmark your worth in the marketplace.
Once again, recruiters possess in-depth knowledge about how professionals are being compensated within their chosen field. An Animal Health recruiter or Veterinary recruiter probably knows what someone with a certain skill set and experience should be earning.
Julea: And I am guessing the person who has that certain skill set and experience would like to know that information.
Stacy: They absolutely would! That way, they can know whether or not they are being adequately compensated for the value they provide. You might be surprised by how many professionals I talk to who do not realize they’re being underpaid by their current employer. And sometimes, they are being underpaid by a LOT.
The fourth reason to talk with a recruiter also deals with information. You can learn a lot more about how recruiters and employers operate. If a recruiter contacts you once about a job and you are professional and open to developing the relationship, there is a chance they’ll contact you about another job in the future. So, take this as an opportunity to learn more about them.
Something else to keep in mind is that employers engage the services of recruiters. So, talking with an Animal Health or Veterinary recruiter could provide insight into the organization, especially in terms of how it operates and its hiring methods. As I have been saying, you never know when a piece of information could be important to your career down the road.
Julea: I certainly agree with that! What is the next reason to talk to a recruiter?
Stacy: The next reason is to practice your interviewing skills.
Julea: But wait—I thought these were reasons outside of a new job?
Stacy: They are, but when you talk with a recruiter, they will probably ask questions. Since that is the case, it represents an opportunity to practice your skills navigating a phone interview. Even if you are not looking to make a change right now, you’ve probably improved in terms of how you conduct yourself during a phone interview, and once again, that could pay off down the road.
And that reason goes hand-in-hand with our sixth reason.
Julea: Which is?
Stacy: A person has the chance to brand themselves in a positive way. And of course, we have talked about personal branding on the podcast before. In a nutshell, personal branding is the experience that you provide to people during your interactions with them. This includes over the phone. By branding yourself in a positive way with a recruiter, you become memorable to them and in a good way! Believe me when I say that it’s possible to be memorable in a bad way. When I say brand yourself in a positive way, I mean the recruiter will be more likely to remember you when an ideal employment opportunity comes across their desk.
Julea: Looks like we have six reasons down and four to go! Which one is next?
Stacy: The seventh reason to talk with an Animal Health or Veterinary recruiter is because you might be able to help someone you know.
Julea: What do you mean by that?
Stacy: If a recruiter presents an employment opportunity and you decide that you do not wish to pursue it, you might know someone who might be interested in it. This, of course, is known as a referral. You would provide that person’s name and contact information to the recruiter so the recruiter can contact them about the job.
For all you know, this might be the opportunity that they have been waiting for, and with your help, they’ll have the chance to advance professionally. The best part is that it’s a win-win situation. You’ll help the person that you referred to the recruiter, you’ll help the recruiter, and you’ll help yourself by branding yourself in a positive way—again!
And I know that we’re talking about benefits outside of a new job, but the eighth reason is that a person may discover, after talking with a recruiter, that they are interested in the position.
Julea: How’s that?
Stacy: When a person talks with a recruiter about a job opportunity, they might actually be intrigued by it. Remember, a recruiter contacts a person about a job that is potentially better than the job they currently have. Because if the recruiter thinks the job isn’t better, then why would the recruiter contact them? They wouldn’t, because it wouldn’t make any sense. Recruiters are looking for a “win win”. They are looking for people who are ready to make a move for a potentially better opportunity than the one they have now.
I can tell you that this has happened with professionals and candidates more times than I can count. They were skeptical at the beginning of the conversation about looking into a new job opportunity, but by the end, they wanted to take the next step in the process. And don’t forget that recruiters have access to something called the “hidden job market.”
Julea: We’ve also talked about this before.
Stacy: Yes, we have. Recruiters typically know about certain job openings that the general public does not know about because the employer wants it that way. As a result, it’s not far-fetched to think that a recruiter could have the perfect job for you and you don’t even know the job exists.
Julea: But what if the person absolutely does not want to explore a new opportunity? What then?
Stacy: That brings us to our ninth reason, which is that the person’s situation and circumstances may change in the future. We all know how things can change suddenly and quickly in a person’s life. That’s why you have to “dig your well before you’re thirsty.”
Julea: Stacy, can you remind our listening audience what that means again?
Stacy: Certainly. Dig Your Well Before You’re Thirsty is a book by best-selling author Harvey Mackay. By most estimates, you can only live three days without water. So in a literal sense, you would have to dig your well before you were thirsty . . . or you’d run the risk of death. It’s the same with your career. You never know what the future might hold, so start digging for a better job opportunity now, when it’s a good time to dig.
Julea: Stacy, we are just about out of time for today. What is the 10th and final reason to talk with an Animal Health or Veterinary recruiter?
Stacy: The 10th reason is the easiest. You have nothing to lose!
Talking to a recruiter is basically a no-risk proposition. First of all, a good recruiter is not wanting to waste your time, and the reason is simple: if they waste your time, then they’re also wasting their own time, and they certainly don’t want to do that.
Second, if you decide that don’t want to pursue the opportunity, then tell the recruiter that’s the case. It’s perfectly acceptable. You have nothing to lose, but considering all of the benefits that we just discussed today, you have a LOT to gain by speaking with a recruiter.
Your conversation with a recruiter could be five minutes or it could be an hour. No matter how long you speak with them, though, there are tangible benefits for professionals in the job market. I know that some people might look at a conversation with a recruiter as an inconvenience. Instead, I would encourage them to look at it as a valuable investment in their future.
Julea: Stacy, thank you so much for all of this great information about 10 good reasons to talk with an Animal Health or Veterinary recruiter. And there is additional information on The VET Recruiter website about recruiters and how to work with a recruiter, is that correct?
Stacy: Yes, that’s right. We have additional information about why both professionals and employers should use a recruiter and also why they should use The VET Recruiter specifically. In addition, we have a list of our successes, with the job titles of the people we have placed over the years. And of course, you can also read about our leadership and our core values. I’ve been a recruiter for nearly 25 years and I founded The VET Recruiter in 2004. We are an experienced and reputable recruiting firm specializing in the Animal Health industry and Veterinary profession. I enjoy working with Animal Health and Veterinary professionals and employers to help them reach their career and hiring goals.
Julea: Once again, the website address for The VET Recruiter is www.thevetrecruiter.com. Stacy, as always, thank you for joining us today.
Stacy: It’s been my pleasure Julea, and I look forward to our next episode of The Animal Health and Veterinary Employment Insider!