Inside a Recruiter's Mind

This week has almost come to an end. Phew ! It has been a tiring week at work with some productive and with some not so productive jobs. The latter part reminds me of the recruitment assignment I was part of, during the week. Much Ado about nothing, actually.

Well, we wanted to pick up some grads for positions in Manufacturing operations. We have already completed our recruitment at the select IITs & NITs. However, we were looking for some lateral profiles in our operations. We shortlisted some II rung B schools for lateral student profiles (around 5 years workex). So, this is all about being in the recruiter's shoes this time. The experience gave some wonderful insights about the interface of lateral students with prospective employers, although I must confess that it ended up in a dis appointing note for us we did not come back with the finds we wanted. Yes we left empty handed.

On the cusp of becoming a student from being a recruiter, I gathered some take ways.

1. What you have done in the past, in terms of WE, especially if you are aspiring for a lateral job has a huge bearing on your future job(s). I am referring to non career switch cases.
2. Having sharp career goals matters. When these goals are backed with some of the decisions you have taken, it reinforces faith in you & your actions.
3. Industry knowledge & awareness of the recruiter's company helps ! Gives an impression that the student is clued up, if not that he belongs to the industry.
4. As a recruiter, if my job is to select a student for a lateral position, my risks are higher. Hence recruitments to positions from middle to senior levels involve multiple level of discussions in some organisations like mine. This may mean senior people being on the campus for recruitment or students travelling to HQs for final rounds of discussions. Clearly, recruiters are looking for more data points.

Thus, for a student aspiring for lateral job, there are some advices-

1. Zero-on your target industry(s) and get going in terms of developing a thorough understanding right from the word go. Yes definitely, from day 1 in a one year programme.
2. Identify your core competencies and develop core & allied competencies to suit market conditions.
3. Give yourself time and space for interaction with your target industry and companies. It could be a seminar / lecture / a project, networking really helps. Work towards getting noticed first and then deploy your skills and competencies to deliver the goods.
4. Be prepared for marathon selection sessions. After all you are not getting back to you first job !

All the best to all the aspiring ones during this recruitment season ! Aah, I forgot to add, these take aways are perhaps part of the more productive side to the week that has gone by.