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An effective job search means using all of the elements at your disposal. Executive recruiters are one such element, and they can often be the key to finding your next job.

By Todd Moore

In today's economy, and especially in the medical device industry, companies routinely rely on executive recruiters to find the talent that they cannot uncover themselves. To successfully work with a recruiter, there are a few things you should know.

Understand your relationship
The first step in working with a recruiter is to understand what type of relationship you should have. Before you send your resume or pick up the phone, think about what role you'll likely play in each others' lives. Your mission is to find that next opportunity and a recruiter's job is to find their client the perfect candidate(s) for the job. Sounds simple, right? Not exactly.

Recruiters only get paid if they can successfully understand what their clients want and can provide it to them quickly and effectively. While it may be their job to fill an open position—and your recruiter may have faith in your abilities—that by no means guarantees that your skills will match his client's needs. The key here is to know that a recruiter does want to place you, but that is only one piece of the puzzle.

Know what you know
Obviously this sounds strange, but one of the hurdles recruiters face is dealing with candidates that do not know where their skills lie. If your background for the last 15 years has been in cardiac surgery products, trying to convince a recruiter that you'd be great for his client requiring oncology experience will be futile.

To make a lasting impression on any future employer and recruiter that you'll be working with, have a clear vision of where your skills can best be put to use and focus your attention there.

Avoid indecision like the plague
Few things will frustrate your recruiter more than getting into the interview process with a candidate that suddenly becomes indecisive. Recruiters like to deal with people who know what they want and are ready to act when the opportunity presents itself.

Part of the screening process for which companies hire recruiters is to insure that the candidates they'll be interviewing are interested in the job that's open. Clearly you can't be sure that a position is perfect for you before you get to the interview, but you can be prepared to act if it is.

If you do make the mistake of walking into an interview unsure of what you want for your career, not only will the company be upset with their recruiter (and rightly so) for wasting their time, but your recruiter will hesitate in calling upon you when the next opportunity comes along.

Do your due diligence
Whatever you do, do not make the mistake of researching the company after your interest is piqued during the interview. By then it will most likely be too late. It's actually very simple: Companies hire people that step up to the plate, know their stuff and are ready to swing at the ball. Recruiters love to work with candidates that impress the client by doing their own research.

Any decent recruiter should be able to describe the company and the opportunity to you, but don't stop there. Review the company's website in detail, talk to current or previous employees of the company, and search out current or potential clients to query. Just like you shouldn't walk onto a car lot without knowing something about the car you want to buy, you shouldn't walk into an interview without knowing the company.

Talk to your recruiter about your upcoming interview
Recruiters hear feedback on interviews all day long, and that can be a valuable source of information in preparing for one. If you're an interview star and don't need any polishing, fine. Otherwise, don't hesitate in gleaning anything you can from your recruiter about interviewing and tips that can help the process go smoothly. Your recruiter wants you to do well and should be willing to help you at every turn.

Stay in touch
As a candidate, you should expect any recruiter you work with to keep you up to date about any opportunity you pursue together. By the same token, you need to keep your recruiter up to speed on anything that develops along the way. Call your recruiter to tell him or her how the interview went. If plans change, make sure your recruiter knows. If you have a concern or something pops up that may affect the process, your recruiter will want to know and will appreciate your communication.

Staying in touch with your recruiter on a regular basis while you're working on opportunities, interviews and job offers will help build your relationship. That way, if the first (or even the second) position isn't the perfect fit, you'll be at the top of the recruiter's list to call when that next opportunity appears on the horizon.

About the author…
Todd Moore is a principal with ExecuMED, a national executive search firm that specializes in the medical device industry. Experienced in executive searches focused on the regional, director and VP level, Todd works with a variety of companies from pre-IPO startups to Fortune 500 firms. He can be reached at 1519 East First Avenue, Chico, CA 95926. Phone: 530-898-9019; fax: 530-898-8789; e-mail: Todd@ExecuMED.net. Or visit ExecuMED's employer spotlight on Medical Design Online.