Sunday May 27, 2012

JAPAN NEWS AND DISCUSSION

What is your impression of executive recruiting companies? Any bad experiences?

Have Your Say Jul. 21, 2010 - 03:25AM JST ( 22 )

Order by Time Order by Popularity

22 Comments

0

my2senseJul. 21, 2010 - 08:18AM JST

Please- someone who does this for a living here enlighten me. I have met a few here and there and I could not understand what they were trying to say. Give me the lowdown, 9-5 in order on the day. All I know is they have a phone glued to their ear, thats it. I have seen ads for 10-50 million in commissions. Is this true? Adding- why are they always recruiting for recruiters (ironic)? I mean I know what head hunters are but what's the deal with these gigs please. "Any bad experiences?" All I can picture is Bud Fox from Wallstreet shouting in Japanese on the phone with a 1987 haircut in Roppongi.
0

ronaldkJul. 21, 2010 - 09:31AM JST

No bad experiences. However, I am surprised at how much churn there is in the job market in Tokyo.
0

nisegaijinJul. 21, 2010 - 11:25AM JST

Because of these companies I have roof over my head, food on my table, big TV in my living room, brand new car in the garage and aged about 10 years in last 3 years... so go figure...
0

ronaldkJul. 21, 2010 - 11:28AM JST

nisegaijin, I hear ya.
0

noboritoJul. 21, 2010 - 12:43PM JST

human traffickers. Just 1 step-up up from an ALT.
0

SargeJul. 21, 2010 - 12:57PM JST

nisegaijin - I'd give up the big TV and the brand new car in the garage to get back the 7 years I'd lost.
0

EyeblackJul. 21, 2010 - 01:40PM JST

Excellent business if the recruiters are good. Helps people get jobs, helps companies get good workers. Like any middle-man or consulting business, there is the potential for rotten practices. Just look at Goldman Sachs if you need unethical. So there will be mixed reviews depending upon the experience, it is up to the individual to makes sure their vendor isn't selling spoiled fruits and vegetables.
0

porterJul. 21, 2010 - 03:47PM JST

Headhunters work on behalf of the company not the candidate. They get paid only if they place a candidate. Good recruiters do not help candidates find jobs - that would be a job placement service. Good recruiters help companies succeed by introducing performers.

Like any commission driven job, burnout rate is high and there are losers in the field. If you had a bad experience, you are perhaps either a lame candidate who the good recruiter doesn't need or you are a top performer but worked with a lame recruiter who doesn't understand the market.
0

LIBERTASJul. 21, 2010 - 10:20PM JST

Bad. Especially online. My experience with Experteer.com I wouldn't wish on anyone. Wide-berth, if you get my drift.
0

Heda_MadnessJul. 21, 2010 - 11:56PM JST

noborito at 12:43 PM JST - 21st July

human traffickers. Just 1 step-up up from an ALT.

If you had a bad experience, you are perhaps either a lame candidate who the good recruiter doesn't need or you are a top performer but worked with a lame recruiter who doesn't understand the market.

I'd predict that Noborito falls into the first category.
0

yabitsJul. 22, 2010 - 01:43AM JST

Never had any dealings with them.
0

masterkun05Jul. 22, 2010 - 07:05AM JST

Good reputable companies find suitable employees all by themselves and have their own human resources dept. They don't need leeching companies in the middle to make the decision for them.
0

IdiotKillerJul. 22, 2010 - 08:20AM JST

Regarding recruiting companies, of course there are both good ones and evil ones. I've been a consultant for both. I've also consulted for companies whose HR departments have seen top talent come-and-go like that from headhunters doing anything they can to entice people from one company to any other just to get that commission.
0

chuckersJul. 22, 2010 - 08:27AM JST

Good and bad experience with headhunters.

The ones I really despise are the companys that call you up in the middle of the day, trying to social engineer information out of your company about phone numbers and contact names by out and out lying about who they are and what they are trying to do.

Or the scum bags that are recruiting for YOUR company that call you up and ask if your are looking to leave your current position.

Or the geniuses that are looking for candidates for you that pepper you with CVs that aren't even close to filling the job descriptions you have provided. They are just hoping to hit the lottery with multiple tickets (resumes.)

I will have to slightly disagree with porter. Headhunters aren't working on behalf of the company, they are working on their OWN behalf. They want to place someone but they don't get paid if the person doesn't stay for 6 months or whatever.
0

my2senseJul. 22, 2010 - 10:20AM JST

Regarding recruiting companies, of course there are both good ones and evil ones. I've been a consultant for both. I've also consulted for companies whose HR departments have seen top talent come-and-go like that from headhunters doing anything they can to entice people from one company to any other just to get that commission.

That is seriously the most intelligent thing you have ever written on JT....
0

EyeblackJul. 22, 2010 - 11:46AM JST

Keen oberservation CHUCKERS, but tell me, what consulting company, finance company, public company, provate compnay, politician. etc... isn't working for their OWN behalf? Except for maybe Arthur Anderson that truly was working for Enron. Your comment is simple-mindedness at its best.
0

IronBeardJul. 22, 2010 - 02:25PM JST

Globally speaking, Japan is notorious for having a poor standard of recruitment agencies. The clients very rarely police their agencies which is why you end up with many agencies breaking privacy laws, and getting away with it. There is also a lot of internal pressure within the larger firms (not naming them directly, but you know who they are) for people to hit micromanaged targets and work heinously long hours.

There are a few good firms out there who focus on maintaining integrity both internally and when dealing with candidates/clients (I work for one of them), but unfortunately there are still too many cowboys working the market. That said, candidates are frequently only exposed to these second rate recruiters, and there are a lot of people who 'return the favour' by lying to agents, which can be very frustrating to the honest Joes among us.

Speaking from an interview prespective, I've met a lot of Tokyo recruiters and only felt that a handful of them would be worth hiring.
0

JunnamaJul. 22, 2010 - 02:57PM JST

Headhunters here are good for placing Japanese staff in foreign companies and if you are in need of that service in some way: great!!!

I have enough wacked out stories from deaing with them as a foreigner looking for work way back when to laugh about things now.

They do pay well if you are good, so...nice work if you can get it!!
0

WakarimasenJul. 22, 2010 - 04:27PM JST

Same as estate agents and any others who get paid on commission....
0

crazygaijinJul. 22, 2010 - 08:41PM JST

i went to one once ... the person who interviewed me smelled really bad. i never went back.
0

seesawJul. 22, 2010 - 10:58PM JST

They are rubbish! I trusted them for some months to get me a new job but eventually I got the job on my own effort. All I did was just sent in my resumes and sales record and I got the job! Of course after a couple of interviews but that's procedures.

It's so silly isn't it to put your life in the hands of the recruiting companies? All they did for me was trying to get linked onto my LinkedIn.com with the hope of getting all my contacts and then also proposed that I provide them with some companies' list on the pretext of approaching those companies for me...in reality they approached the companies for their own purpose.

I think they are just a bunch of mean people!
0

thebestofmeNov. 23, 2010 - 12:44PM JST

whats your impression of recruiters? first and foremost tell us about your bad experiences. this forum is designed to slag recruiters off :(

dont forget recruiters are human too and not perfect.

this is my 3year experience at an executive search company: when the wife dropped a sprogg i felt i had little choice but the try and earn more money. realistically conituing as an enlish teacher for the next 40 years would lead nowhere for me personally. so like many westerns with not much formal training in anything--i fall into recruiting (or perhaps lured into by a 20m yen per year pipe dream i was assured when joining).

where i worked the pressure was quite high, and the environment was so cut throat, the average tenure for a consultant was 9months. i was given no training--just a telephone book and the instructions to bring candidates in.

the whole set up was a joke and unprofessional, but it was conform or go back to being an english teacher (ie limited chances of pay rise, promotion, increased responsibility etc).

you are either a natural and u can do it, or like me will eventually just burn out. i have a lot of respect for the goods ones, and plenty of empathy for the ones struggling.

i made some deals, the amount in revenue far exceeded the salary i recieved. but ultimately i wasnt cut out for the environ (that not to say i couldnt be a good consultant else where).

on the whole despite almost giving me a nervous breakdown, it was a positive experience for me and helped me do a lot of maturing as a business person.

i am still in recuiting but the new company, the work is a lot more organized and treats it employees like humans. in turn i now treat my candidates and clients like humans too. not a bad thing when u consider this is a human business after all.

in short recuiters can add a lot of value to your job search if they have the experience--my advice to any canidate is to quiz the recruiter on their ability (how many deals, what ur specilized area, what did u do before this, etc).