Brave or Brazen? Bold Tactics Don't Always Get the Job

From the Wall Street Journal | Sept 1, 2009

By DANA MATTIOLI

Recruiters
say more job seekers are taking unusual steps to be noticed-almost
always without success. Instead, the recruiters say candidates often
hurt their chances by appearing brazen, overly persistent or rude.

In April, a job candidate scheduled an hourlong interview for
himself by sending a meeting-request invite via Microsoft Outlook to
New York executive recruiter Kim Bishop, who ignored the request. Ms.
Bishop canceled the meeting and won't speak with the job hunter. "I
just thought it was inappropriate and too aggressive," she says. "It
would be like walking into someone's office without an invite."

Jim Winninger

In
order to stand apart from the competition, Jim Winninger has sent
packages to hiring managers with an embroidered shirt and a catchy gift
tag.

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Recruiters
at Philips Electronics NV say a growing number of job candidates with
scheduled phone interviews are instead appearing at the office
uninvited. Russell Schramm, senior manager of recruiting for Philips
Electronics North America, says candidates hope to meet and impress
hiring managers. He says hiring managers generally interview the
candidate in the lobby, but make a note of the incident. When people
who have had no contact with the firm appear without warning, they're
told that staffers are unavailable.

Angela Mellow says she has twice shown up unannounced at the
offices of hiring managers at two companies. Ms. Mellow was laid off
from a San Diego accounting job in November and has since applied to
more than 100 jobs, without luck. The unscheduled appearances didn't
help either. Ms. Mellow says one manager met her at the front desk and
spoke to her for 10 minutes. In the other case, a staffer said the
position had been filled. She hopes the visits helped create a
connection, but admits recruiters "may be turned off if you're not
following protocol."

Health insurer Cigna Corp. says some job seekers send resumes
directly to Chief Executive H. Edward Hanway or top lieutenants, trying
to appear as a friend to improve their chances. Hiring manager Eric
Kaulfuss says such stunts will hurt a candidate. "We're evaluating how
they interact, and if there's behavior we don't want in our
organization, we will filter that out," he says.

Tory Johnson, chief executive of Women For Hire, which arranges job
fairs and recruitment services for women, says two mothers of
candidates recently called her on their children's behalf. Ms. Johnson
says she thinks neither candidate knew about the calls.

Jim Winninger 

Career
experts say patience is important, even in a tough job market. Lynn
Berger, a New York career coach, says repeat phone calls to recruiters
can seem burdensome. With caller ID, she notes, recruiters can know who
is calling without answering. Ms. Bishop says candidates should be
assertive when following up, but not aggressive.

Recruiters say candidates should understand that they are swamped
with applications. If a recruiter offers a phone conversation rather
than an in-person meeting, graciously accept it, says Eileen Finn,
president of Eileen Finn & Associates, an executive-search firm in
New York.

Recruiters say the best ways to stand out don't change with the
unemployment rate: network, craft a well-written resume and cover
letter, and be prepared during interviews.

But Jim Winninger suspects his unusual tactic helped win an
interview. Mr. Winninger, 60, has sent dress shirts to two hiring
managers embroidered with his contact information, along with a note
reading, "If you want a training manager willing to give you the shirt
off his back to work for you, look inside."

He says one hiring manager called, but didn't mention the shirt. Mr.
Winninger concedes that "I"m not going to get a job as a result of
sending someone a shirt. All I'm trying to do with that is get an
interview."

Write to
Dana Mattioli at dana.mattioli@wsj.com