[scarface_74]

Well, I have spreadsheets of my job hunts since 2012 - 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2023 and 2024. The job I got in 2020 just fell in my lap.

2008 was the last time I had to randomly apply for jobs because I stayed at my second job for over 9 years and had no network.

The only time I randomly applied for jobs was last year and the year before even though I had no expectations of it working.

My response rate from using local external recruiters that I had built a relationship with (before 2020) has been 100%.

I had three rejections between 2012-2020. Post 2022, my response rate through recruiters, my network and targeted outreach, has still been 100%. My success rate has been 5/7 for getting an offer - around 70%.

[skulk]

how does one build a relationship with a recruiter? I stopped talking to them after I got a job, should I be poking them randomly asking how their kids are doing?

[scarface_74]

This was between 1996-2018 when I was working locally in Atlanta. Back when I first started working, often the recruiter would want you to meet in the office and a few would meet you at the job site for the interview.

As I moved up in my career, around 2014, they would actually meet me for lunch. In 2016, I started working with one of the same recruiters when I was in a hiring position to staff.

By then, when new to company managers, directors, CxOs (small companies) were looking for their first couple of hires and spoke to recruiters they knew, I became top of mind.

That was kind of my thing between 2012-2018.

When people say that remote work hurts early career people, this is one of the issues. People who have been in the industry for awhile can still lean on a network we built when people were working in the office and in the same city.

I have a few new people in my network since working remotely in 2020. But that wouldn’t even be the case if I hadn’t done a lot of business travel meeting coworkers between Covid lifting and late 2023.