Q: What profession employs over 50 thousand people across Canada, enables people to earn over 100 thousand dollars in their first year out of school, yet has no university degree or college diploma program?
A: IT recruiting.
IT Recruiting
Do you have great people skills? Are you self-motivated? Do you love to learn? If you replied yes to all three, then you just might have what it takes to be an IT recruiter.
What Do IT Recruiters Do?
As IT recruiters, we have the satisfaction of helping people find their dream jobs. We work closely with candidates to identify what they are looking for in a job, and then actively help them achieve those ambitions. At Stafflink, recruiters often form a bond with their candidates and work with them throughout their careers, all the way from their first job to senior management level positions.
Recruiters Are Experts At Talent Evaluation
Recruiters spend a lot of time evaluating candidates and critiquing resumes. They can evaluate hundreds of resumes on a daily basis. A good recruiter is similar to a general manager in sports. They’ll scout the best talent and build relationships with top talent. The top talent want to work with recruiters who are great at developing and maintaining relationships, and will help them get what they want out of their career.
A Top IT Recruiter Is Connected To The Right People
A great IT recruiter will have very strong personal relationships that they’ve developed through referrals and social media over time. When a top recruiter posts a job, they are going to broadcast it through Twitter, through LinkedIn and various other sites. Their team will also broadcast that job. A good recruiter can have a job posting go out to over 7 thousand people directly, who then extend it’s reach to thousands more.
A Good IT Recruiter Will Make Their Clients More Successful
If you have worked with a recruiter as a company, you understand how important and powerful the reach of the right recruiter is to filling a position with the right talent. A great recruiter will allow instant access to the top talent through their connections, and quickly meet a company’s goal of finding the right candidate.
On-the-job Training
For a profession that employs over 50 thousand people in Canada, surprisingly, there is very little formal training for IT recruiting in colleges and universities. If you know a program, let me know.
People don’t go to school to be a recruiter. Generally, as students, recruiters start out taking politics, English, and HR programs and then apply for a job in recruiting, where they begin training on the job. Some college programs do offer a few courses around recruitment, but currently there is void in the market for formal recruiting training programs.
How To Get Into IT Recruiting As A Profession
If you are interested in a career in IT recruiting, the best way to get into it is make sure your resume is top notch, then work your network and reach out to contacts at a recruiting company that is hiring.
If you have a background in Computer Science that will help you land the job. Show them your communication skills and passion for technology. Showing a recruiting hiring manager that you know how to network and use social media is a big part of recruiting, and could land you the job on the spot. They’ll also be very impressed if you know about Boolean search techniques.
I Love My Job
IT recruiting is a truly rewarding profession that I’m honoured to have been a part of for over 20 years. Connecting clients with the talented people who will make them more successful, and helping candidates land the jobs of their dreams keeps me coming back for more.
As a relatively recent grad of both a poli sci and HR program – I can definitely relate to this article. Recruitment was touched on by 1 or 2 core courses. It was generally taught from the corporate perspective – not necessarily the agency side. Only after discussing my interest in recruitment with my “Recruitment and Selection” professor (who was a former IT recruiter) did I really discover my interest in agency recruitment.
My educational background helped me develop writing skills, critical thinking skills and general HR/business knowledge – but it is definitely a career where 90% of your knowledge and training is acquired on the job. I think it would be very beneficial to have a program specifically for recruitment – it would really bring attention to the career and set a standard for the industry. It is a growing profession, that I know first hand provides an outstanding opportunity for new grads.
It would be great if a university or a college decided to create a program for people interested in a recruiting career.
This is really informative !! And worthy
Thank you so much !!!!
Thanks for your comment Fiona!
Tim, a good article thanks!
In all my years in this industry I have yet to meet someone who went to school with the express purpose of joining the staffing industry. We all end up here by accident which is strange because this is a $9 Billion industry in Canada, every company needs great people and so it is also an industry that is a necessary part of our economy.
I would also caution … it is a fast paced industry, and can be stressful (like most worthwhile jobs). We receive far more resumes than people we place, so while we help a lot of people, at some level we also disappoint more! The role is a business role, requiring a business outlook and sometimes that can be tough to take if you are looking for more of a “touchy feely” kind of role.
It is an industry where you can progress quickly, have control over your income potential and is highly tranferable. A recruiter in Canada can be a recruiter in Australia; an IT recruiter can learn to be an engineering recruiter quickly etc.
In summary recruiting is a great career offering lots of potential and good rewards but you will work hard.
Hi Kevin,
Great comments about how a recruiter can work anywhere in the world.
The million dollar question is how do you get people thinking about recruiting when they are in high school, college or university?
This is a 9B industry in Canada. Should staffing associations be educating guidance counsellors in school boards.
Staffing is a difficult, challenging, fun and rewarding career.
Why don’t more people choose staffing as a career, rather than a job?