Even experienced recruiters make unrealistic demands when looking for new jobs. 

To prepare effectively for your own own personal job applications, you must become more aware of what will make you stand out from the crowd, to be seen as that exceptional candidate.

The following advice will help you to present yourself well to a potential employer or your rec-to-rec consultant.

• Pleasespell check and proofread your CV before submitting!
• Client demands are more specific than they have been for some time. You need to have relevant industry sector experience and be able to add value to a business from day one.
• Clients want to see proof of billings and earnings – so ensure you have your P60s, any revenue figures, client and candidate testimonials etc.
• References – provide these promptly as early in the recruitment process as you can.
• If you have consistently moved jobs, you are likely to struggle to secure your desired role as clients will not accept “job hoppers”.
• Clients are hiring strong business developers, new door openers, dynamic sales recruiters. Unfortunately your expectations could prove unrealistic if you are seeking pure account management roles or non-billing roles — i.e. joining a company that offers a warm desk with lots of existing clients that purely need caretaking is a thing of the past.
• Be realistic with your salary expectations and perhaps be prepared to work to increments on reaching certain performance levels.
• When you get that new job don’t jump ship because the going gets tough – work smarter (as well as harder), think outside the box, differentiate yourself from your competitors, demonstrate your resilience – an important quality that all successful recruiters possess.
• If you want to return to the recruitment industry after leaving, you must have been successful, have a sound business case about why you are returning, have a valid reason why you left originally and also ensure you are fully aware of today’s market conditions.

Fiona McDonald, manager, Wilkinson Hindle, and vice chair of the REC R2R sector group