Contacting candidates without a specific listing...

Hello all...

This question might be specific, or more applicable at least, to legal recruiting...not sure. But here goes: Does anyone have any suggestions on how to contact candidates to see if they might be looking for a lateral position, even if you don't have a specific position in mind? For instance, with high-qualify candidates, you can present them to law firms even if the firm doesn't have an active listing. But a cold-call without a specific job in mind can be somewhat awkward: "Calling today to see if you might be intersted in...???"

Anyway, if anyone has an approach that they use to make a more general cold call, I'd love to hear what sort of "script" you use.

Many thanks in advance....

Adam

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Permalink Reply by Amber on December 3, 2012 at 12:09pm

@Adam - where are getting the candidates from? I.e., are they people that sent you their resumes, are you pulling them off job boards, etc.?

I will contact people I think I can place and tell them the truth. That I am not calling to talk to them about a specific position, but rather that I have clients who are often open to looking at their type of backgrounds. From there, I learn what the candidates interests, requirements, etc. are.

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Permalink Reply by Adam on December 3, 2012 at 12:17pm

thanks, Amber. I get the clients from a subscription service. I've tried that general approach, too, but sometimes the candidates see a little put off that I would waste their time without an actual job listing (attorneys get multiple calls a day from recruiters, at least those at the large firms).

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Permalink Reply by Bill Schultz on December 3, 2012 at 12:18pm

"I've noted your name on some breakthrough cases lately. I am a legal talent scout who can spot someone who walks on water without getting their feet wet, ( or whatever shmooze you wish) What, if anything, could be improved in your current employment environment?