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Permalink Reply by Amy Ala Miller on April 15, 2013 at 1:57pm

Is she BSing you? Maybe. Keep in mind we're only hearing one side so hard to say for sure. :) Here's what I would do / have done -

"Candidate, thanks so much for talking with me about this role. I have a commitment to my client to get candidates scheduling by (end of month, or whatever). I understand our timing may be off, and it sounds like you've got a commitment to your current employer, which I respect. Unless you're available (drop dead dates, or reasonable options) let's just agree to move on and I'll let you know if a similar role opens up in the future."

In other words, take it away. It's not a threat, it's not a game, it simply the facts. You have a job to do and a timeline to get it done in. If she's not interested/available/willing to be flexible then she's not the candidate. Now all these things must be in moderation... you can't expect her to drop everything and fly 3000 miles tomorrow for an extended trip, but that doesn't sound like what's happening here anyway.

It would also be interesting to know how this role compares to her current role, reasons for relocating (does she have family or personal connections in either area?). She may just not be sold on the role, OR, she could be having cold feet about moving/changing jobs.

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Permalink Reply by Shawn White on April 15, 2013 at 4:32pm

The Candidate might not be BSing you. It does sound like there might be many different reasons for her not putting in the required leg work to make this opportunity possible.   I would take Amy's advice that would be the most logical thing to do in that situation.  Another option is to keep the networking and dialogue open with the candidate and ask her for a refferal or to maybe toss some possible candidates at you since she works in the field that fits her skills.  Always keep the dialogue open, continue networking and keep creating options for your candidate pool. 

RaginRecruiter!!

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Permalink Reply by Cathy Mannis on April 18, 2013 at 4:09pm

I would ask your candidate if she can commit to a certain interview date and, if she is at all hesitant, let her know that there are other candidates in the pipeline that will then proceed to move forward in the process.  You are basically doing a "take away".  If she is really interested, she will be motivated to make the interview happen and get the job before anyone else does.

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Permalink Reply by Paul S. Gumbinner on April 18, 2013 at 4:32pm

There are many candidates who want to leave their jobs but are very loyal to their current employer.  They are conscientious and involved with their current jobs.  So she may truly be in a self-imposed conflict.   Is she BSing you?  Only you can tell.  I would suggest asking her  a series of questions about her current work and about the other jobs.  Ask her straight out what her priorities are.  I am presuming she has had preliminary phone interviews with the out of town clients.  Do a pre-close, which you should be doing anyway.  Ask her, based on what she knows now, would she accept those jobs if offered immediately.  If the answer is yes, ask her when she would want to start.   If she hems and haws,  find out what her issues are.  My experience is that if the start date is more than three weeks out, there is an issue.  Listen very carefully to her words.  Then ask her about accepting a counter offer from her current employer.  All these responses and the nuance in her voice will tell you if she is telling the truth.  Go by your gut.

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Permalink Reply by Tom Byrne on April 18, 2013 at 4:44pm

Mike although she may be a great candidate on paper unless she is truly motivated to make a move (and for the right reasons) your best bet is to do a take away like Amy mentioned. Let her know that you cannot spend anymore time with her on this position unless she can commit to setting aside sometime for a face-to-face interview. Is not able to do so or is she really not willing to do so because she isn't sold on the opportunity. Doing the take away will give you the answer.  If she stands up and fights you not to remove her from consideration then tell her you need a comittment to set aside time to interview in person. Until she can do this you need to find back-up candidates, perhaps someone sitting next to her? 

Good luck!

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Permalink Reply by Mike Avillion on April 18, 2013 at 4:50pm

I think it all depends on answering the following questions:

1) How far in advance are the client(s) looking to fly her in?

2) How much time is involved?  Overnight trip?

3) Scope of her current role?  How integral is it for her to be present?

4) What is her pain point in her current role?

Considering the above answers, you should be able to determine if she is just "fishing".  Like previously mentioned, if she is stoked about this opportunity; she will make it happen within a reasonable timeframe.  And you never know, maybe she is just afraid of flying?  I have seen that a handful of times over the years.  There could always be the possibility of suggesting a Skype interview prior to a site visit.  Let us know how it works out!

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Permalink Reply by Sandra McCartt on April 18, 2013 at 5:22pm

Time to fish or cut bait.  Your objective is to get her in front of your client if she is serious.  I would handle it this way.

Me:  Hi Judy, you mentioned that you might have to take a sick day in order to go for interview.  Let me know what day of the week and which week of the next two would be the best for you to arrange that time.  If you will give me two options i will speak with my client and see which of the two you have selected will work best for them.

If she says she will need to check the schedule and get back to you. (and she will) "Wonderful, my client will be pleased as they like what they see on your resume and based on the phone interview you are at the top of their list at this point so are ready to move forward."  "I can call you late afternoon tomorrow or you can send me an email tonight after you have a chance to check your schedule."  "Of the two opportunites we have here which one do you think is of the most interest to you at this point?"

Give her 24 hours to think about it.  If you do not receive an email call her late afternoon the next day.  If she hasn't had time to check her schedule it's time for the take away.  Just nicely say, "ok, i understand, they wanted to bring you in first but it looks like you are going to need more time so i will schedule the other candidates and let the client know that you are having scheduling problems."  "Just let me know as soon as you can, i can cover it a little longer and they will understand but if we push this out much longer than two weeks i am afraid they are going to assume that you are not interested or that you would not be available to start in two weeks if the position were offered, based on not wanting to leave your current employer in a bind."  "Are you having second thoughts about moving or have things changed where you are, i know sometimes that happens?"

At that point, as Paul says, listen hard.  Your goal at that point is not to push her but to build your communcation bridge so she will really tell you what is going on in her head.  If she gets wishy washy, doesn't know or mumbles around, get to the bottom of it.  She was looking, she applied, she did a phone interview..what happened at that point.  Is she rethinking moving, kids in school, family having concerns about her moving, situation change at work, promises made, second thoughts about money.Let her know that if she is looking at something that does not require a move and is waiting on another situation you more than understand ...and get her to talk about it.

I had one like this once that almost drove me up the wall.  When i finally got him to talk to me (for about two hours) it finally came out that his son was a high school football player.  I laughed and said, "My God man you are considering Texas."  In this part of the world High School Football on Friday night is a religion.  The coolest kids in school are the boys on the football team.  Check out the Dallas paper and the school web sites, he will think he died and went to football heaven.  We flew the whole family in for a visit, arranged to have the kid meet one of the high school coaches and the team.  Dad accepted and his football playing kid moved with him before the rest of the family sold the house and joined them.

You can't solve a problem until you know what it is.  Be real, ask, listen and if there is a solution offer suggestions.  If you can't get her to talk to you just be every bit as real and tell her that you would love for her to have the opportunity to interview but your client is pushing you to get candidates in for interview so maybe it would be better to withdraw from this one, you will explain to the client and not burn a bridge if her situation should change in the future.  Then leave her alone for a while until she calls you.  Above all do not be a pissy recruiter who is miffed because a candidate is not doing what you want her to do.  Very few candidates really BS recruiters.  A lot of candidates get cold feet or have other irons in the fire.

 

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Permalink Reply by Linda Ferrante on April 19, 2013 at 9:27am

Absolutely try to find out what her issue is, and incorporate the take away as well. If it's too easy to take away from her, she's not the right candidate.

One word of caution, however.  Please do NOT use the 'we have other candidates' line.  It's insulting to candidates AND recruiters everywhere.  It highlights your lack of interest in her as a strong candidate and looks like you are just in it for the money.

Have an honest conversation with her.  Tell her you are starting to feel like she's not interested.  Be honest with her, and she'll be honest back.  Your relationship with her, AND your clients, will remain intact if you do the right thing NOW and not try to backtrack and clean up a mess later!

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Permalink Reply by Suzanne Levison on April 19, 2013 at 10:36am

Yeah, I'll agree with Sandra on this. Communication is best. Find the bottom line reason. No B/S

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Permalink Reply by Sokol Tushaj on April 19, 2013 at 10:52am

Inspiring reply! Glad i read this blog entry. Thank you Sandra! :)

Sandra McCartt said:

Time to fish or cut bait.  Your objective is to get her in front of your client if she is serious.  I would handle it this way.

Me:  Hi Judy, you mentioned that you might have to take a sick day in order to go for interview.  Let me know what day of the week and which week of the next two would be the best for you to arrange that time.  If you will give me two options i will speak with my client and see which of the two you have selected will work best for them.

If she says she will need to check the schedule and get back to you. (and she will) "Wonderful, my client will be pleased as they like what they see on your resume and based on the phone interview you are at the top of their list at this point so are ready to move forward."  "I can call you late afternoon tomorrow or you can send me an email tonight after you have a chance to check your schedule."  "Of the two opportunites we have here which one do you think is of the most interest to you at this point?"

Give her 24 hours to think about it.  If you do not receive an email call her late afternoon the next day.  If she hasn't had time to check her schedule it's time for the take away.  Just nicely say, "ok, i understand, they wanted to bring you in first but it looks like you are going to need more time so i will schedule the other candidates and let the client know that you are having scheduling problems."  "Just let me know as soon as you can, i can cover it a little longer and they will understand but if we push this out much longer than two weeks i am afraid they are going to assume that you are not interested or that you would not be available to start in two weeks if the position were offered, based on not wanting to leave your current employer in a bind."  "Are you having second thoughts about moving or have things changed where you are, i know sometimes that happens?"

At that point, as Paul says, listen hard.  Your goal at that point is not to push her but to build your communcation bridge so she will really tell you what is going on in her head.  If she gets wishy washy, doesn't know or mumbles around, get to the bottom of it.  She was looking, she applied, she did a phone interview..what happened at that point.  Is she rethinking moving, kids in school, family having concerns about her moving, situation change at work, promises made, second thoughts about money.Let her know that if she is looking at something that does not require a move and is waiting on another situation you more than understand ...and get her to talk about it.

I had one like this once that almost drove me up the wall.  When i finally got him to talk to me (for about two hours) it finally came out that his son was a high school football player.  I laughed and said, "My God man you are considering Texas."  In this part of the world High School Football on Friday night is a religion.  The coolest kids in school are the boys on the football team.  Check out the Dallas paper and the school web sites, he will think he died and went to football heaven.  We flew the whole family in for a visit, arranged to have the kid meet one of the high school coaches and the team.  Dad accepted and his football playing kid moved with him before the rest of the family sold the house and joined them.

You can't solve a problem until you know what it is.  Be real, ask, listen and if there is a solution offer suggestions.  If you can't get her to talk to you just be every bit as real and tell her that you would love for her to have the opportunity to interview but your client is pushing you to get candidates in for interview so maybe it would be better to withdraw from this one, you will explain to the client and not burn a bridge if her situation should change in the future.  Then leave her alone for a while until she calls you.  Above all do not be a pissy recruiter who is miffed because a candidate is not doing what you want her to do.  Very few candidates really BS recruiters.  A lot of candidates get cold feet or have other irons in the fire.

 

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Permalink Reply by Ralph Boccella on April 23, 2013 at 1:11pm

Every candidate may be bsing you.  That's why we can't rely on one candidate. Play it out and find other candidates in the meantime.  There will come a point where you just have to take the opportunities away from her, just to end your aggravation.  

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Permalink Reply by Suzanne Levison on April 24, 2013 at 12:03pm

I agree, Ralph. Too, if a candidate is just not ready, you must move on, whether you know his/he reasons or not. Sometimes you just can't get to the bottom of it. Although, that doesn't mean that candidate isn't viable at another time for a different position. I try to maintain a "revisit" relationship and communicate that to the candidate. "XXX, I must move on in the best interests of my client. However, when you are ready to commit to a career change, call me."

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