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Permalink Reply by Todd Kmiec on May 13, 2009 at 7:02am

The best negotiator is always the one who is willing to walk away, so you need to know where your line is drawn and be willing to walk. It sounds like giving the location without the contract is unacceptable so you are all set there. I would explain the situation by saying you keep all candidate information confidential until you have a contract, but you can tell him that this is (or is not) a relo situation and give an idea of how big a deal the relo will be. You're offering a little info (like it's not a super long move and shouldn't be a costly relo) but also letting him know where your line is drawn. If he is unwilling to give you the contract, you need to be able to professionally accept that and walk away, letting him know that you'd love to talk if anything changes. If the desire for the candidate is strong enough he'll accept that or come back to you shortly. If not, you have made a solid contact and things will probably work out on a subsequent contact down the line.

TK

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Permalink Reply by Jerry Albright on May 13, 2009 at 8:25am

As I'm thinking about this I'm trying to picture the conversation which has already taken place. At least I'm assuming it was a real conversation vs. an email/resume blast with a follow-up email from the manager.

So in hoping this was a phone call - when he said "where is this candidate?" .....how did you reply? Was it "Well, I don't want to divulge that until we have an agreement." or possibly "let me get back to you on that."......? I'm just speculating here so bear with me.

You see one of the mistakes many recruiters make is the false belief that any question that comes at them needs to be answered. He (or she) who asks the question is in charge. Don't give them that control during your marketing call. I'll share a few of my thoughts on how you could have replied.

Manager - "Where is this candidate located?"

You - "Why do you ask?" then just listen. You could hear anything from "If he is that guy from Durham then we'll pass" to which you can hopefully reply "Well I've got good news - he's not that guy." and move forward with your presentation.

The answer to the "Why do you ask?" question is going to be very revealing. Some of the other stuff you might here are: "We don't have any money for relocation" or "We are currently considering a person from Atlanta with a very similar background as the person you're describing and I don't want to have any kind of mixup"

The list is endless. So don't guess - just ask!

Hope this helps. Good luck.

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Permalink Reply by GA Cooper on May 13, 2009 at 1:34pm

Thanks Todd. I slept on this overnight and agree with you. what you are saying is exactly what I came up with. The other thing that I am going to have to deal with is the fact that I know, they at least know of this guy. so I will have to include in my contract that the fact they know of the guy doesn't mean anything, because I am the one bringing him to the table.

Todd Kmiec said:

The best negotiator is always the one who is willing to walk away, so you need to know where your line is drawn and be willing to walk. It sounds like giving the location without the contract is unacceptable so you are all set there. I would explain the situation by saying you keep all candidate information confidential until you have a contract, but you can tell him that this is (or is not) a relo situation and give an idea of how big a deal the relo will be. You're offering a little info (like it's not a super long move and shouldn't be a costly relo) but also letting him know where your line is drawn. If he is unwilling to give you the contract, you need to be able to professionally accept that and walk away, letting him know that you'd love to talk if anything changes. If the desire for the candidate is strong enough he'll accept that or come back to you shortly. If not, you have made a solid contact and things will probably work out on a subsequent contact down the line.

TK

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Permalink Reply by GA Cooper on May 13, 2009 at 1:38pm

Thanks for the response Jerry. Actually, I e-mailed a little bit of info to the hiring manager and called several times (he is out of town). There has been no actual conversation, I'm just casting the bait. Like I mentioned in my response to Todd, is the fact that there are several people at this office who have worked with this candidate and will know him, so I need to include a clause in the contract stating that (or words to this effect) that I am the one bringing him to the table.
I used to work as a subcontractor with another recruiter is turned out to be, well, less than ethical and am doing this on my own, so I apprciate your help.
Jerry Albright said:

As I'm thinking about this I'm trying to picture the conversation which has already taken place. At least I'm assuming it was a real conversation vs. an email/resume blast with a follow-up email from the manager.

So in hoping this was a phone call - when he said "where is this candidate?" .....how did you reply? Was it "Well, I don't want to divulge that until we have an agreement." or possibly "let me get back to you on that."......? I'm just speculating here so bear with me.

You see one of the mistakes many recruiters make is the false belief that any question that comes at them needs to be answered. He (or she) who asks the question is in charge. Don't give them that control during your marketing call. I'll share a few of my thoughts on how you could have replied.

Manager - "Where is this candidate located?"

You - "Why do you ask?" then just listen. You could hear anything from "If he is that guy from Durham then we'll pass" to which you can hopefully reply "Well I've got good news - he's not that guy." and move forward with your presentation.

The answer to the "Why do you ask?" question is going to be very revealing. Some of the other stuff you might here are: "We don't have any money for relocation" or "We are currently considering a person from Atlanta with a very similar background as the person you're describing and I don't want to have any kind of mixup"

The list is endless. So don't guess - just ask!

Hope this helps. Good luck.

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