When headhunters called, Amanda C. Fox always responded-and that`s how she advanced her career.
Headhunters-the colloquial term for executive recruiters who conduct job searches for corporate clients-were interested in Fox, who has been in personnel for more than 20 years and has high visibility and many contacts.
”In 1980, when I was manager of employment services at the corporate offices of Standard Oil of Indiana (now Amoco Corp.), I got a lot of calls from headhunters,” said Fox, now a headhunter and vice president of Paul R. Ray & Co. Inc., an international executive search firm.
”I always took their calls and gave them recommendations for jobs they were trying to fill. In that way, I became part of their network, and it paid off. That`s how I got to be vice president of human resources for Blue Cross/ Blue Shield-through one of the search firms I had been talking to-when I was only 34 years old.”
Fox now is on the other end of the phone calls, many of which go to women.
”Women are getting more educated in how to work with search firms, but they are more reserved, more suspicious and less familiar with what headhunters do than are men,” Fox said. ”Some even feel a little
threatened.”
What women should understand, she says, is that ”they need to be known to search firms not only as candidates but also potential sources.”
Fox has advice for women when headhunters call: ”Don`t hang up on them. Remember, the call you`re getting now may not be for an immediate job change, but it may allow you to have more options in the future.”
Professional women have learned the value of networking, high visibility, teamwork and even of using the office grapevine. But establishing a relationship with corporate headhunters to get ahead is not a commonly accepted practice; nor is it taught in business schools.
However, once you`ve given them names and information, headhunters will let you know what`s going on in your profession and the job market in general and also will keep you in mind when a good job opens.
A study by Salesworld Inc., an executive search firm, indicates that in 1989 employers will increase their hiring of women by 42 percent.
”So when you get that phone call, explore the possibilities, look for the potential; you`re not wasting your time,” said Carl Carieri, Salesworld`s vice president of marketing.
Dealing with headhunters is an acquired skill, experts say.
”Women have made tremendous strides in the work force but still are newer to many high-level positions,” said Diane Cole, a New York-based freelance writer.
”Often, when women are called by headhunters, it may be the first time they ever got such a call. They`re new to the game-and it is a game-and anyone who is new may make mistakes the first time.”
Cole wants to forestall mistakes. So she has written ”Hunting the Headhunters: A Woman`s Guide” (Fireside/Simon & Schuster, $8.95).
One of the book`s themes-how to turn a recruiter into a career-long resource- echoes Fox`s success.
Said Cole: ”It`s important to know who`s calling, a headhunter or an employment agency.
”Executive recruiters always are hired by and represent the client company. Employment agencies don`t work that way: You usually pay their fee. Beware of any headhunter who asks you to pay upfront. And remember, headhunters don`t represent you. Their allegiance is to the client.
”Verify that it`s a reputable agency and that everything you say will be confidential,” Cole said.
Then, get right down to business. ”Be friendly but also get as much information as you can,” Cole advised. ”Find out what the actual position is, why the job is open for search, what happened to the previous person in it, and salary range.”
Finally, stay in touch. ”Follow up periodically,” she said. ”Send them names of candidates or a note about your latest accomplishments.”
Learn to play the headhunter game, Cole stressed. ”Learn the strategy and use it to your advantage,” she said.
The ”extraordinary” number of takeovers, mergers, staff reductions and acquisitions, she said, are warnings that the ax can fall anywhere and that a ”friendly headhunter” may be a friendship that pays off.
