When Nick A. Corcodilos started out in the headhunting business, nearly 20 years ago, he had a keen eye for tracking talent, but he couldn't always make the kill. While he would succeed in his part of the hunt, the job hunters whom he located would often fail in theirs. From his base in Silicon Valley, he would send all-star performers to blue-chip companies like Xerox, IBM, GE, and Hewlett-Packard. Corcodilos, now 43, knew that these candidates were right for the job -- yet they weren't bagging their quarry. They were misfiring before, during, or after the do-or-die interview.
So, instead of simply scouting for talent, Corcodilos began advising talent as well. He helped job hunters improve their kill ratios -- by getting them to pursue fewer companies, by helping them make the right contacts, and by showing them how to deliver what companies are looking for in an interview. Eventually he went online, and later he wrote a myth-busting book titled "Ask the Headhunter" (Penguin/Plume, 1997). Since moving his base of operations to Lebanon, New Jersey, he has taught career development to high-flying employees at such companies as AT&T, Merrill Lynch, and Procter & Gamble.
To help you conclude your next job search with a sure kill, Fast Company has asked Corcodilos to map out a plan for reinventing the rules of the hunt. (And since many people must hunt not only for work but also for talent, we offer three sidebars on how to recruit like a headhunter.)
In the following interview, Corcodilos covers the basics of a successful hunt, from preparation to tactics to execution. Bottom line: He shows you how to deliver the one, surefire thing that every employer is looking for -- proof that you can do the job, and do it profitably.
Headhunters know that a résumé rarely gets you inside a company. A résumé can't defend you or answer questions about you. All that a résumé can do is outline your past, and your past is largely irrelevant, because it doesn't demonstrate that you can do the work that the hiring manager needs to get done.
"A résumé leaves it up to employers to figure out how you can add value to their organization," says Corcodilos. "That's no way to sell yourself."
Recalling the old marketing adage that a free product sample gives customers a reason to want more, Corcodilos suggests that you do the same with your résumé: Give prospective employers an example of what you can do for them.
"Create a new area in your résumé," he advises. "Call it 'Value Offered.' In two sentences, state the value that you would bring to the employer. Be specific: You will probably have to create a separate résumé for each company that you approach.
"If you include a summary of your value that targets the hiring manager's needs, you'll transform your résumé into a marketing tool that distinguishes you as someone whose goal is to help the employer, rather than as someone who's simply out to get a job."
Headhunters deal with a company's human-resources department only when they're filling a highly visible position, such as president or CEO. Otherwise, they avoid HR whenever possible. So should you.
"Most HR departments," Corcodilos says, "create a Byzantine infrastructure that primarily involves processing paper. They package you, they organize you, they file you, they sort you. Then, if you haven't gotten lost in the shuffle, they might pass you on to a manager who actually knows what the work is all about."
Some HR professionals do excel at finding the right candidate for a job, but they are the exception, Corcodilos argues. As a rule, HR slows you down and forces you to compete against other candidates. A smart headhunter will short-circuit that process by going directly to the only person who counts: the manager who will ultimately make the hire.
"While the typical candidate is waiting to be interviewed by the HR department, the headhunter is on the phone, using a back channel to get to the hiring manager -- or talking to that person directly."
A headhunter never sends a candidate into an interview unless the candidate is clearly qualified for the job. In your own job hunt, you must make the same effort to ensure a good fit. But you won't make a good match unless you already know the parameters of the job when you walk into the interview. And that requires a lot of research on your part.
The best way to learn about a company is to talk to people who work there. Kenton Green, 28, a guest columnist for the Ask The Headhunter Web site, has been using this technique while he completes a PhD program in electrical engineering and optics at the University of Rochester: "I find an article published by someone in my field who works at one of the companies that I'm interested in. Then I call that person and ask to talk.
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