Should recruiters ignore job hoppers?
For many recruiters, the knee-jerk reaction to this question is a resounding “Yes!” After all, your clients don’t want to pay you good money to place a candidate only to have to do it all over again in a few months. But blog post author Divakar Vadlamani urges recruiters to think twice before uniformly rejecting resumes that show a pattern of frequent job switching.
According to Vadlamani, job hopping can actually be the sign of a high performer who thrives on challenge and is easily bored. He says that although these workers may not stay for a long period of time, their potential contribution could be bigger than that of a long-tenured employee who is “boxed in a comfort zone.” Rather than simply passing them over based on their resume, Vadlamani recommends giving them a chance to explain their job-hopping ways.
We agree. Times have changed. You are going to find fewer and fewer people who have spent long periods of time with one company. But we can’t blame you for shying away from these candidates for your perm placements. They are, however, perfect contract candidates for the following reasons.
- Contract assignments will give them the constant challenge they crave.
- They are quick learners who are undaunted by new, demanding situations.
- They can make an immediate impact by working on critical deadlines and projects.
- They can pad their resumes with a wealth of knowledge, skills, and references.
So before you overlook a candidate for switching jobs too many times, consider how this perceived weakness could actually be an asset for your clients.
If you’ve considered placing job hoppers in contract positions to accommodate their habits, you should also consider using FoxHire’s contract staffing services. Our employer of record services take the employer burden off of you, so you can focus on making more placements!
