Boot Camp 101

As I recently felt honored by participating on the recruiter’s panel during Women for Hire’s Boot Camp, a funny thing happened on the way to the Manhattan Pavilion…I’ve noticed a pattern with giving and how incredible it feels. Very often you end up getting more back than what you give, such was the case that humid afternoon here in Manhattan. While recruiters take our jobs seriously we literally talk about compensation, negotiations and job offers on a daily basis, to others not involved in the process the job offer stage may seem like a bizarre shade of gray, when do you talk salary during the interview process, how do you negotiate, etc. Similar to how you would talk about your line of work like it’s no big deal I guess that’s one of the main benefits of being in recruiting: you see how things work and how straightforward it usually is. So imagine how much fun it was to speak to an audience of recent grads and perhaps more unconventional candidates (women who recently earned their degrees at an older age – more power to them for their accomplishments!).

I ended up learning from other recruiters and their best practices, but most importantly I learned a lot from the audience members themselves. Here’s the thing: we were all right out of school at one point, eager to make our mark. Excited for an interview, let alone a job offer. It was fun putting a face on recruiting so they could hear about our stories first hand: what works best to get our attention, what not to do, and above all, how timing is really everything.

As I chatted with participants during the mingling session afterwards I was impressed how polished and prepared they were. These ladies did their homework, they researched companies that were featured on the panel, and asked for general advice. And as several of them followed up with me, connected via linkedIn and inquired about job opportunities and continued to follow up I only hope they realize by attending the Boot Camp and becoming engaged in their own careers they’re well on the path towards greatness and will hopefully give back some day as well, no matter how large or small in helping other newbies to the job market navigate their way.