"Interview With a Headhunter" by Bill Breen, Fast Company, January 1999, Page 155

"Good Advice from a Headhunter" - Jane Dosemagen, 1/26/99

I liked the advice from headhunter, Nick A. Cordodilos. He gives several good pieces of advice. His main recommendation is that a job hunter show proof that he/she can do the job. One way to do this is to add a section to your resume explaining how you can do the work at hand and add value to the organization. This section, entitled "Value Offered," would include just a couple sentences specifically stating the value that you would bring to the employer. This extra section sets your resume apart as one which offers help/value to the employer, in contrast to those that only explain your past in order to get you a job.

Another recommendation is that it's important to know the job before the interview. The best way to find out about the job and company is to talk with people who work there. Corcodilos looks for articles published by someone in the field who works in a company he's interested in, contacts the person, and mentions his availability and inquires about the company's staffing needs. In this conversation, he discovers whether there's a good match with that company, thus saving both his time and the company's time interviewing if there's not a good match.

Next he recommends showing the company that you understand the job, you can do the job, and that the company will profit from hiring you. Know what goal the hiring manager has and show how you can contribute toward that goal. Corcodilos advises job hunters to list steps you will take to achieve the employer's goals and how your actions will profit from your actions by reducing costs or increasing revenues.

The following piece of advice is a good one for all of us, whether job hunting or working at our daily tasks. "Have a Positive Attitude," says Corcodilos, when going in for the interview, convinced that the employer wants to hire you. "Think of the interview as your first day on the job," Corcodilos advises, showing that you are ready to work, discussing projects, understanding the job, ready to do the job, and asking about the company's resources, staffing arrangements, and tools available.

Finally comes negotiation. Corcodilos suggests that the interviewee to be honest about money, not demanding, but now worrying how the employer will react. He says that a good company will consider the things that are important to a good candidate.

Once offered the job, you are the one who has the power 'to decide whether, and on what terms, you want to hire that company, ' says Corcodilos. This means work on your part too, but well worth it.

-- Anonymous, March 19, 1999