Recruitment is Best job..???!

Before I say something which I have experienced, from my graduation, I was really keen about a role called HR Recruiter. That was one of the role which inspired me to be in HR Industry. I was going through blogs, write ups regarding HR industries and was more attracted towards it as days passed. After my Graduation, I tried to get to HR industry as recruiter but could not get any immediate opportunities. Later on, I got an opportunity to work as a Software Engineer in a company called 3i InfoTech. As it was burning time period after my graduation, I did not had any option other than accepting what came in my way. But my passion towards HR Recruitment never went away. After nearly 2 years of work, I felt there was nothing new to learn in what I was doing. I felt I had settled my life to an extent and then decided to move on with what interests me doing. I resigned my job and started working as a Freelance HR Recruiter. After learning the basics of Recruitment by myself, I joined a startup Recruitment firm as a Senior Recruiter and gained an experience of building a team to improve the company's revenue by hiring the most right resource for the right position to the right company and the right cost. At present, working as a Sr. Talent Acquisition Member and being in this HR Industry as a Recruiter have some painful stories which I feel need to be expressed, so that it reaches out to the people out there who are looking for a job and also who are changing their Jobs.

I chose to be a HR Recruiter only for one reason, i.e., I give Job. I like this role because I connect to most of the employees. I like this role because I get to Interact with new people every minute and I like this role because I help people out there to get their Job and I help employees to find their best employer and I help an employer to find their right & best employees. 

I have heard from most of the people out there that HR does not do any work in the company. I heard most of my friends saying "HRs just come, plan for some events, plan for some trainings and source few resumes for Hiring and day is done". I also heard that HRs life is easy. It is just engaging with employees, no coding, no testing, no tension and no worries. But actually, it is not as I have heard from most of them. As a HR, there might not be a tough and irritating work as coding, there might not be a detective work as Testing and there might not be a watchman work as production support and maintenance. But even then, an "HR job is not an easy one".

My First assignment as a Freelance Recruiter was for a leading consulting firm and the requirement was just a MBA fresher in Marketing & Finance. I was quite happy that my first assignment was so easy. I searched in Naukri, Monster, Shine & other job portals along with my LinkedIn post. While lining up, I understood the first pain of a recruiter, i.e., his competitive recruiters. As a recruiter if I give a small gap in my search, the immediately available resource pool in the market will be acquired by my competitive recruiters. Even then, I got a positive feedback at first and also lined up almost 45 candidates for 5 open positions. During a discussion with my client, I understood that there were around 11 vendors who were working for the same requirement. That means, for 5 open positions, on an average 30 - 40 candidates from 11 different vendors. Is that job an easy one? Well, that might be easy in few cases, but the major problem was waiting on the day of Interview. As a recruiter, my candidate's first scheduled Interview was on 7-Sep-2013. I did follow up with all my 45 candidates on 6th September just to make sure my candidates should not be late and the opportunity moves to some other candidate. And on the Interview day, I called all my candidates and out of 45 some 30 answered my calls and informed me that they will be reaching out to the venue on time. As time passed, I kept following up with my candidates and most of the answers were like they reached the place or they will reach in 5 mins. Finally at the end of Interview, I did not had a clear picture of many actually attended the Interview. I did check with my client SPOC and they informed me the feedback will be provided on 9th Sep. I was waiting for the feedback and when it came, I was in a shock and I felt like crying literally. Out of 45 candidates, only 3 had attended Interview and even those 3 were rejects. I was in deep pain after seeing the feedbacks and even more after talking to my candidates. Most of my candidates gave a reason of Unplanned work, emergency issue, family work and most heart hitting that they were almost near the venue and they met with an accident. 7 of my candidates gave me that reason of accident. After seeing the feedback and listening to the reasons of not making to the Interview, I felt really bad. I felt bad because I know how much hard effort I had put in lining up 45 quality candidates for the client. I felt bad because of the reasons I listened to, when they had an opportunity of a good job with a good company. After that Incident, I felt that this job is not for me. I felt that it is for someone who is not actually looking for any improvement in his/her career and who just want some salary at the end of month. I did not take up any requirements after that. 

After almost a month, I got a call from one of the job seeker who had completed his MBA and looking for any job as he was jobless from 1 and half year. He told me he is ready to get into job in any company for any salary, as it was a peak time for him because he had hell lot of problems at home. He had to take care of his family of 5 members. I still remember him requesting me for a job like anything. That day, I felt bad again that I could not source him for the requirement I had a month ago. But I thought of him for 2 days and then with all my contacts & influence, I somehow got that guy a job of a Marketing executive in one of a growing company. After joining, he called me and thanked me a lot. I felt good and somehow did not concentrate on recruitment much thereafter. I was thinking of what next and was planning to start some own local business. Before I come to a conclusion, I got a call from an Unknown number on a Saturday and asked me where he can meet me? I asked who it was, but they did not respond to it, instead they just asked tell me where you are at present. I did disconnect. But I got a message asking for same thing again. I was surprised and was wondering who that would be who wants to meet me. After sometime, I only called back on that number and told him that I was on the way to meet a friend and I was near Hitech city. He told me to wait near a Bakery in Hitech city. I felt that it is something wrong happening, but even then I took a risk and gave a chance for it. I parked my Bike and was waiting at the Bakery in Hitech City. After some 10 Minutes, a guy came to me and asked "Are you Mr. Ramakanth?” I did reply with yes. He handed over a box of sweets to me and thanked me. I asked who are you and why is this sweets? , I was very surprised and happy to know that he was the same guy to whom I got a job one month ago and he had got his first salary few days back. He was very happy and thanked me. He told me all his problems and how life is was after his education. He was very happy that he got a job in a Good company with a decent package. He did invite me for the lunch, but I just said no. We did go for a tea and had a discussion for about 30 minutes and he left. While leaving, he told me one thing which I still remember and feel proud of. "Your profession is the best profession in the world. You make people like us to take correct decisions, choose Right jobs and guide us to success in our career". That was the moment which changed my mind and my life. That was the day when I decided that whatever the situation be, I would not turn back from my dream profession. That was the day when I felt that turning my passion of being an HRM (Human Resource Manager) which I call as Human Relations Manager / Talent Acquisition / Recruitment Manager, to my profession was the right decision. And from then I never turned back. 

I have been in this business / field / industry for more than 4.6 years now and enjoy this profession. One more major problem I face in this profession is about the candidates who lie about their availability to a scheduled Interview. I really do not understand how an educated software engineer who knows what the time means for an engineer, can lie to a recruiter who actually schedules an interview for him/her to get a better opportunity in a better organization. I always wonder why can’t a candidate informs in advance that he/she will not be able to make it up for the slot. They keep our hope by telling some or the other lie till the last minute and finally either they switch off their phones or they don't respond. At that particular time, an HR knows how difficult it will be to answer to the client and to the technical panel. It is more difficult to get their time again for scheduling one more interview. All our problems will not remain a problem if the so called educated Software engineers intimate us that they will not be able to take up the interview at the specified time and give us a confirmed time when they can take it up. When I am saying, educated software engineers, I am not including everyone. There are many good and awesome candidates who treat us as their friends and never allow us to feel sad. I really appreciate those who treat recruiters seriously and make their life and work an easy and a respectable one. 

After all the drama, interviews, selections and rejections, we still can't live happy and enjoy our work because there are few super candidates who give a major problem by dropping the offer on the last day. This is one of the major problem in the HR industry. There are few candidates who respond to our calls after the offer has been rolled and be positive till the last day before joining. And on the joining date, either they do not respond or they respond and tell us that they made fool out of us. We feel so irritated with such candidates and we feel like killing him/her at that point of time. But as we are in HR, we should be pleasing to them. We should request them again and try to get them on board. We are fine and happy to request and do the negotiations, but few candidates are so rude, heartless and dishonest, that they do not even want to talk the recruiter who got him/her a job. They sometimes warn us that they will complaint to police if we disturb them. What do we do of such irresponsible candidates? Answer is nothing. We cannot do anything to such candidates. We have to start working for the backup candidate to backfill that offer. We smile and move on in life and start our simple work all over again. Still I love this profession. Still I say that HR job is the easy and best one as other software engineers say. 

I just want to tell one thing to the employees out there, HR job seems to be easy but it is one most difficult job in the world. It will have the responsibility to find a good colleague to work with you so that your work environment will be the best one. 

I request everyone who are reading this article, any time in your life if an HR recruiter calls you, please consider it seriously and answer frankly. Do not ever try to give a positive hope and break their trust over the job. Once you get an offer please make sure you accept it and join without looking out for another better opportunity by showing up the opportunity you have in your hand. 

Along with your HR, you are also responsible to create the comfortable work environment. You are also responsible to grow your company and an awesome nation in turn. 

Thank you,