Why you don’t want to see lots of resumes

Some of our recruiting clients want us to send them lots of resumes. They think the more resumes they see, the better the chance of finding “the one”, the so-called perfect candidate.

But the process of reviewing lots of resumes tends to:?

1) Cost a lot of money in Management and HR time

2) Overwhelm the reviewers

3) Prevent the reviewers from working on other, more valuable opportunities

4) Prolong the search

5) Turn candidates off as they have to wait longer before they hear back from you

What you really want are a few qualified candidates. Qualified means:?

1) Affordable-they fit your compensation structure, and you can afford to make them an attractive offer.

2) Background-they’ve worked in a company like yours in terms of size and resources.

3) Experienced-they’ve done something similar to what you want them to do in similar circumstances.

4) Interested in learning more about your company and job.

5) Located where the job is located. Most candidates say they’ll relocate for the right opportunity, but very few will actually do it.

6) Motivated to assume more responsibility.

7) Promotable-not always a requirement, but something to consider.

Finding a handful of candidates who meet most of these requirements takes time, but that’s what recruiters are for.