With a sizeable proportion of the world’s top firms using IT recruiters to find interim and permanent employees for their most senior positions, it’s becoming more and more important for candidates to be able to work with them as effectively as possible. Building a decent relationship with a top recruiter is worth the effort for experienced professionals as well as those at the start of the career ladder. We’ve outlined six key pieces of advice for establishing a strong relationship that will work to both of your advantage:

Listen to recruiters

A decent recruiter won’t simply try to sell you a position, they’ll start by making research and recommendation-based enquiries and ask tailored questions for each position. Listen carefully to their questions and respond as directly and thoughtfully as you can – it’s the first step in ensuring both employer and eventual employee are the right fit for each other.

Cultivate an online connection

Treat a recruiter just as you would any other professional networking relationship – seek out their LinkedIn, Twitter, Google+ etc. accounts, connect and get yourself on their radar. Remember not to overdo it, though, a daily tweet to them about your job hunt will just make you feel like a thorn in their side rather than an eager and savvy candidate.

Honest is best

Obviously we all want to present ourselves and our qualifications in the best possible light, but don’t be tempted to cross the line into over-embellishment. Background and reference checks will uncover the truth over salary, qualifications or previous lay-offs and you’ll have irreparably damaged the trust between you and your recruiter.

Respond to unsolicited calls

While many of us aren’t fans of taking unsolicited phone calls, if you’re serious about finding the right position now is not the time to ignore your recruiters’ attempts to contact you. You never know when the right opportunity is at the other end – for you or someone else in your network. 

Keep to your word

This should be obvious, but job seekers regularly fail to follow through with everything they’ve promised the recruiter. This provides them with the worst possible first impression and doesn’t bode well for the type of employee they think you’ll make. If you say you’ll send something by Friday morning, send it by Friday morning – remember, recruiters want to work with reliable, savvy candidates that will reflect well on them.