Hiring managers are critical to providing a recruiter with the information they need to source the right type of talent for the job.  But what happens when a hiring manager’s quirks and flaws undo a recruiter’s hard work?  Let’s take a look at how recruiters and minimize the damage:

1. Interview Delays.  One of the biggest sore spots for recruiters is the tendency of busy hiring managers to delay interviewing strong candidates. To avoid this, recruiters should work on developing trusting relationships with hiring managers so that they feel safe giving an interview before reviewing a resume.  The only way to gain this level of trust is by consistently presenting only the strongest candidates to clients.
2. Dependency On Job Description.  Some hiring managers are heavily dependent on job descriptions when assessing job candidates. Instead of looking at the skills that it takes to do a job, they only look at whether or not a candidate has certain experience.  Recruiters should take the time to breakdown to the hiring manager why a job candidate is a strong choice for a particular job, even if they don’t have the exact experience the client is looking for.  If possible, this should be done in writing, a kind of “cheat sheet” the hiring manager can use during interviews.
3. Over Selling The Job.  It is very important that job candidates receive a realistic view of the job for which they’re interviewing. Of course, if a hiring manager is interviewing a top performer, he/she may be tempted to leave out some of the less glamorous aspects of the work. It’s important that the recruiter tell the truth (good and bad) about a job so they can avoid turnover later.