Reviewing quant recruiting firm/headhunter

[Andy Nguyen]

People have a skeptical view of recruiters so it shouldn't be a deterrent. Abuse is of course part of every system but we will have check and balance in place.
There are more job hunters than recruiters so signal noise ratio should improve over time.

And this system targets the audience with at least 1-2 year of experience, not fresh MFE. Recruiters rarely work with entry level candidates.

 

[D C]

guys, don't forget that the results of this study are meant for the MFE community's benefit, not the other way around. and I still don't see why a survey would leave liability...maybe it's naivety?

 

[Andy Nguyen]

If there is a need, as is evident here, we'll find a way. Liability issue is not the top of my concern. Making it useful for as many members as possible is.

 

[alain]

Liability issue is not the top of my concern.

... yet.

 

[Andy Nguyen]

And...?
Just to make it clear: I updated the 4 year old title to reflect the new idea. It is to review recruiters people have used, not making a list of bad recruiters. This is two different things.
We are doing the same thing as with MFE reviews, providing a platform for third party reviews.

 

[alain]

And...?
Just to make it clear: I updated the 4 year old title to reflect the new idea. It is to review recruiters people have used, not making a list of bad recruiters. This is two different things.
We are doing the same thing as with MFE reviews, providing a platform for third party reviews.

That sounds better. A review is much better.

 

[Aytan]

I agree with much of what Dominic has said in this thread. I'm a quant HH that can tell you from first hand experience I deal with many candidates who have horror stories to share and are very hesistant to be straight forward or open until they get to know me. Here are a couple of pieces of advice for those attempting to quantify the capability of their HH
1) Know the HH's area of focus/specialty - Those who have a more defined focus tend to have stronger ties with their clients. This also facilitates their ability to understand the nuances of your (the candidates) experience and expertise. HH who combine a strong domain knowledge and ties with their clients will give you an extremely realistic idea of the current landscape along with their ability to truly assist your search. ex. I focus on two markets Front office Quant Analyst/Strat/Dev roles with a select group of IB's and Systematic/Quant Trading/Research/Development roles with some remaining Prop Groups and Systematic Funds.
2) Talk to your HH about your specific market - Good HH will know moves and changes in firms, job market and be able to interpret how this can effect your candidacy. I know my markets because of my focus.
3) Speak to them when you aren't actively looking. Good HH will be more interested in creating a long-term understanding of you and your desired career growth rather than be focused on instant gratification. Think of a good HH as a partner, someone who can share important information with you, as opposed to a negligent/bad HH who will treat you're his prom date!

I hope this helps the lot of you

 

[DominiConnor]

As well as Aytan's points, I'd like to say that in any market, you don't get better suppliers than consumers.
There exists one HH firm who has a scandalously bad reputation who is also one of the largest and growing.
That's because you give them business, not me.

Aytan's right that you have to manage the relationship with your HH, just like with your dentist, both can cause real pain, not just from screwing up or being evil, but if you don't explain what you want, and ask them for things that they are able to get for you.

You do need to deal with someone with the right focus, you don't want a skin specialist doing your dentistry even though most medics have some dental education. I'm happy to admit there's vast areas of banking of which I have no competence like compliance, sales, accountancy etc, you need to deal with people who know and admit their boundaries.

Reviews would be interesting because there is often a clear difference between the individuals at a given HH firm.

 

[Andy Nguyen]

Spam is indeed a problem, I run the quant group on LinkedIn and I have to delete 4-5 people per day.

What happened to the Quant Finance group on LinkedIn? They just simply disappeared.

 

[Andy Nguyen]

Nobody seems to know the answer so I just asked LinkedIn directly and they told me the group was closed by the owner.

 

[Cassie]

Hi, I just had a very bad experience with Huxley. They were completely unprofessional with my resume and the recruiter messed up the opportunity with the employer. Definitely stay away from this recruiter they work for its benefit and not for yours.