Thoughts on job recruiters and job search techniques?

ScottHoneycutt

What thoughts are their on job recruiters and methods of job searching for game artists? There are a few LinkedIn groups, There's a "Jobs in Games" (http://www.jobsingames.net), websites such as Gamasutra's job postings, etc. What ways do any of you use to search for work in the industry? Of course there are many places you know of already and can simply visit their website, you can do a search and even use lists on wikipedia and such to find companies to apply. I'm sure doing so will still leave you with many opportunities undiscovered. Have you successfully used any recruiters to get into a position? Are they trustworthy or worth the time? I sometimes wonder what is in it for them if the service is free? Any thoughts on dividing your spare time between portfolio pieces and job searching? Thanks

Kwramm

got my job via a recruiter from datascope, and stayed with the company for over 5 years now and I'm still happy. I think OPM was the second recruiter I worked with. I remember both of them as actually helpful, well informed and responsive. That's the reason I remember their names.

And then there's the rest. I came across many who didn't even seem to read my resume. People who collect in my linkedin like dust (recently removed a lot of them), who will never ever contact you. In that regard linkedin is useless. However following big companies on linkedin is useful. many post jobs there, so it works a bit like an aggregator.

jfeez

I've got both my jobs through a recruiter(OPM) Really helpful, would recommend. I tend to ignore linkedin recruiters tho.

Eric Chadwick

We have many resources here for job searching.
http://wiki.polycount.com/wiki/Game_Industry#Job_Searching

I've gotten all my jobs by directly contacting the companies. It has worked the best when I've known someone already working at the company.

I've talked with and worked with recruiters, but their competence varies wildly, and they can actually screw you if you're not careful (mass-emailing your resume, contacting companies you don't want to work with, blacklisting you, trying to get you into jobs that have no relation to your skillset, etc.). I've heard many many horror stories from other game developers. It CAN work, as evidenced here, but that's rare based on what I've heard.

Much good advice in the links on the wiki there, fwiw.

Auldbenkenobi

Eric, how often are people blacklisted? One of my biggest worries is that I get blacklisted somehow without realising it, having signed up with a few recruiters already... :S

Kwramm

if you work with multiple recruiters then you need to tell them! They may not be super happy, but they're used to it.
What really annoys them if they collide with another recruiter forwarding your resume to the same studio. So you need to tell them where you're applying directly and where any other recruiters are applying for you.

Treat it like a relationship and not as a service. Your recruiter works with you and you need to work with them. If you think your recruiter sucks at communication, drop them immediately. So in practice I found it most convenient to work with 2, max 3 at the same time.

So, just don't be a dick and be honest with them in your communication and there's no problem.

xvampire

btw a lots of people have experience with recruiters here is other similar thread,
some pleasant some not , so it all depends case by case
http://www.polycount.com/forum/showthread.php?t=107305

Auldbenkenobi

Ah, awesome, thanks for the Advice Kwramm! I had a lead with Aardvark Swift but when it fell through the guy I was working with seemed to drop me and hasn't replied to any emails or calls since, so I'm just being a little careful.

Eric Chadwick

Neil, hard to tell how often, as there's never a public list anywhere.

Think about what a recruiter does for you. They contact the HR and Art Director for you, acting as your middle man, promoting you to them over other candidates, helping you negotiate salaries, etc.

They are mostly paid on commission though, they only get paid if they get someone hired. There's a lot of pressure on them to finish the deal, which leads many to try to shortcut the process.

If you end up with a bad relationship with a recruiter somehow, they may badmouth you. I've heard stories from other developers of this kind of crap happening. Not my direct experience though, so take it as you will. Also complainers tend to post more than satisfied customers. But apparently this kind of crap does happen.

Another way to get blacklisted is to consistently be an asshat here on Polycount, or other art forums. No one wants to work with that person. I can think of a couple right now, as can many other veterans here, and teams often have a direct influence on the hiring process.

You should have no worries about inadvertently getting blacklisted. Like Kwramm says, just don't be a dick, that's all there is to it.

Some recruiters are quite unethical, so IMHO that's where you have to step carefully. Do your due diligence on them.

Auldbenkenobi

Awesome, thanks for the help Eric, I'm careful about what I say online and I tend to make sure I'm making a good impression in communities so I don't think I need to worry about that much. As for not being a dick, I'm sure I can handle that!

Eric Chadwick

Gawd, what a dick!

Rurouni Strife

I've never gotten work through a recruiter. They've tried to help here or there and a handful of them have been super awesome-it's just never happened. Any test or interviews I've gotten have come through applications, then emailing or using a LinkedIn message to a connection and getting introduced. I pretty much apply for a job and then email HR reps telling them I applied and that I hope to hear from them soon. It's not a sure fire way to get anything back but HR also want's to hire candidates and all the HR people I've ever talked to (EA, WB, Activision) are fantastic

ScottHoneycutt

Thanks everyone. I've done much researching into the issue and still am. As always I appreciate all the effort to help out on here on Polycount. I think the main issue is that feeling like you are indefinitely sending out resumes/folios out into dead space without ever getting anything back other than the dreaded auto-rejection email. Without knowing anyone on the inside, you feel that the goal is to make connections to fix that issue (while continuing to work the folio harder). I think the temptation to go with a recruiter is there mostly because of that lack of a network. Then, you also need to balance your spare time between such networking, applying and making art. As an aside, it seems that the recruiters mentioned above are mostly dealing outside of North America and one of them has already rejected me. Has anyone here worked with Jobs in Games?

Thanks again.

SrgFlamez

I'm just a student at the moment developing my skills in 3D Modelling and Rigging, but this post is helping find a bunch of Locations in which to research art-styles for so thank you guys.

StephenVyas

Seems fitting, I was just contacted by a recruiter recently and the email sounded very Templated.
I ended up googling his name and... sure enough his name bounced back with a "recruiter hall of shame' website. Any advice i can give would be to do a bit of homework on the person you're talking to before entering any agreements or pursuing interests any further.

Also, be wary of boilerplate emails. Those guys will typically waste your time.
In-house recruiters should be the only worthwhile contacts to be made.