The recruiter-candidate relationship. Its complicated.

The recruiter-candidate relationship. Its complicated.The recruiter-candidate relationship. Its complicated.As a candidate, youve got one thing you cant control stacked against you. Dont blow the things you can control.Chad Oakley,president and chief operating officer ofone of the largest recruiting firms in the country,says, The biggest reason job seekers get the cold shoulder from a recruiter is timing.Even if you do everything right as a candidate and youre working with an excellent recruiter, the company will still have a preconceived idea of the right person for the job and it might be somebody with a slightly different background.Theyre looking for an exact match, Oakley said. I have to send out an email to half the people I connect with that says thank you so much (but) theres nothing that matches the criteria. With odds stacked this high against them, candidates better not do anything to ruin their chances even further, Oakley says.He offers up four tips to job seekers who a re working with recruiters tohelp them avoid the most common pitfalls in the complicated recruiter-candidate relationship.Have a well-organized resume.When youre in a recruiting position, you dont have a lot of time to figure it out. The resume is basically the ad that gets them interested in buying into you. If you blow this opportunity, youre never going to get the opportunity to sell yourself in an interview.Make yourself very accommodating.Being aloof doesnt win you any points with a recruiter, either. Its better to be eager and responsive. Recruiters are very busy people and they work with mora than one candidate at a time. They dont have time to waste on someone who doesnt seem that interested.Be honest.Transparency is key to the partnership and one that often getsignored to the detriment of both the candidate and the recruiter as the job seeker does their best to spin the truth to look better in the eyes of a potential employer. If youve recently experienced a layoff, tell them. Recruiters are really savvy with thistype of thing because itsall they do. If they find out about it later, itsan instant credibility killer. Other areas where candidates can get into trouble for stretching the truth issalary.Dowhat you say youre going to do.It might sound obvious, but job seekers often forget to follow up with everything theyve promised the recruiter. Such incompetence is unacceptable because it shows what kind of employee youd be. If you say youll have something by 5 p.m., make sure you have it by 5 p.m.In your job search, a recruiter might be the strongest ally you have. Following these tips could pay huge dividends as the two of you work together for that common goal.