Paul Daniel's Views On The World, For What They're Worth

As far as I’m concerned, most IT recruiters should be transported by air to New Zealand and dropped 30,000 feet into a boiling mud pool.

Mind you, I do have a few colleagues who are recruiters, who are generally good people, but generally it hasn’t been a great experience when I have had to deal with them. Unfortunately, the one for whom I have the most respect supports Collingwood.

Consider the following e-mail extract, reading from the bottom upwards:

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RE: SharePoint Opportunities

Paul Daniel Solution Sales Specialist, Microsoft Solutions – Application Integration at Dimension Data

InMail Feedback:

To: Christian Green

Category: Career opportunity

Status: In Progress

Date: May 10, 2011

NO! Couldn’t I have made it any clearer?
————————
Dear Paul,
Hi Paul
Apologies but it is a genuine opportunity I have to discuss with you.
Would you be open to a confidential discussion.
Regards
Natalie
On 5/10/11 7:45 AM, Paul Daniel wrote:
——————–
Christian
Please don’t spam me again.
Paul Daniel
On 5/10/11 7:42 AM, Christian Green wrote:
——————–
Currently recruiting for Developers, Consultants, Architects, Solution Delivery Managers, Practice Managers all with in the SharePiont and Dynamics CRM nationally. These roles are with great organisations and will pay excellent salaries.
Please contact me should you be interested in a confidential discussion 02 8705 8543 or n.alaa@totalresource.com
Natalie

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There’s just a few things wrong with this interaction.

1. It’s spam! I, and I am sure the vast majority of my colleagues, choose to go onto LinkedIn to maintain a professional social network, not to receive unsolicited contact from headhunters. I don’t care if it’s a “genuine opportunity”, it’s still spam and I asked you (reasonably nicely) not to do it.
2. While on initial read it is from someone called Cameron Green, further investigation shows it’s actually from someone called Natalie Alaa. Goodness me, can’t you even create your own LinkedIn profile? Or would that mean people might be able to spam you?
3. If you’re going to target me, at least have the decency to spell the product in which I specialise correctly. It’s SharePoint, not SharePiont.
4. If you’d spent a modicum of time reviewing my LinkedIn profile, you would have seen the words “and more recently, have been in sales for 15 years”. (It’s 19 actually – need to update that profile) Do you seriously think that someone who has been in sales for that long is either qualified or likely to be interested in a career as a Developer, Consultant, Architect, Solution Delivery Manager or Practice Manager?
5. I already work for a great organisation that pays me an excellent salary (well I think it is anyway).
6. On receiving my initial e-mail, the correct response should have been “sorry Mr Daniel, we will make sure it won’t happen again”, not a pointless attempt to continue to get me interested.

I offer a prize of a single peanut M&M for any other suggestions of how this amateurish approach is inappropriate.

In short, Cameron Green, or Natalie Alaa, or whoever the hell you are, from Total Resources, develop some proper business ethics, some quality research techniques and DO NOT SPAM ME AGAIN!

(And if you’re thinking that, after having laid in bed now for 13 days, I’ve gone a bit manic, you’re probably right.)