A Lesson in Timing: When and Where to Approach Recruiters

Is every occasion a networking opportunity waiting to happen or rather, should it be?

Being a Hiring Manager or just someone in the hot field or company of the moment must feel like being a choice chunk of meat with hungry job seekers ready to pounce. Imagine the mounds of emails from perfect strangers and the over eager applicants ready to interrupt your mad dash out of the office.

An alumni speaking at my school’s annual career conference recalled the anxiety she felt when emails came in at the end of her work day. She would hurriedly check her computer thinking there was one last important task till the day’s work was complete, only to be confronted with an a well intentioned and enthusiastic, but badly timed email from a student looking for an introduction. Although she didn’t say so, in my mind that kind of build-up couldn’t be favorable.

To complicate the matter further, I once had a Journalism professor that advised us against conducting business, such as pitching to editors and agents, on Mondays or Fridays and never after 3. It was all a matter of considering where the person you hope to get in contact with might be focusing. On Monday, work is starting to file in and your week is being planned out, while on Friday you are ready to run out the door. As for after 3 pm, it is known that your productivity decreases after lunch, and again, you’re  probably trying to finish up for the day.

Of course it’s not an exact science, but it boils down to being courteous. People in high places know that others want things from them. If you are up against dozens of other jobseekers industrious enough to direct an email at a hiring manager, do you really want to luck out just because of timing? That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t make your move, just consider when; there is, in fact, a time for everything.