How to contact recruiters

Hey there,

There's no silver bullet and you want to try and establish as many meaningful contacts within a given firm as possible to make sure you gain traction. All it takes is one ‘champion’ who's supporting your application, irrespective of their background.

If you don't get responses from a recruiter via email or linkedin, try and get connected to current consultants with whom you might have something in common e.g., same industry, same school, common friends on linkedin, etc.

They can help you in two ways:

1. Introduce you to the recruiter (this is how my McKinsey career once started)
2. Refer you via their internal process to significantly increase chances of being interviewed

If you struggle to get connected to consultants, check out the various networking events these firms generally have for select groups or open to all. Better yet, find some common contacts on linkedin and get introduced.

Hope this helps a bit. Best of luck!

Moritz

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>> Need a senior McKinsey coach? See my profile in a nutshell
>> Need real McKinsey cases? See two real examples with Zero Carbon Mine (hard) & Car Convenience (Intermediate + brand new)

Hi there,

First of all, I am sorry to hear about the low responsiveness of the recruiters you contacted!

I would be happy to share my thoughts on your question:

• First of all, be persistent but polite. If a recruiter doesn’t reply, it's okay to follow up after a week or two. However, ensure you don’t come off as pushy. Remember, recruiters are busy, and sometimes, a gentle reminder might be all it takes.
• Moreover, try reaching out through LinkedIn. Many recruiters are active there, and it's a more direct way to connect. When sending a connection request, always add a personalized note.

If you would like a more detailed discussion on how to best prepare for your upcoming interviews, please don't hesitate to contact me directly.

Best,

Hagen

Haha, loved the honesty on the ‘recruiter that does respond to emails’.

Actually, most do. You probably got a bit unlucky with the ones you tried. 

Basically, I'd try to following in this order:

1. Try to find the direct email address of the recruiter on the website or linkedin and write to them
2. If they don't answer within a week, try to find a general mailing address to HR and write to that one
3. If nobody answers, reach out to the recruiter via LinkedIn
4. If you don't get linkedin responses from the recruiters, then start networking with consultants who are at the firm and then tell them you've been struggling to reach HR and whether they could specifically put you in touch with someone (usually this last step nails it because they'll just write to HR and cc you and HR will definitely answer). 

Best of luck!
Cristian

———————————————

Practicing for interviews? Check out my latest case based on a first-round MBB interview >>> SoyTechnologies  

Hi there,

Q: My question is how to contact a recruiter efficiently. It seems impossible to have a recruiter that does respond to emails.

I would recommend the following:

1. Send an email to the person who seems the best contact.
2. If they don’t reply, look for a different contact and send the email to them.
3. If they still don’t reply, call the office.
4. If they still don’t reply and it makes sense (it might not be worth the effort), leverage the internal connections you have to see if they can introduce you to HR.

Good luck!

Francesco

I’d overweight connecting with consultants via LinkedIn and they helping you from the inside. More effective. Best of luck! Frederic 

Hi,
I'd prioritize connecting with consultants on LinkedIn and seeking their assistance from within the organization. This approach tends to be more effective. Also think about going to events.

Alex

Hi there,

Not sure I agree.

I much prefer contacting consultants and other people at the firm as part of networking - then, from there you can find out timelines (either directly or by being put in touch with the recruiter)

Hi,

Personal networking connections > LinkedIn > Company's email.

Good luck!
Nick