Why recruiters in Singapore don't want to hear from you
You’re a finance professional in Singapore looking for job-hunting advice ahead of the busy hiring season next quarter. While you’re not applying for a specific job just yet, you do need to send an introductory email to a recruiter that will hopefully lead to a one-to-one meeting with them (either in person or over video chat) about your career plans for 2023.
But be warned: while it’s tempting to just bang out a few generic emails and rely on your attached CV to prove how strong a candidate you are, most recruiters will read your email first and won’t bother opening your resume if what you’ve written isn’t appealing.
Want to make sure recruiters take your speculative emails seriously? Here's how.
Take time to write your subject line
The subject line of your email is “critical” and needs to “jump out” at the recruiter, says a Singapore-based recruiter. Avoid generic text such as “resume for a job”, or “exploring opportunities”. Instead summarise your experience – for example: “8 years’ risk experience, currently with UBS in Singapore.”
Don’t attach a cover letter
You're not writing a formal job application, so recruiters don’t want to open a cover letter. “I seldom read cover letters – when speed is everything, your unique selling points really need to stand out without the need to read multiple documents,” says the recruiter.
Send separate emails
“The biggest turn-off is when people send their CVs to a million different recruitment agencies in the same email, with the other addresses clear to see – this actually happens quite a lot,” says Vince Natteri, managing director of recruitment at search firm Pinpoint Asia.
Know their name
Recruiters receive many introductory emails that start with “Dear Sir/Madam” or similar. Doing this also suggests you’ve been mass-emailing on the sly (using the BCC function) and is a sure way to make recruiters ignore you.
Be brief
Recruiters recommend that you divide your email into three paragraphs (see below) – but keep each one of them short. Although you’re not applying for a specific vacancy, try to be succinct and get to the point of the message quickly. This will help the recruiter make a quick judgement about whether they can help you or not.
First explain how you found them
The first paragraph of your email should explain how you came across the recruiter – whether that was via previous job postings or a referral (if the latter, mention the person’s name). “If you’ve invested time making sure that I’m the right person to speak to in your job field, then I’m far more likely to go out of my way to represent you for a role,” says another recruiter in Singapore. Finance recruiters are increasingly working in functional niches and representing a narrow range of employers, so in the first paragraph you also need to be specific about the role you want and the type of firm you want to join. This is particular important if you’ve performed several jobs in the recent past. “We can seldom help candidates with vague or wide ideas about the roles they’re seeking,” adds the recruiter.
Your second paragraph should be about skills
Use the second paragraph to highlight one or two specific skills that you think are key selling points to a prospective bank. Don’t give a full synopsis of your career as that will distract recruiters from your areas of strength.
State your motivations in para three
In the third paragraph, explain why you want a new banking job. Stay away from general statements like “I am seeking a new opportunity” and be much more specific. The second Singapore recruiter provides this example: “I've been mentoring and supervising junior members of my team for more than two years and I am looking to move into a manager/AVP role within a KYC or internal-controls team.”
Break into bullet points if need be
If your paragraphs are getting unwieldy, try formatting them in bullet points. “This is often very helpful when highlighting technical skills,” adds the recruiter.
Avoid cheesy personality traits
Throughout all three paragraphs avoid making generalisations about your personality traits. Among the worst offenders are “outstanding communicator”, “inspirational leader”, and “well presented”.
Photo by Zhu Liang on Unsplash
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