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Elite Edge | Week 56

🧠 Corporate Truth: The Hiring System Is Rigged (And Here’s How to Beat It

The 3 Types of Recruiters — and How to Win With Each
If all you’re doing is applying online, your résumé is probably going into a virtual trash can.

The reason? You’re dealing with a system built for compliance and volume, not precision and access. And unless you understand the different types of recruiters—and how they actually operate—you’re playing the job search game blind.

🧠 The Recruiter Reality Check

1️⃣ Corporate Recruiters

These are the in-house talent acquisition teams—the people behind the “Apply Now” button.
Their world runs on metrics: time-to-fill, cost-per-hire, number of open reqs.
They’re managing hundreds of applicants while chasing hiring manager feedback and juggling internal priorities.

Here’s the part most job seekers miss:
They don’t actually believe the best candidates are applying online.

Their real work happens behind the scenes through:

  • Internal referrals

  • Network calls

  • Competitive sourcing

  • External partnerships

How to navigate it:
Leverage your network to become an internal referral.
Keep your résumé and LinkedIn optimized for ATS keywords—just in case.
Don’t take silence personally; they’re prioritizing volume, not individual candidates.

2️⃣ Contingent Recruiters

These are external recruiters who only get paid when their candidate is hired.
They’re fast, hungry, and juggling multiple searches across multiple clients.
Their goal is speed—to get qualified résumés in front of decision-makers before their competitors do.

How to navigate it:
Be responsive and professional—ghosting kills your chances.
Communicate clearly about your salary, location, and timeline.
If you’re not a fit, move on—so will they.

3️⃣ Retained / Executive Search Recruiters

This is where companies pay upfront to secure a dedicated search partner—the kind that hunts, persuades, and builds trust with top talent who aren’t even looking.
These recruiters work with board members, C-suite leaders, and senior executives to identify the best in the market, not just the best in the database.

How to navigate it:
Treat every conversation like an interview—because it is.
Be concise, credible, and clear about your value proposition.
Even if the role isn’t a fit, stay in touch—long-term relationships matter here.

💡 Play the System, Don’t Get Played

Each recruiter operates differently. Your strategy should, too:

Recruiter Type

How They Work

What You Should Do

Corporate

Internal employees managing high volume through ATS systems and referrals.

Network your way in. Apply online and find an insider to vouch for you.

Contingent

Paid per hire; driven by speed and placement.

Respond fast. Be clear. Don’t waste time.

Retained / Executive

Paid upfront for high-level, exclusive searches.

Show up like leadership. Build long-term credibility.

💭 Reality Check

Be honest—how many jobs have you applied for online this year without hearing back?
That’s not your fault—it’s the system.
The key is learning how to navigate around it, not through it.

💡 The Insider Playbook

So what does this mean for you?
If you’re not already being recruited every week, you need to hack the system.

Here’s how:
Become an internal referral. Ask someone you know—an employee, a vendor, even a former boss—to submit your name directly.
Build recruiter relationships. Connect with external search partners in your function or industry.
Optimize your visibility. Your LinkedIn headline and About section should scream “value and relevance,” not “open to work.”
Don’t wait—circulate. Send your profile to five recruiters in your target niche every month.

Because if your entire strategy is just apply online, you’re not in the game—
you’re in the pile.

📚What I Read This Week…

🧩 The Team That’s Holding It All Together – The Wall Street Journal
A look at the employees quietly keeping organizations from falling apart — the glue people who manage chaos, calm egos, and hold teams together when leadership falters.

🏥 Healthcare Jobs Are Booming for High School Grads – The Wall Street Journal
Hospitals are desperate for workers and opening doors earlier — creating stable, well-paying paths for young people without college degrees.

🎙️What I Listened to This Week… (Podcasts)

😂 Meme of the Week

“Applied to 47 jobs. Got 3 auto-replies and 1 rejection.
My new skill? Patience.

💼 Job Market Watch

Hiring remains steady in healthcare, defense, and clean tech, while financial services and consumer tech continue selective hiring with heavier reliance on contract and fractional roles.

📬 The Elite Edge Takeaway

The ATS is not access—it’s optics.
The real hiring happens in networks, referrals, and conversations you’re not yet part of. So make yourself known, make yourself referable, and make sure your name is circulating where decisions are made.

📬 PS:

If this hit a nerve, you’ll love this month’s Career Game Plan Webinar — where we help you build your next move before you burn out. ⬇️ Reserve your seat below

You’ve got the Edge. Now sharpen it.

See you next week,
Deepali Vyas
Your Elite Recruiter
Doing the research so you don’t have to.

Webinar Alert

🚨 Last Chance: The Career Game Plan Webinar

I’ve got one more live session this month—and you don’t want to miss it.

This isn’t another motivational talk. It’s 75 minutes of hot-seat coaching where you’ll get real-time feedback, insider strategy, and the push you’ve been waiting for. 👉 Whether you’re job-hunting, chasing a promotion, or planning a pivot—this one’s for you.

📅 Sunday, October 19th @ 11am EST
🔗 Reserve your spot here

What past attendees said:
💬 “The most practical career advice I’ve ever received.”
💬 “No fluff. Just clarity, strategy, and confidence.”

Let’s get you unstuck and moving forward. 🚀

🔥 Elite List 🔥

Everyone’s selling “leadership.” Few can teach it under fire.

MasterClass x Navy SEAL Foundation just dropped a new course: Leadership & Decision-Making Under Pressure.

Navy SEALs + a NASA astronaut = zero fluff, all execution.
Learn to decide faster, stay steady under stress, and lead when it counts.

I dug into the content myself — and it’s legit! That’s why it earned a spot on my Elite List. Want in? 👉🏼 MasterClass Sign Up

APEX AI Launchpad: Teaching the Next Generation AI the Right Way

Everyone’s talking about AI jobs — but no one’s teaching the next generation how to use AI responsibly.

If we don’t teach kids critical thinking and ethical use of AI now, they’ll grow up as consumers of technology instead of creators of it.

That’s why I’m spotlighting Correlation One’s APEX AI Launchpad on my Elite List — a free U.S. program for high school students shaping the next generation of AI leaders.

They’ll learn:
1️⃣ How to use AI safely and ethically
2️⃣ How to think critically — not let AI think for them

Because the next wave of success won’t belong to those who memorize answers.
It’ll belong to those who question the algorithm.

💡 Elite Wisdom: AI isn’t coming for your kids’ jobs — it’s coming for their thinking.
Let’s teach them how to keep that human edge.

👉 Join the APEX AI Launchpad — it’s completely free.

💼 This Week’s Elite Job Drops 💼

🔥 Elite Resources

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