As usual….this post is part of the series: Everything you need to know about How to get a Job & face interviews in US. The current post will focus on the What vendors look ?
What do Vendors look for ?
First thing vendors look for is whether the candidate has enough communication skills. They want to validate you are the candidate. They want to validate your clients are genuine and you worked with them. They typically ask references in previous projects. The goal of vendor is to filter all the junk and submit only genuine strong resumes. End of the day vendors want to keep up their standards at client.
Communication with Vendor ?
The first thing vendors look is your confidence. How confident you answer for their questions about project. Be able to defend your resume properly. You should be able to answer with some technical jargon. Ideally, many vendors are not technical, but these days the vendors have some technical people and they do a small interview about your technical skills. Be prepared to answer all kinds of questions from them, about client, business scenarios, etc. Ideally, you should say the business scenarios to them to easily convince them for submission.
References for Jobs in US :
Well, references are very key for submissions and even client calls. It is an ideal way for vendors to validate that you are genuine and ask about your work. Also, it is mandated by some of the companies to collect feedback on you from references. As a consultant, you do not want your references to think you are over using them or giving trouble. You have to handle your references with care. You should clearly say to the vendors, “I do not want you to call my references until the interview is over”. This has to be very clear! Sometimes, they say we have mandatory requirements, etc… Depending on the case you have say Yes and NO. It is better to say NO if the requirement is not good. So, use your references carefully and negotiate proper with Vendors.
Vendors’ sweet talk:
Vendors talk very sweet and say we will get you the interview tomorrow or right now. Submit this requirement only with us. Because, sometimes the client will have many vendors and you have to choose. So, be careful. Vendors try to trick you with sweet talk. It is your judgment on deciding the vendor strength at client and decide to go by that info. DO NOT get fooled by their sweet talk.
Scheduling interview Timings:
DO NOT Sound desperate with vendor. If they say we will schedule an interview on Weekends or Late evenings, say NO. You should have your own standards. Tell them I can not take interviews late or on weekends. If you say yes to that, it indicates you are desperate. Unless there is a very good reason, never accept these kind of interview timings. Also, they will ask you to sign the paper work etc for exclusivity. Be careful with whom you sign this. Avoid double submissions to same client.