“Sorry, we can’t hire you. We’ve seen your CV before from a recruiting agency we work with. You’ll have to go through them.”
Imagine hearing that.
It’s not the end of the world. You can still get the job by contacting the agency and going through them. But what if it came from an agency you didn’t like working with? Or they didn’t like working with you. It could cost you the job.
It also makes you wonder, who else has my CV?
Your anesthesia CV has great value and you need to protect it. It’s your personal advertisement of why a group or a hospital considers you for the anesthesia job. It might be the deciding factor of why you receive an interview over someone else.
It’s also valuable to recruiting agencies. They receive a “finder’s fee” when placing an Anesthesiologist, CRNA or CAA with an anesthesia group. Recruiters need anesthesia CVs to present to clients.
The good news is that most anesthesia recruiting agencies are reputable and will not abuse your CV. However, some have been known to scatter them about hoping someone will bite, and all without the anesthesia clinician not knowing it.
Protecting Your CV
When working with a recruiting company to find either an anesthesia locum tenens job or a permanent position, they will need your anesthesia CV. Before sending it over is when you establish the guidelines for how they can use it. Remember the CV is your property; it has immense value and you decide how it’s used.
Request that the recruiter ask you for written or verbal permission before sending your anesthesia CV to a potential employer. In fact, make the request in an email so you have a written copy that can be referenced later so there is no miscommunication on what was agreed upon.
This way you know everywhere your CV has been sent and, more specifically, ensure it goes to places in which you are interested in working. There is nothing more annoying than getting constant emails and phone calls about anesthesia jobs in locations you would never work.
Job Boards
Job boards love to sell access to your CV or use it as a selling point for recruiters to use their platform. Only post your CV to an anesthesia job board if you have complete control over when it’s shown, you feel comfortable with how they give access to your CV, or if you just don’t care and you want to see lots of job offers.
Check the company’s policy on who or how someone gains access to your anesthesia CV. If you can’t find a policy you should think hard before you post it. Credible recruiting platforms will give you the option when you want to let recruiters know you are open to new anesthesia job opportunities and make your CV available for viewing.
Last thing, make sure there are instructions on how to delete a CV. If there are none, we highly suggest you don’t post it.
Security note: Don’t include phone numbers or address on your anesthesia CV if posting to a job board. This can help prevent fraud or spam calls.
Take these considerations into account and protect the one piece of paper everyone wants to get their hands on.