At any given time I'm recruiting for maybe 20 jobs. Each one of them has hundreds and hundreds of applicants.
Think about what that means. Thousands of résumés, all arriving the same way, through the same Apply button, looking more or less the same. I will find the best people in that pile. That's my job, and I'm good at it. But a pile is still a pile.
What changes when you write to me
Every so often, a candidate does something almost nobody does: they apply, and then they send me a short email.
I appreciate it. It stands out. It tells me you're genuinely interested in this job, not just clicking Apply on fifty of them. It puts a person behind the résumé.
And here's the part most candidates never hear from a recruiter: even when someone who writes to me isn't a perfect fit on paper, I give them more consideration. I often pick up the phone and talk to them. And if they're good, I forward them to the hiring manager.
It's not just me
When a hiring manager forwards me a candidate's email or LinkedIn message, I appreciate that too. Over the years, managers have sent me candidates who reached out to them directly, and those people got interviews. Many of them got offers.
So don't be shy
Apply first. Then write a short note, three or four sentences, to the hiring manager and to the recruiter. Say why this job, two specific things you bring, and ask for a short call.
That's it. It takes ten minutes, and it pulls you out of the pile.