I meet a lot of executives who are still living in the world of "when recruiters came a-calling" (and most of the time it "used to happen" when a person was not really looking for a job) - unfotunately, those grand days are far and few between (when it comes to making GOOD job changes). The world of recruitment/job placement is quite different now. Recruitment is, well, much more "automated" then ever before and most companies don't want to have to pay 20 - 30% in fees to recruiters because they think they don't have to or because they simply cannot afford to (with so many cheap, although not very "human" tools available to them for the hunt).  Yet, I still hear executive job seekers say: "I need to work with a recruiter, because I don't want to have to pay anyone to help me find a job" or "I have my resume posted and submitted all over the place - I should be hearing from someone any day now."  First of all recruiters look for people for jobs (the ones that are working that is!) - if they say they will look for a job for someone, it's a very short lived promise because they just won't do it unless they have a peice of business that they know they will be paid on. This means that very few companies will "pay a candidate referral fee" to anyone just walking off the street (that was a common practice back during the dotcom boom and when nursing shortage was just hitting, but not very common today).  Then when it comes to having a recruiter come calling, I often hear (99%) of the time that the recruiter's opportunity was not the right deal:  Wrong position, wrong industry, wrong salary package, etc.

So I hear this same stories over and over again: just no luck derived from usual job search practices. So I ask my prospective clients:  If the tactics you are utilizing now are not working, and have not been working for the last six months, then what makes you think that "your usual or traditional way" will ever work? I say, if it's not working, then try something new and invest in YOURSELF without expecting others to invest in you.