Why Won’t Recruiters Tell You The Company Name?

If you’ve reached out to a recruiter about a job, then you might find yourself wondering why they’re so secretive. Why won’t the recruiter just tell you the name of the company you are interviewing with? Is this some top secret spy agency?

No, that’s not the reason at all. The recruiter isn’t operating like a spy, they are just following company protocol. In most cases, recruiting agencies do not give out the name of the company that they want you to interview with.

There are a few reasons why recruiters are hesitant to divulge this information. We’ll get to all of that. But the first thing to clear up is the type of recruiter that you’re working with. If that recruiter is someone who works for an agency, or if they are someone who works directly for a company or organization as an in-house recruiter.

What Kind of Recruiter Are You Dealing With?

If you’re dealing with an agency recruiter, then the odds are that you’re going to deal with some level of secrecy. Agency recruiters who are working on commission for private clients do not typically divulge the name of the company they are working for until you have won the interview.

If you are dealing with an in-house recruiter, then you obviously know the name of the company. These in-house recruiters might be working for any large FANG company (or similar technology firm) or other corporate firm. These in-house recruiters might also be working for a non-profit or city funded hospital.

The work of an in-house recruiter is much different than an agency side recruiter. In-house recruiters work on easy to fill, internal spots. Agency recruiters work on hard to find role, and also work as liaison for large firms and government funded organizations (such as hospitals and non-profits) who are unable to fill roles in their organizations.

Privacy Has It’s Reasons: Confidentiality and Security

One of the reasons that recruiters won’t tell you what the company is has to due with the company request. Many companies require confidentiality on the part of the recruiting firm. It’s not the recruiters choice in most cases.

If a high profile company is seeking to replace a particular employee, then it makes sense that they don’t post ads on sites like Indeed and ZipRecruiter.

Another reason why recruiters don’t want to tell you the name of the company is because of image. Many companies that have high turnover amongst their employees do not want to advertise this fact.

If a person goes onto a job site and sees that the company is always hiring for new employees, for the same roles, then they will learn that the company is not a great place to work. Why else would so many people leave the role.

So, as you can see, it’s the desire of the company in many cases to keep that information private.

Recruiters Want To Make Their Cut

One of the most important reasons why recruiters keep the name of the company private and won’t tell you is that they want to make their cut. The recruiter wants to make commission. If the candidate tries to apply to the opening directly on their own and somehow manages to make it to an interview, then the recruiting company won’t make any money.

Recruiters get comission, and if a canadite was to work around the recrutier and get a job without the recruiter knowing then they would be hurting the recruiters bottom line.

In most cases there are legal contracts that prevent this from happening, and it also gives a bad impression if someone tries to sidestep their recruiter.

In some instances, candidates have been known to tell a recruiter that they are not interested in a role, and then try and apply directly to the company. This rarely works out well, and in most cases backfires. However, it is still something that people attempt to do, so recruiters try and hedge their bets by not telling the person the name of the company.

From the recruiters point of view, it makes sense. They had to source and review hundreds of resumes and contact only the best people for the job. If, after spending so many hours on research and interviews, the person then tries to cut them out of the deal, it would be disastrous.

Companies Want To Avoid Problems

A major reason why recruiters don’t tell people the name of the company is that the company insists it. There are so many drawbacks to letting people know that they are hiring. If the recruiter tells someone about a role at the company, and then the company declines to interview that person, then the person might write negative reviews about them online.

There is also an entire cottage industry surrounding legal action against companies for not hiring people. While it might not be a legitimate case, people can decide to sue a company for any number of reasons.

All of these reasons are why most companies require the recruiting firms that they contract with to keep the name private.

Recruiters are used to avoid problem people, and prevent the company from having to deal with a problematic person. A normal, well behaved, professional person is exactly the kind of person a recrutier is looking for.

There will be enough problems once the company actually heads into the interview process, they want to avoid any unnecessary problems from people who are rejected from initial interviews due to a lack of qualifications or experience.

It’s also important to highlight that recruiters sometimes don’t get much feedback from companies. When a recrutier sends over a resume, the ideal situation is that they get feedback on why or why not the person is a good fit. However, many companies are hesitant to let people know too much because they fear getting sued. This is why sometimes recrutiers don’t give feedback, they simply didn’t get any themselves.

Will The Recruiter Ever Tell You The Name Of The Company?

Yes, if your recruiter has been able to land you an interview with the company, then they will tell you the company name.

The reason why the recruiter will tell you the company name is because they want you to be prepared.

One of the worst things that can happen to a recruiter is to have someone show up to an interview unprepared. So, most good recruiters will want their candidates to show up prepared. That preparation involves researching the company.

Only disorganized recruiters would ever send a candidate to a location without telling them the name of the company or who they would be interviewing with.

Part of the preparation when an interview is set is to research the company. That is impossible if the candidate is not aware of what the company is. It’s only something that can be accomplished if the recruiter tells the person what the name of the company is.

Not only should the recruiter tell you the name of the company, but they should tell you the name of the person you’re going to interview with. This is important because it will help the recruiter make a placement if the interview is successful.