Information for candidates

Why candidates work with us

1. There is no cost to you.

   We are paid by the hiring company, and only when a placement is made. If we cannot find a suitable opening, the time required from you is minimal.

2. Changing employers is often the most direct route to a raise or promotion.

   In our experience, people advance more often by changing employers than by internal promotion.

3. Many roles are filled through referrals.

   We make introductions based on existing relationships with hiring teams, sometimes before a vacancy is advertised. These include smaller companies that are not investing in marketing or recruiting.

4. It is useful to know your market value.

   Layoffs, reorganizations, canceled programs, lost contracts, and failed financing can happen with little warning. Knowing what your skills are worth helps you plan for those events.

How to apply

Submit the general application. A single application is reviewed against every current and upcoming search, so there is no need to choose a specific role.

If you do not want to submit a full resume yet, tell us enough about your background that we know where to start looking.

Resume format

Upload your resume through the application. We prefer plain-text files, which are easier to review and carry no risk of malware. We reformat resumes as needed for our clients.

Security clearances

Our searches include positions that require an existing U.S. security clearance as well as positions open to candidates without one. We cannot sponsor or upgrade security clearances. Clients that require a clearance require candidates to already have existing security clearances at the level noted in the vacancy.

If you have a prior government, military, or defense contractor background, you may need to have your resume reviewed/approved by your current or former employer. You can contact us while that review is in progress. Do not send a resume that has not been approved; tell us that it is in review.

How we contact people

• We do not intentionally initiate contact with current U.S. federal, state, or local government employees, including military personnel. They may contact us directly, or we may contact them after a by-name referral.
• We can communicate by phone, email, Signal, or WhatsApp. Tell us your preference when you contact us. We do not use Telegram, WeChat, or QQ.
• We never ask candidates for payment of any kind.

Introductions to employers

We discuss each opportunity with you before an introduction. We vet our clients and generally have personal relationships with them. We follow up with candidates after interviews and placements, and we stop working with companies when we learn of management problems or unfair treatment of candidates.

If we are working with you and learn of a suitable opening at a company that is not one of our clients, we may introduce you anyway, time permitting.

Frequently asked questions for candidates