Is it okay to call a recruiter to speed up the process?

Question

So I have been contacted on LinkedIn by a recruiter for an open position of his client. After the first calls, I've decided to apply for that position and sent him my CV, I also got positive feedback that the potential company wants a first interview with me. So far, so good.

Now the recruiter is contacting the company to schedule a time for an interview, however, weeks have passed without any proceeding forward. I have emailed the (3rd party) recruiter a week ago asking for the status, and he told me that he has been very busy and could not schedule a time yet. Now another week has passed again.

Is it okay to call and ask for them to hurry up? I have another application process nearing the end, and it would be rude to let them wait for too long. At the same time I don't want to quit the application process with the recruiter before the very first interview.

Does this answer your question? How do I properly follow-up with a hiring manager, to check on the status of a position? — gnat, Aug 24 '20 at 07:07
@gnat I think that is a different situation, since I have no direct contact to the company in my case. Communication was all via the external recruiter. And my process is already stuck at scheduling the interview, I did not even had the chance to present myself to the company apart from the CV — kuy, Aug 24 '20 at 07:17
You might also want to take a look at How do I coordinate the process of pursuing multiple job opportunities at the same time? — Bernhard Barker, Aug 24 '20 at 15:26

score 18 · Answer 1 · answered Aug 24 '20 at 09:16

Yes, you must. Nothing waits forever.

If the recruiter said they are busy with priorities, that can mostly mean two (or three) things:

The advertised position is no longer available, and the recruiter is trying to see if a similar one opens up in the same organization or other.
They simply did not have an actual opening, that communication was just to take your info and then try finding something that matches up your resume.
They have better paying jobs, for which the commission / payout will be higher and to ensure those process runs smooth, your application is taking a backseat.

Either way, they are stalling you (which would be bad for them also, should they had an actual job opening) - call them up and ask for a date for interview. Nothing good can come for you by waiting for them to get back without a defined deadline.

Also, make progress with other offers if you have them. Do not bank upon this one only (unless that's the only option you've got).

Note that in any of these cases, I'd tend not to continue business with that recruiter. — chrylis -cautiouslyoptimistic-, Aug 24 '20 at 16:46

Is it okay to call a recruiter to speed up the process?

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