---
title: Which circle of the talent map are you in? | Nobu Sato
description: "Whether recruiters call has little to do with your resume. It is where you sit on the map: same field, adjacent, or far. Calls stop at the first circle."
image: https://nobusato.jp/hubfs/which-circle-of-the-talent-map-you-are-in-en.png
---

[Nobu Sato](https://nobusato.jp/en?hsLang=en)

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# Which circle of the talent map are you in?

[Nobu Sato](https://nobusato.jp/en/profile?hsLang=en)

![Which circle of thetalent mapare you in?](https://nobusato.jp/hs-fs/hubfs/which-circle-of-the-talent-map-you-are-in-en.png?width=1200&height=630&name=which-circle-of-the-talent-map-you-are-in-en.png)

Why recruiters call you, and why they don't. Most people assume it's the resume. It isn't. It's where you sit on the map.

## The map in the recruiter's hand

As I wrote in [A talent map is not a list](https://nobusato.jp/en/blog/talent-map-is-not-a-list?hsLang=en), when I take a search I don't start with names. I draw a map: which companies and which functions hold the capabilities this role needs. Once it's drawn, candidates fall into three circles.

Innermost, same field: same industry, same function as the target role. The client nods at the resume; the recruiter calls them first. Second circle, adjacent: same industry different function, or same function different industry. The recruiter has to explain why you fit. Outermost, far: different industry and function, but one or two capabilities that happen to be exactly what the role lacks. The client never thinks of them and the recruiter rarely calls.

FarAdjacentSame fieldCalls stop here1. Same field2. Adjacent3. Far

**Fig.1**The three circles after the map is drawn. Calls usually stop at the inner circle; the second circle pulls itself in with the first three lines of the resume; the outer circle moves in through one real cross-boundary experience.

## Why the phone didn't ring

Three cases.

One: you're in the inner circle, but your company isn't on the client's list. When I draw a map, some companies get excluded: a partner of the client, or one where poaching would cause trouble. If you're there, no fit is good enough to get a call.

Two: you're in the second circle, and your resume doesn't put the one or two matching things in the first three lines. Recruiters read dozens of resumes a day. People in the second circle have to pull themselves into the first in those three lines.

Three: you're in the outer circle. Then no call is normal, and it isn't about you. Search fees are priced on the inner circle. Nobody is paying the recruiter to look far.

## Moving one circle in

From the third circle to the second takes one real cross-boundary experience, not a certificate. Volunteering for a cross-functional project where you are is faster than a degree.

From the second to the first takes being known. Japan's market isn't as transparent as LinkedIn data makes other markets; recruiters find people by asking people. Is there anyone in the circle you want who knows what you've done?

## Use it backwards

The map works in reverse too. For the role you want, who is in its inner circle? If you aren't, how many steps away are you? That's far more concrete than "I want to work at company X."

## Where I'm not sure

Three circles is my own habit; some recruiters cut finer. And in Japan, moving to a direct competitor carries more stigma than in the West, so inner-circle people sometimes can't move at all. That's the same story as the mid-career immobility in [the job-change rate post](https://nobusato.jp/en/blog/japan-job-change-rate?hsLang=en).

For the role you want: which circle are you in right now?

---

Shorter notes that don't make it into a full article go on LinkedIn. [Follow me there](https://www.linkedin.com/in/realnobusato/).

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Nobu Sato

Writing about launching in Japan, in three languages.

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