#90: How top PM candidates leverage recruiters to their advantage | Anneli Scopazzi (Founder @ Boulevard Recruiting, ex - Figma, Palantir, Notion)

Dec 29, 2025

Anneli Scopazzi, founder of Boulevard Recruiting and former leader at Palantir, Figma, and Notion, discusses leveraging recruiters for job searches. She highlights the importance of treating recruiter calls as partnerships rather than mere formalities. Anneli contrasts internal and agency recruiters, detailing how their motivations influence the hiring process. She provides practical tips on asking the right questions, handling compensation conversations, and making a strong impression during recruiter screens. Candidates can use these insights to navigate the competitive job market more effectively.

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ADVICE

Handle Compensation With Discovery First

Ask the recruiter for the compensation range and how leveling works rather than immediately stating your number.
If you're overpaid relative to market, share your current comp to anchor negotiations favorably.

ADVICE

Invite Concerns To Repair Perception

Ask a recruiter near the end of the screen: "Are there any concerns I can address?" to unearth and fix hesitations.
Frame it neutrally to avoid making the recruiter uncomfortable and to invite actionable feedback.

ADVICE

Make Your Recruiter Your Champion

After the recruiter call, expect them to submit formal feedback in the ATS and then act as your guide through the process.
Build rapport so the recruiter will champion you in debriefs and closing conversations.

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Most candidates treat recruiter calls like a box-checking step. But the candidates who consistently land offers treat recruiters like strategic partners - and use them to get real leverage throughout the process.

In this episode of Supra Insider, Marc Baselga and Ben Erez sit down with our repeat guest, Anneli Scopazzi (Boulevard Talent; former recruiting leader across Palantir, Figma, and Notion) to break down what recruiters are actually incentivized by, what they’re looking for in the recruiter screen, and how candidates can use recruiters to prepare more intelligently and avoid preventable missteps.

They cover the difference between internal recruiters and agency recruiters, what gets candidates filtered out early, how to ask for “prep” without sounding insecure, what to do when a company refuses to share details, and how to handle compensation conversations without accidentally anchoring yourself into a worse outcome. They also discuss when to save sensitive questions for the offer stage, and how recruiters influence the process behind the scenes (feedback, debriefs, and closing).

If you’re interviewing in today’s competitive market, especially for product roles, this episode gives you a tactical playbook for turning recruiters into an advantage instead of an afterthought.

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Interviewing at Uber, Figma, Stripe, or DoorDash?

If you’re a PM preparing for interviews at Uber, Figma, Stripe, and DoorDash… we think you’re going to love Insider Loops. You can read about it in Ben’s LI post, Marc’s LI post or check out the site directly below.

In this episode, we covered the following topics:

* (02:25) Why candidates hesitate- fear of looking bad, mistrust, and cultural differences around recruiters

* (06:20) Internal recruiters vs agency recruiters and how incentives differ

* (09:04) Reading the room and adapting to the person, “mirror” without being inauthentic

* (11:15) The biggest recruiter-screen failure mode for PMs

* (14:11) What makes a recruiter champion you? Homework, kindness, calibrated confidence, and being human

* (19:16) The most important high-leverage questions to ask recruiters

* (22:04) Asking about compensation in recruiter screens and when to share your number

* (26:54) “Do you have concerns about me?” question: value + risk, and safer alternative framing

* (33:01) The advantage of pre-onsite “prep call” call with the recruiter

* (44:41) Offer stage strategy, save sensitive questions for when you have leverage; recruiter’s job is to close

* Live Audience Q&A:

* (49:39) Why recruiters view your LinkedIn but don’t reach out + how targeting works

* (51:05) What decides between final candidates: rapport/working relationship + reducing bias where possible

* (53:01) Recruiter “How did it go?” email: why it’s a best practice and a chance to clarify/repair an answer

* (54:30) Risk of hiring manager + IC in parallel: why it happens and when it signals “house on fire”

* (57:38) Market shift: managers moving back to IC roles + how to explain that story credibly

* And more!

Links:

* Our previous episode with Anneli: https://suprainsider.substack.com/p/82-inside-the-new-recruiting-reality

* Anneli Scopazzi: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anneliscopazzi/

* Boulevard recruiting: https://www.boulevardrecruiting.com/

* Marc: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcbaselga/

* Ben: https://www.linkedin.com/in/benerez/

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