I know someone who works in IT recruiting. He makes $200-300K per year. Nice guy, but he doesn't know fuck all about technology. In fact, I've never once observed him asking a question that betrayed any knowledge or curiosity about the trade.
This is because success in the recruiting industry has nothing to do with industry knowledge and everything to do with sales and networking ability. Software developers like to think that their jobs are humbling because every time they make a mistake, a compiler will return an error. That's nothing compared to recruiters, who will make about 1200 phone calls for every 1 that leads to a hire. Then even if they get that hire, they are at the mercy of the consultant / employee and the employers.
Your friend is not a recruiter, he is a salesperson. This explains the way he can make a lot of money whilst knowing nothing.
A large proportion of people calling themselves recruiters are actually just salespeople. A real recruiter who understands the industry they're hiring for is a contact worth hanging on to. The rest, just block them asap and move on.
