Working with Executive Search Firms

Hiring a Recruiter

When you're thinking about using executive search firms to fill your open positions, our preference is to hire a smaller firm, where you can deal directly with the firm's owner and their senior consultants. In large firms, your project will be delegated to lower level research staff to source candidates, and often times to interview candidates.

The executive search firms you hire will be an extension of your company, so choose wisely. It's not necessary that a firm work in your specific industry, although there are some benefits to this approach. A niche firm will know the players in the market and they'll have an extensive database of contacts. The downside of hiring a firm in your niche is dealing with "off limits" companies - it's not uncommon for firms to agree not to source from companies they have done business with.

Hiring executive search firms outside of your industry will generally take "off limits" off the table; they will be able to pull from all of your competitors. If the firm is good, the learning curve will not be steep. Research is the hallmark of the search business, and a good firm will get up to speed in short order.

It's much more important to understand the process the executive search firm uses in sourcing candidates and the target companies they intend to source from. Don't be afraid to ask them about their methods! Remember, these firms are representing you in the marketplace whether they're hired on a retained or contingency basis.

Using Contingency Based Recruiters...

If you're interested in working with contingency recruiters to bring top talent into your organization, here are some things you should know:

1. Contingency recruiters work assignments they can fill. If your position has difficult requirements, the recruiter may accept the assignment but never really work on it. Or, they might work it for a few days, realize it's tough and then move on.

2. Contingency recruiters will work "hot" jobs - those where they are getting good response from hiring authorities (and where they have direct access), where the requirements are reasonable and where compensation is right for the experience you need. If you are not the responsive type, your recruiting partner will get frustrated and move on.

3. Candidates will be surfaced quickly, but without discriminating judgment in terms of who the best candidates are. As candidates are identified, they are submitted.

4. Contingency recruiters rarely guarantee that the candidate you hire will stay with your company for more than 90 days. In fact, 30-60 day guarantees are more the norm. Many contingency firms will not offer any guarantee, feeling as though they have no control over what happens once a candidate shows up for work.

5. Contingency firms do not always check references or verify academic credentials. In most cases, you need to ask for this service in order to get it.

But, there is a big benefit to you as the hiring manager for selecting a contingency firm:

You only pay a recruiting fee if the company successfully places a candidate with your firm. If your position goes on hold, or you find a candidate directly, there is no fee due to the headhunter.

Using Retained Resources...

If you're a hiring manager and want to bring top sales talent into your organization by working with a retained firm, here are some things you should know:

1. You need to commit budget dollars to fund your search and be prepared to pay the fee regardless of who surfaces the candidate. As mentioned above, my clients will often ask me to include a candidate they know about in the mix of candidates I screen. If their candidate gets hired, I still get paid the full fee we agreed upon.

2. The recruiter will need access to you and your team in order to fully understand your requirements. The initial meeting to hand off the search may take a couple hours of your time; follow up questions will surface as the firm starts to talk with potential candidates. You need to make yourself available to provide supplemental information when needed.

3. You will get dedicated resources devoted to your search. When a retained executive search firms accept an assignment, they are obligated to find candidates who meet your requirements. There is no walking away...they are on the hook for producing.

4. You will only see the best candidates for the job. The recruiting firm will share only the best candidates with you, eliminating unnecessary work effort for you.

5. The process takes time. It will take 4-6 weeks to generate candidates for most searches.

6. You can expect regular communication from a retained recruiter regarding status of the search and any market intelligence that's coming out of their screening process. A retained recruiter will make sure that you understand the feedback they're hearing, about your company, the position, your compensation structure, etc.

7. References will be checked and academic credentials will be verified. Make sure that the executive search firms you're working with starts this process before you've identified your top pick for the job. Surprises at the end of the process are not welcome. My practice is to check at least one or two references as candidates move into the interview process. Before the second interview, academic credentials are verified and additional reference checks are completed.

The biggest benefit to you as a hiring manager?

You will be looking at a pool of passive candidates rather than active job seekers, most likely coming from competitor organizations. These are typically the best candidates for the job.