TIPS FOR HIRING A RECRUITER...AKA HEADHUNTER

The services of outside professionals are used by leading companies for legal, accounting, and many other special needs within an organization. Executive recruiters should be viewed in the same light: as skilled specialists who can identify the best candidates to fill important positions within the company. 

There are many types of recruiters across what recruiters call DIG’s.  This acronym stands for Discipline, Industry, and Geography. It’s important to identify what type of position you are filling and the type of specialist you may want to engage.

Discipline 

This refers to the area of focus for example; Engineering or Accounting are just two examples.   

Industry 

Some firms are specialists in Medical Devices for instance or in the case of our firm we specialize in all things Furniture and big and bulky home products.  

Geography 

Does the firm specialize only in a narrow area of the country or do have experience working across the domestic U.S. and or Globally?

For example; we always recommend that you target a Recruiter with expertise in your industry.  I get many calls from companies reporting they engaged a recruiter only to find out they had little to no relevance in terms of contacts and candidate access within our industry.  

The sign of a great firm can mean that they will refer you to another specialist much like a lawyer or accountant will refer you to areas outside of their expertise, knowledge base, and reach. 

Recruiters can bring many benefits to the table…

Confidentiality and discretion: 

In some cases, organizations may need to fill a key executive position discreetly or navigate sensitive situations such as replacing an underperforming executive. Executive recruiters are experienced in handling confidential searches and can maintain discretion throughout the process, protecting your company's reputation and minimizing disruptions.  Organizations with a key opening can be vulnerable. Confidentiality can keep competitors from being tipped off to management shake-ups, and new product and market initiatives, and can protect against employee and supplier apprehension. Recruiters value the sensitive information they become aware of during the search process and respect their client’s vulnerability.

Access to a larger candidate pool: 

Recruiters can tap into an extensive network of contacts. Executive recruiters have extensive networks and access to a wide range of candidates, including passive job seekers who may not be actively looking for new opportunities. They have established relationships and connections with professionals in various industries, allowing them to tap into a diverse talent pool that may not be readily accessible through traditional recruitment methods.

Most often, the best candidates are already employed, and many of them will deal only with a recruiter. They appreciate the worth of third-party representation, confidentiality, and professional mediation. Recruiting superior candidates can be a complex process and is best performed by a professional.

Time and resource savings: 

Recruiting for executive positions can be a time-consuming and resource-intensive process. Executive recruiters handle the entire recruitment lifecycle, including sourcing candidates, conducting initial screenings, assessing qualifications, and coordinating interviews. This allows your internal team to focus on core business operations while the recruiters handle the time-consuming aspects of the search process.

The benefit of using a recruiter can be weighed against the cost of preparing and executing an advertising campaign, screening, and qualifying candidates, and operating without a needed employee for an extended length of time, compared to the relative insurance of getting the right person for the job. The use of recruiters is an investment in improving the quality of an organization’s staff. 

But even beyond that, the risk of not using recruiters can be great. For smaller companies – where one hiring mistake can have disastrous results – using recruiters is sometimes more important than for very large companies. People are a company’s more important assets. They can make or break the fortunes of a business.

Objective assessment and evaluation: 

Executive recruiters employ rigorous evaluation methods to assess candidates, including in-depth interviews, reference checks, and skill assessments. Their expertise allows them to provide an objective and unbiased assessment of candidates' qualifications, fit with the organization, and potential for success in the role. This reduces the risk of making a poor hiring decision and increases the likelihood of finding the right candidate.

Negotiation and closing:

Executive recruiters can facilitate the negotiation process between the hiring organization and the candidate, helping to ensure a mutually beneficial agreement is reached. They have experience in handling compensation packages, contract terms, and other critical aspects of the hiring process, improving the chances of successfully closing the deal with the desired candidate.

Overall, utilizing an executive recruiter can enhance the efficiency, effectiveness, and success of your executive search process, enabling you to secure top-tier talent that aligns with your organization's strategic objectives and long-term vision.

When hiring an executive recruiter, it's important to consider several guidelines to ensure you choose the right partner for your executive search. 

Here are some key guidelines to follow:

1. Define your needs: 

Clearly articulate your organization's needs, including the specific position you are looking to fill, the desired qualifications and experience of the ideal candidate, and any unique requirements or challenges associated with the role. This will help you communicate your expectations to potential executive recruiters and ensure they understand your specific hiring needs.

TIP:  If the firm does not conduct a thorough needs assessment they may be just a resume-matching type firm.  We call them Post wait meaning that they generally operate by taking e job orders posting them to job boards and wait for candidates to apply..  These are generally high-volume firms that perform what is called Contingency search.  

2. Evaluate their expertise: 

Look for executive recruiters who specialize in your industry or have experience in filling similar executive roles. Assess their track record, reputation, and success rates in placing executives in positions comparable to what you're seeking. Remember DIG from above.

3. Confidentiality and professionalism 

Executive recruiters should demonstrate a high level of professionalism and maintain strict confidentiality. Inquire about their protocols for handling sensitive information and ensuring confidentiality during the search process. Trust and discretion are critical when dealing with executive-level positions.

4. Fee structure and terms

  • Understand the executive recruiter's fee structure, including any upfront costs, retainer fees, and success rate. 

  • Clarify the terms of the agreement, including the duration of the search, any exclusivity clauses, and guarantees regarding candidate placements. 

  • Review the contract carefully and ensure you have a clear understanding of the financial arrangements.

Professional recruiters can deliver the right people for today’s highly competitive business environment.

I always tell clients that when they hire our firm to think about the fee as an investment.  We are engaged with you for generally a 45 to 90-day period depending on the project scope.  We are consultants and experts so we will act as your talent arm and an extension of your team.  

Let me provide an example of what the costs are for one full-time talent acquisition person in the United States which can vary based on several factors, including the specific location, industry, level of experience, and the company's size and budget.

On average, a talent acquisition specialist's salary in the United States can range from $50,000 to $100,000 per year. 

Benefits: 

In addition to the base salary benefits may include health insurance, retirement plans, paid time off, and other perks. As a rough estimate, benefits can amount to 20-30% of the employee's salary.

Payroll taxes: 

The employer's portion of payroll taxes can range from 7-10% of the employee's salary.

Recruitment expenses: 

These expenses can include job board fees, recruitment agency fees (if applicable), background checks, drug tests, and other pre-employment screening costs. The amount spent on recruitment expenses can vary based on the company's recruitment strategy and specific requirements.

Overhead costs: 

overhead costs associated with employing a full-time talent acquisition person, such as office space, equipment, software tools, training, and professional development.

Bottom line:

I estimate this number to be closer to $90.0 to $110.0 on average per year depending on geography and other variables.  I think there are a few areas of the country that may be lower based on geography and the labor market.

So there you have it, just a few tips for hiring an executive recruiter.

By following these guidelines, you can select an executive recruiter who has the right expertise, resources, and approach to effectively assist you in finding top-level executive talent for your organization. There are many times when I will refer potential clients to other firms if it falls outside of my expertise. I hope that these tips will help you determine who is best suited for your next search.

For more hiring tips like this, click the link below to download our free guide: 23 Hiring Tips for 2023!


FREE DOWNLOAD!

23 Hiring Tips for 2023


Bill O’Malley is President of Connector Team Recruiting a firm headquartered in Charlottesville, Virginia specializing in the Furniture | Appliance and Sleep verticals. Connector Team is a full-service Search Firm offering permanent placement recruiting and interim staffing solutions.

Feel free to contact Bill at bill@connectorteamrecruiting.com.

© 2023 Connector Team Recruiting

PROMOTE WORKFORCE FLEXIBILITY TO IMPROVE HIRING!

Our #1 hiring tip for this year includes addressing some trends we are seeing that we believe every CEO should be focused on in 2023.

Work Flexibility and Work-Life Balance

We recommend companies consider a paradigm shift and take a serious look at both store and work hours to demonstrate a commitment to workforce flexibility.  Focus on Flexible work arrangements (where and when people work).

REMOTE AND HYBRID SCHEDULES FOR BACK OFFICE AND SUPPORTING ROLES

We recommend not waiting until a key person leaves your organization because a competitor offered a great hybrid schedule for a key back office administrative or management role.

  • Offer Remote work -  for those office jobs that are not customer-facing this deserves a major review and rethinking.  Too many companies are offering office environments with remote flex, hybrid, and fully remote environments to ignore offering some flexibility in this area of scheduling.

We know there are studies demonstrating that a hybrid model is most effective for onboarding, ongoing communication, and for team collaboration.  Pure remote models are really struggling across industries and companies including private, state, and government entities. 

STORES AND CUSTOMER-FACING ROLES 

  • Talk to your employees openly about the need to cover certain key hours.  Form a team to review this and ask them to formulate recommendations.  They will know what’s possible and how to cover the hours.  Keep in mind that your view is typically from a higher level and you may have some bias built in based on outdated workforce models. 

  • Consider a 4-day workweek for certain key roles.  If Part-time flex is not part of your scheduling model most likely it’s a result of never really creating a strategic part-time model.  

For more hiring tips like this, click the link below to download our free guide: 23 Hiring Tips for 2023!


FREE DOWNLOAD!

23 Hiring Tips for 2023


Bill O’Malley is President of Connector Team Recruiting a firm headquartered in Charlottesville, Virginia specializing in the Furniture | Appliance and Sleep verticals. Connector Team is a full-service Search Firm offering permanent placement recruiting and interim staffing solutions.

Feel free to contact Bill at bill@connectorteamrecruiting.com.

© 2023 Connector Team Recruiting

COUNTEROFFERS - A GUIDE FOR CANDIDATES & EMPLOYERS

As a recruiting professional, I have always prided myself on drawing from real-life work experience in the workforce.  Here is an example of what I experienced early in my career.  

Before becoming an executive search consultant I had over 30 years with three Furniture companies.  When I was in my mid 20’s and a rising executive with a Top 100 Furniture Retailer I felt like I was being overlooked and underappreciated given what I had accomplished. I had moved cross country for the company and turned around two troubled DC operations.  

A clever recruiter called me one day and pitched me on a great opening at our leading competitor and the big hook was I wouldn’t even have to move.  They booked me airfare to their Corporate HQ, took me to dinner and I interviewed with their corporate team.  When I got back an offer letter was issued for a 20% increase in pay to switch teams and with a bump in the title too. I was really flattered but also really conflicted about what to do next. 

When I presented my resignation notice, my current employer (my boss Rich) told me they would not be doing a counteroffer. He explained that counter offers in his opinion are not a good idea and rarely works out. He went on to explain that he would accept my resignation but he suggested to me that we could hit the pause button and hold it for a day.  He would hold it on his desk and would not turn it in to our corporate headquarters until after we met again.

He carefully listened to my concerns and why I felt like I had to leave the company.  He asked me to think things over for the next day or even two.  He told me why he did not feel that this was a good time in my career to leave the company. He was honest and open and provided me with a great deal of insight.

But here is one of the key things he told me that day that gave me confidence that he was truly acting in my best interest.  He told me that if I chose to leave I would have his blessing and support in terms of a reference in the future.  

I spoke to my family and reviewed my decision and the reasons I was looking for in the first place.  I  realized I was being impulsive.  I chose to stay with my current employer, not because I accepted a counteroffer. In fact, I didn’t receive any bump in salary at all. What my boss at the time did through the conversation he had with me was conduct what is now being called a “Stay Conversation” with me.  It changed our relationship moving forward. In fact, he was more encouraging and he outlined a plan for me to train further for my next role. He told me his goal was to get me ready for his role and for advancement opportunities.

How did things turn out with my decision to stay? 

I went on to serve 15 more years with the company and rose to the role of Vice President at our Corporate Headquarters.  I have never regretted my decision to stay and turn down that other role and a big bump in pay. 

Under most circumstances, it's not a great idea to accept a counteroffer. I agree with my former boss Rich, if you allow yourself to get into a bidding war and just throw more money at the employee you have only provided a bandaid or temporary fix. You have done nothing to get to the root cause.


FOR CANDIDATES

Accepting a counteroffer from your current employer may seem attractive, but it is usually not a good idea for these reasons:

  1. Lack of Trust: Your current employer may feel hurt or betrayed by your desire to leave, and may question your commitment to the company going forward.

  2. Temporary Solution: The raise or promotion offered in a counteroffer may only be a temporary solution to keep you from leaving. Your underlying issues with your current job may not be addressed, and you may still end up leaving in the future.

  3. Damaged Reputation: Your coworkers and superiors may view you negatively for accepting a counteroffer, which can harm your professional reputation and future opportunities.

  4. Financial Motivations: The primary motivation for an employer presenting a counteroffer is usually to save money, as it is often less expensive to retain an existing employee than to hire a new one. This can lead to resentment and a lack of genuine concern for your well-being or career growth.

Overall, accepting a counteroffer can create more problems than it solves, and it is often better to trust your initial instincts and move on to a new opportunity. So before you accept another role, think carefully and be ready to move forward.  

Think about the damage to your reputation by accepting an offer for a new role and then going back to that company and to the HR executive or recruiter and saying…”my company offered me more money to stay”.  It really says that you are not a serious person and instead of confronting a salary or compensation matter head on you chose to waste other people’s time. 


FOR COMPANIES

If your employee is coming to you and tendering their resignation…from where I sit and what I see by estimate 90% of the time it's too late to save them.  Any efforts you make will most likely just delay the inevitable. 

My recommendation is to turn your energy towards getting the to root cause of the true reasons they are leaving. This is not the time to match the offer, or pull out the “oh we were just going to speak to you about the long overdue promotion”.   

Tell them that you support them, do what my former boss Rich did and make sure they have thought the decision through.  I do not recommend throwing money at the issue, it’s too late for that to be effective.   

Ask them this one simple powerful question?

If they had the power to turn back the clock, what could the company have done differently to have kept them with the company?

This is one of the most important and powerful questions you can ask.  You may find out what the real reasons are for turnover.  Be open and ask them to speak without fear of reprisal in the future i.e., a bad reference.  For example; you may find out  it was a toxic boss, peer or co-worker, or maybe they felt they did not have a clear career path.  Sometimes it’s just another job offer they had to jump over the desk for because it was too good to be true.

I hope you enjoyed this month’s topic.  The above example was a true lifelong learning point in my career.  

Please feel free to send me questions and comments on recruitment and talent acquisition.


Bill O’Malley is President of Connector Team Recruiting a firm headquartered in Charlottesville, Virginia specializing in the Furniture | Appliance and Sleep verticals. Connector Team is a full-service Search Firm offering permanent placement recruiting and interim staffing solutions.

Feel free to contact Bill at bill@connectorteamrecruiting.com.

© 2023 Connector Team Recruiting