A Counter-Intuitive Advice
for Your Executive Search

“Choose a Recruiter that will Unrecommend a Candidate.”

Wow! Does that sound strange?

Executive Search Consultants are just that: consultants.

Be sure the headhunter you hire acts like one… not like a pushy salesperson. Unfortunately, at times, that attitude gave us a bad name.

Regardless of whether you work with a search firm on a “retained” or “contingency” basis, the recruiter is financially incentivized to fill the position you want filled.

The faster it is filled, the faster the recruiter gets paid. So every candidate they send may come with an endorsement: “This is the one”.

2 easy ways to check it you can trust the recruiter you work with:

1. How long of a replacement guarantee do they offer for the candidate you decide to hire?

If it’s 1 year or longer, you’re good: no recruiter wants to have to offer a free replacement down the road. This raises the quality of the candidates they send.

2. Do they occasionally UNrecommend a candidate?

The interview process has many variables, the most difficult of which is the fact the product presented is a live human being… who is not always easy to read at first bluff.

Therefore, a Recruiter who presents a candidate and later — from further vetting, or a 2nd or 3rd impression — discovers a red flag AND tells you about it… is a keeper.

Do you need an executive search consultant you can trust? Give us a call.