What is executive search and is it worth doing?
When partnering with a recruiter, there are a number of agencies and methodologies that you can choose. All have the same goal in mind, which is finding talent for your organization. However, each “service line” equates to a different level of research, partnership, and client satisfaction.
There can be many misconceptions when working on a retained basis, and it can be difficult to understand which recruitment solution would work best for you and your hiring goals. We wanted to break down not only the basics of traditional retained recruitment, but also how it differs from other recruitment methodologies and how we work at Harper and Gray.
What is traditional retained recruitment?
Traditional retained recruitment is often used at senior through to executive/C-Suite level and relies on a thorough, researched process to attract the best candidates in the market. Headhunting passive candidates is a part of this process, as well as market mapping and operating “under the radar” for exclusive, confidential roles. Retained search is also considered best practice for specialist, niche roles, even at a junior/mid-level.
The end to end recruitment process is managed, and often onboarding and integrating the candidate is included. Retained recruitment is on a partnership basis meaning that no other agency or individual recruiter is involved on the project. This allows for a smooth process for both the client and recruitment partner, as well as ensuring a pre-agreed, strategic approach for candidates.
This creates reciprocal commitment and elevates talent acquisition from being transactional to consultative. If you have ever found yourself in a situation where a role has either been open for a long time, or you’re struggling with the level of candidate quality, these are two clear indicators that you should work on a retained basis with a specialist.
How does this differ from other recruitment methodologies?
A commonly used recruitment methodology is contingent recruitment, which by definition means “subject to change”. In laymen terms, this means that you aren’t guaranteed that the role will be filled, and the recruitment process, although in some cases still able to be consultative, runs the risk of becoming transactional and diluting your brand image in the process.
For senior roles in particular, this can be exhausting, especially if you choose to partner with multiple agencies to fulfil your requirements. In some instances, contingent recruitment does make sense. However, it isn’t guaranteeing results, so can be seen as an unreliable method, especially for senior, strategic hires.
How do we approach retained assignments?
Ultimately, working on a retained basis comes down to the individual or agency that you have partnered with. Having acquired over 15 years of deep recruitment expertise, with the majority of this being within Executive Search and the STEM space, we pride ourselves on giving a high-quality, bespoke experience to our clients.
Creating customized and strategic processes that are clearly aligned to each business ensures that we can operate at a partner level. Everything that we do is on a 12-week project cycle, ensuring that there is efficiency without sacrificing the depth of research and outreach that we need to do.
We believe in customer and candidate experience, so when you operate at a retained level it should be an extension of the client's brand. Service truly matters, and we know that how we represent you and execute your go-to-market strategy is a reflection of your organization.
What are the pros and cons of retained vs contingent?
Our core differentiators are as follows:
Diverse candidates represented in every single search
All searches are truly reflective of the society that we live in. Providing diverse candidates in every single search is at the forefront of our approach. Our Founder Ginnette Harvey also has first-hand lived experiences that restrict diversity in the workplace. This, coupled with her depth of industry knowledge of recruitment and coaching allows for us to be able to do this effectively.
12-week project cycle
Retained doesn’t need to extend over months and months of work. An efficient and in-depth process is what we pride ourselves on. We have refined our strategy due to the level of expertise in the business to achieve this turnaround time both for clients and candidates.
We actively give back
If a suitable diverse candidate does not exist when running a specific project, we donate a proportion of successful placement fees to non-profit organizations that facilitate diversity in STEM. This ensures that we are actively contributing to a grassroots effort, thus benefiting diverse STEM talent for the future.
We operate as an extension of your brand
We consider ourselves to be a part of your brand from day #1. We know the market incredibly well and have excellent judgement when it comes to executing each search. Our values are embedded into everything that we do, so we work with clients who share the same goals as us.
In conclusion…
Partnering on a retained basis is a tried and tested method to guarantee excellent results. It’s crucial that when picking a partner, you get a breakdown of their approach and also what is in it for you as a client.
Additionally, credentials are key to choosing a partner, too. If they are unable to provide you with statistics and evidence of mandates they’ve executed, then they may not be the best fit for you. Retained recruitment, when done well, can revolutionize your brand and talent strategy, so ensure that you are also carrying out your due diligence before partnering with someone.
Your recruitment partner is a natural extension of your Brand and reciprocal trust is essential to the process. If you don’t feel complete trust with the consultancies that you work with then it likely means that you haven’t found the right partner (yet!)