Should I invest in a Head-hunter

Yes, it is the best use of your time and money.

The question to ask is can you afford NOT to have the role filled. Do you feel you have explored all options in terms of talent attraction.

When you feel that you have fallen short of options as to where to go next to find your next employee, be it a specialist role or high-level management vacancy then an experienced executive search professional will be the solution.

For any specialist role, a Head-hunter is best to be engaged from the very beginning, saving you both time and money. They are talented and specialist recruiters with many years of expertise. This talented professional will have the ability and knowledge to uncover the talent of those who are not active in the market and cannot be found on traditional job boards. The search service which you are offered is completely different to that of a contingency based recruitment method. They can overcome the challenges you are currently facing by tapping into pools of candidates from their own networks and targeting competitors.

Executive search requires the Head-hunter to look specifically for those people who are not looking for a new position. This requires a set skill and knowledge of the market and the ability to build professional relationships with candidates. The Head-hunter will initially make an approach to a potential applicant to establish if they would be open to hearing about new opportunities and opening up the opportunity for straight forward dialogue to see if the role could be worth giving some consideration to.

A Head-hunter you will find will charge a higher percentage in fees for their work than your traditional Recruiter. Given the time invested in this type of work, it is money which is earned by the Head-hunter. Often charges average 22% rising to 33% for executive roles, of the total remuneration. This is paid often in 3 or 4 instalments. The first instalment on instruction, the 2nd on presentation of a shortlist, the 3rd on acceptance of the role and 4th when the new employee starts. The first 2 instalments are non-refundable.

An initial invitation to a Head-hunter to meet you and find out about your challenges, vision and values would be the first step to establishing if this method is the best option for you and your business.