Executive Search vs Recruitment Agencies

I’m often asked by hiring managers the difference between Executive Search vs Recruitment Agencies style of hiring. Both are very good, and are equally professional. However they have fundamental differences in the approach for attracting job candidates.

Hello, again. It’s Paul from Wright Executive Search, based here in Sydney, Australia.

Recruitment Agencies

Firstly, Recruitment Agencies, generally will cover the vast majority of organisations that you will come across. However, they are different from Executive Search Firms. Traditionally the approach for recruitment agencies is to work from a database of candidates. Agencies will fill that database through advertising live jobs to source candidates. i.e. people who are actively looking for a job for one reason or another. It may time for a career change, or they may have been made redundant.

These people would be what’s considered ‘Active Candidates’ on the recruiters database. Candidates that have responded to those job adverts on Seek (or similar job boards). In other words, Agencies are using the job vacancy to populate the database with active candidates. The recruitment agency will indeed place the candidate within your company, and then charge you a fee for service. This is known as a contingent-based fee.

Executive Search 

On the other hand, you have Executive Search recruiters. Executive Search Recruiters are also known as headhunters. We will headhunt within the market to find candidates.

Wright Executive Search is a headhunting firm, we specialise in sourcing executive talent, specifically for our customers.

The candidates that we reach out to using traditional headhunting search methodologies will instead be considered ‘passive jobseekers’ or nonactive candidates. Since these are people who are not even considering changing jobs, they would not be expecting a call from someone like myself. Such a phone call is often welcomed by the individual may be flattered by the contact.

Our Executive recruiters will build a ‘long-list’ of target companies and subsequently, target individuals within those companies who we plan to approach. Again, we search recruiters will talk to the hiring company/manager about those target organisations and potential candidates. The aim is to agree whether the candidates on that list are worth approaching with your commitment and agreement.

Positive Outcome

An experienced and proficient Executive Search recruiter will then approach those individuals. We engage with candidates around your role only. Specifically for the job that you are recruiting for, and position the opportunity accurately. Consequently, the benefits to hiring in this way is that the candidates, be they passive or nonactive, will only be being considered for your role.

Furthermore, this means there’s less opportunity for them to disappear to another organisation in a similar role. Candidates will have a deep understanding of your organisation and then will be managed professionally, throughout the process, with ourselves.

Higher Percentage of Top Talent

Above all, the candidates that we search recruiters are talking to cover probably the remaining 70% or 80% of the marketplace. This means you will get a better outcome, a high-caliber candidate.

Generally it is understood that this approach is used at top end of the market, the executive ‘C-suite roles’. These roles include the Chief Executive, the Chief Operating Officer, Chief Financial Officer. And indeed, any other ‘CxO’ role, and likewise typical senior management and leadership positions also.

In conclusion, I hope that gives you a bit of a better insight into how Executive Search Firms generally operate, and the clear difference between Executive Search vs Recruitment Agencies.

If you’d ever like to talk to myself or any of my team of consultants around that approach, please give me a call directly or reach me through our website at www.wrightexecutive.com.au

Many thanks and I look forward to speaking with you soon.