Professional recruiters are a tremendous asset for employers, but how about job seekers? When should you work with a recruiter?
How Recruitment Works
Professional recruiters are contracted by employers to fill open roles. Employers pay a fee for this service, typically expressed as a percentage of the employee’s salary. The most common fee structures for professional recruiters are:
- Contingency—The recruiter only gets paid upon a successful hire
- Retained—The recruiter gets paid at multiple points, with a common structure being 1/3 upfront, 1/3 when a shortlist of candidates is presented, and the final 1/3 when a successful candidate is hired
- Hybrid models, sometimes called “retingency” or “contained”—These involve an upfront engagement fee, with the balance due upon a successful hire
Job seekers should note that in all these models, the EMPLOYER is paying for the recruiter’s services. It is important to note that this fee is not deducted from your salary. Generally speaking, job seekers should never pay a recruiter, and professional, ethical recruiters do not ask job seekers to do so.
Employers pay recruiters to recruit people for hard-to-fill roles. This means that recruiters really work directly for the employer, as that is their source of income. They represent candidates who are likely to be hired for a specific job opening. I often say that recruiters help companies find people; they don’t help people find jobs. What I mean by that is most recruiters are not proactively shopping candidates out to a variety of employers in hopes of landing jobs for those candidates. They are selectively marketing highly qualified candidates to a particular employer for a particular job. At the same time, many are also interested in building a network of qualified talent for future opportunities, so being connected to a handful of top recruiters in your niche can be valuable.
When Does It Make Sense to Work with a Recruiter?
If you are a job seeker, proactively contacting a recruiter isn’t harmful, but it isn’t likely to be your best chance of finding a job, either. Here are some things to consider:
What job seekers are recruiters looking for?
- Those with unique or hard-to-find skills that are currently in demand
- Those with multiple years of experience in a particular area with demonstrated career progression
- Those who are well established in their career
- Those with skills and experience that very closely align to what is needed for a specific job opening
What job seekers are not likely to be helped by recruiters?
- Entry-level candidates—most employers can find entry-level and/or junior candidates on their own without paying a professional recruiter.
- Candidates who are looking to make a career transition—Employers are looking for a demonstrated track record; someone who is looking for wholesale change will not likely find assistance from a recruiter.
- Candidates who want to move to a new location—Unless your skills and expertise are hot/unique, and there isn’t a suitable pool of local job seekers, recruiters aren’t your best resource. Employers are not likely to share the cost of relocation for candidates that can just as easily be found locally (some exceptions for remote roles). Note that relocation can be one of the requirements for a role, but that is not quite the same as a candidate who wants to proactively move to a new city/state/country without already having a job lined up.
There are many misconceptions about the role of recruiters in a job search. It’s important to understand how, and if, you should work with a recruiter. If they are unable to assist, it doesn’t mean you are a weak candidate or don’t have appropriate skills or expertise. It just means your job search will require different channels and methods.