The world of Retained Executive Search is often misunderstood.
At the same time it is key to the success of a company.

YES Partners: a RETAINED Search Firm

Retained Search Firms are hired by a company for a period of time, at a fee equaling a percentage of the employee's projected income. Whereas employment agencies serve the interests of companies and job seekers equally, retained firms owe their primary allegiance to the company.

They conduct in-depth searches for individuals who meet a client's specific requirements, eventually forwarding a single candidate, or a slate of two or three highly qualified professionals.

The focus of Executive Search is finding people for career opportunities, not jobs for people!

Retained Executive Search Consulting is appropriate for hiring senior-level executives and when it is critical to hire not just any qualified person, but the most qualified and appropriate person to meet the challenges of the position in question.

The Consultants work under an exclusive contract with the client organization. Their priority is identifying the best candidate for a particular job and making the best client/candidate match. The majority of executives identified in a search are not actively seeking a new job, but are identified through research as the most viable candidates.

In addition, a retained consultant will never present a candidate to more than one client at a time, and will not accept fees from individuals for the purpose of helping them find a job.

Retained Executive Search enables the client (company) to confidentially explore candidates who would not otherwise be identified by advertisements, job postings, or employment agencies. Retained executive search is a selective recruiting technique that sources candidates through direct means.

With Executive Search, senior candidates are “actively” attracted who are happy and successful in their careers and who are “passive” candidates, i.e. they don’t send out resumes, don’t reply to job postings or don’t answer newspaper-ads.

In the context of recruiting, retained search is comparable to hiring a highly skilled professional like an accountant, lawyer or business consultant specialist to resolve a performance issue or deliver a particular solution.

Organizations in a wide range of sectors retain us to identify highly qualified candidates for specific senior-level positions.

To learn more about YES Partners Executive Search approach click here: (The YES Partners Difference >)

In Comparison: a CONTINGENCY Search Firm

Contingency Employment Agencies charge a fee only if a company hires one of their candidates.

After conducting preliminary interviews, they tend to forward resumes from a large number of job applicants and leave the evaluation process to the client.

Rates usually range from 20 percent to 30 percent of the employee's salary.

In contingency staffing, a recruiting firm is typically used to fill an entry- to mid-level position.

The firm operates as a resume promotion service (resume turnaround system) and is paid only if a hire (a sale) is made. For this reason, contingency firms tend to quickly provide volumes of resumes for such positions. 

The results, however, are often unpredictable and inconsistent, i.e. submitted resumes are either over- or under qualified or otherwise don’t match the job-description.

Finding the Right Relationship

A proven record of successful matches and expertise in your industry is essential for a recruiter. In addition, you should look for someone with whom you have a good personal rapport.

If you can find a really good relationship with a good search firm, it can be far more cost-effective than having somebody internally doing the recruiting, especially for specialized searches. If it's a long-standing relationship, the person really gets to know the company.

A good recruiter will not only help you to fill a position, he or she will help you refine your company's hiring practices and build the talend pipeline.

Tips for a Good Relationship

The relationship between client and search firm requires substantial measures of trust, chemistry and professional respect. It is important for the client to understand their part in the search process and how to contribute to a successful conclusion:
Communication between search firm and client must be open and cooperative.

Describe the position in as much detail as you can and make full information available to the search consultant.

Do not hide information but introduce the consultant to key decision-makers in the selection process and encourage full disclosure. The consultant will be your partner in completing the assignment and must be able to represent your organization fully to prospective candidates. Therefore, there should be no surprises.

Assemble your in-house “interviewing team”
This should be a cross-functional team of the key executives involved in the recruitment process. Ensure that there is agreement and consistency about the position to be filled. This is critical when it comes to meeting short-listed candidates.

Obtain feedback from the search consultant to identify differences of opinion within the search committee.

Ensure the interviewing of candidates are properly greeted and given VIP treatment. These candidates are not job applicants, but generally very busy executives who are making time sacrifices for an interview. Ensure also to promote and "sell" those candidates on the company.

Help your interviewers by establishing selection criteria and assessment guidelines.

Be readily available to your search consultant so that you can effectively and quickly fulfill your mutual goal.