by Cathleen Faerber, The Wellesley Group

Many recruiting firms call themselves “search firms”, but what do they really do? The most common distinction is “contingency” versus “retained”. Contingency Firms only charge you a fee should you hire one of their candidates, whereas, Retainer Based Firms charge the fees as they are doing the “search”. However, understand that this distinction should be more than just how you pay the fee.

Retainer based search firms should be utilizing search techniques that go well beyond the internet and ad hoc networking. In essence, a focused effort to tap into that population of people that you as internal Human Resources Professionals have a more difficult time identifying on your own. These are people that are not seeking employment, but rather, based on where they are located geographically, what type of industry they are in and what position they hold – they could be an excellent prospect for your organization. True retained search firms use original name generation (research) as a way of identifying this population of people.

A search consultant doing retained search will take the time to understand your culture, your organization as well as the position requirements to ensure they are searching for the “right” person, not just “a” person. They will prepare a Position Profile and usually meet with the hiring managers as well as your self to ensure that they have extensive information to successfully execute the search. In addition, they should be able to provide you with “real time” market intelligence as they are speaking with people who are specifically targeted (usually in your industry). Retainer Based Search Firms usually provide a guarantee of a minimum of one year.

Retained Search is just not for the executive level positions. Rather, the process works very well for any position (in any function) that you have a more difficult time filling on your own. In today’s economy, we have an unprecedented amount of job seekers. In addition, as Human Resources Professionals, you also have great tools available to assist you in identifying a pool of qualified candidates without incurring search fees. With reduced staff levels in Human Resources, can you afford to take the time to try to do it on your own

Real search isn’t just a means of payment (retainer fees paid versus contingency). Many firms that charge retainer fees are actually utilizing the same tools and resources that your staff uses and are really contingency type firms that bill a retainer. You will often hear the term “boutique” regarding search firms. These are smaller firms. There is no “right” or “wrong” whether you choose a small firm or one of the larger firms in the industry. There are pros and cons to both.

About the Author
Cathleen Faerber
The Wellesley Group, Inc.
847/478-8300
www.wellesleygroup.com