Headhunting – is it an expensive service for business?
A business hiring a recruitment company will normally look at the total overall recruitment package it receives. One thing that can give an immediate indication of the quality of a recruitment company’s work is the separation of the direct search (headhunting) service and the separate fee for this service. Any quality recruitment service cannot exist without headhunting. If headhunting is specified as an additional service, the recruitment partner should be treated with particular care.
Does it cost extra?
No, any recruitment company providing a quality recruitment service must include the direct search service in the total cost of the recruitment project. This must be done because without headhunting, the employer does not receive the underlying value of the service when purchasing the recruitment service. Thus, if the direct search is priced as an additional service, the recruitment company is allowing itself to provide a low-quality service and is willing to sell the main quality guarantee at an additional price. We recommend that you do not choose such a recruitment partner.
What is expensive headhunting?
A headhunting service is expensive when the value created for the employer by the selected employee is relatively low compared to the amount paid for the headhunting. As an example, if a headhunting partner has successfully selected a marketing project manager with a salary of EUR 4 000 gross and a selection cost of EUR 10 000 + VAT, then the headhunting project can already be considered as expensive. This is because the cost of the headhunting project is not balanced with the value of the selected employee.
On the other hand, if the direct search partner selects a director of the commercial department with a salary of EUR 8000 gross and a selection cost of EUR 10000 + VAT, then the cost of such a headhunt is considered to be not too high and balanced. Of course, a lot depends on the additional services provided by the company, i.e. guarantee, consultancy, etc., but the cost of the direct search has to be assessed on the basis of the value created by the position sought.
Is it worth using headhunting services?
If you are planning to use recruitment services, then you need to choose a partner who will provide a direct search option. Otherwise, although the cost of the service may be lower, it will not provide a quality service. To turn the question around, is it worth using a recruitment company if it does not offer direct search services? No, such a service is not valuable and will simply disappoint the employer and will not give them the opportunity to assess the best candidates on the market.
