Using recruiter/head hunter

[Mango]

I'm curious if any one has used a recruiter or a head hunter in his or her job search before. If so, what was the result? Did you find the fee reasonable? I have been recommend to a recruiter but her fees seem high. However, they might only seem that way to me because I've never used one before. I'm trying to find compare prices to other recruiters in Calgary online, but am having no such luck.

If you have any information, it would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you in advance.

[Clever_Iggy]

Originally Posted by Mango

I'm curious if any one has used a recruiter or a head hunter in his or her job search before. If so, what was the result? Did you find the fee reasonable? I have been recommend to a recruiter but her fees seem high. However, they might only seem that way to me because I've never used one before. I'm trying to find compare prices to other recruiters in Calgary online, but am having no such luck.

I was under the impression that the employer pays the fees for a recruiter successfully filling a job. Usually that fee is based on the salary/compensation of the successful hire (a percentage but I've come across flat fees for those companies that use the same recruiter).

[lucky1]

if a recruiter is wanting to charge you money, kindly tell that recruiter to go 'pound sand'.....they are well compensated by the company that is looking to hire. This is equivalent to a real estate agent charging you when you are buying a house....

[Mango]

Originally Posted by lucky1

if a recruiter is wanting to charge you money, kindly tell that recruiter to go 'pound sand'.....they are well compensated by the company that is looking to hire. This is equivalent to a real estate agent charging you when you are buying a house....

That's what I thought too. This recruiter was suggested to me by a family member. Perhaps this is a sign that I should look elsewhere for employment help...

Thanks for your responses!

[Cheese]

Ive used them before and they do a great job. You do not pay a penny, the client pays all associated fees...and they are LARGE.

[Slava]

I was approached and used one years ago. I found the experience both good and bad. Good because they did the hard work and "pre-sold" my to the potential employers. Bad though because I was interviewing for positions that weren't really what I was after and the recruiter just wanted me to take something so that they would get paid (at least that was my impression).

[shermanator]

I've had mostly bad experiences with headhunters. When I just got out of school, worked with one who felt like a sleazy car salesman.

That being said, there are good ones out there I'm sure.

[jtfrogger]

I work with recruiters on a regular basis. As an independent contractor, I have used them. As a manager, I have used them to staff up (both contract and employee). There are good ones and bad ones. The good ones tend to be specific good people you deal with as opposed to a company. Make sure you keep track of the good ones, since they can move around between companies until they eventually start their own company.

And the candidate never pays for the recruiter. It is always the hiring company.

[CaptainCrunch]

The candidate never pays for a headhunter service, be careful though there are ones out there that try to get money out of you by providing resume review and interview prep services.

I used to be a headhunter or recruiter in my past life, and for a corporation there are some serious advantages to it.

You usually don't have to pay the fee until after 90 days, or theres a guarantee that if the new employee fails in a specific period of time they will recruit a replacement for free.

The good recruiting companies have a well established and thorough recruiting program which means that they use technology tools for skills testing, psychometric testing, team integration testing etc.

You get the cream of the crop recruits the recruiter does the filtering for you so you don't have to review a hundred resumes.

They usually do a good job in terms of background checking as required.

When I was recruiting the fee was between 12 and 20% of the successful applicants yearly salary.

But if you consider time and cost savings and the guarantee its not a bad deal.

[Kybosh]

As a candidate, I've never had much luck with headhunters. I find that my efforts are better spent trying to get in contact directly with whoever is hiring. Easier said than done, however, in the internet age of anonymity.

[CaptainCrunch]

I've had tremendous luck with head hunters, you just have to make them understand what you want.

[Mango]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

The candidate never pays for a headhunter service, be careful though there are ones out there that try to get money out of you by providing resume review and interview prep services.

This is good to know. The woman I was supposed to meet with was going to charge me for a package that included those services (combined with some other things). It all seemed very fishy to me.

Can anyone provide names of recruiting companies or even an individual recruiter they suggest?

Thanks again for everyone's input.

[CaptainCrunch]

I guess it would depend on what your looking for, there are a lot of recruiting companies that really specialize on specific roles.

I used to work for Drake International they have a fairly strong market reputation. If you're an IT professional or accouting or technical sales your can look at DA&A.

There are also companies like diversified and Design group who have solid reputation.

Locke and Associates and Chase Consulting also come to mind.