Headhunting has a bad rap, and sometimes it’s well-deserved. Done poorly, headhunting can be seen as an invasive, almost predatory process where recruiters are trained to sniff out the best candidates at their current employers, lure them away with promises of higher pay or better positions, and then deliver the people they secured to the highest bidder. 

When executed this way, headhunting can leave a sour taste in the mouths of both those who are recruited and those who did the recruiting. But done well, it can deliver outstanding results—and even save your company time and money in the long run!

In this blog, we will discuss how to implement the right kind of headhunting and the benefits of headhunting. 

Now, let’s get into it!

Defining Headhunting

Headhunting is a process of identifying, contacting, and hiring a specific person for a specific position. It differs from recruitment in that you are looking for one individual candidate to fill one specific job. You are not trying to cast as wide a net as possible in order to find any qualified person. Instead, you focus on only those people who meet your criteria for the position you need to be filled.

Benefits of Headhunting

• Attract Passive Candidates: One of the key benefits of a headhunter is that they can attract passive candidates that normally would not be exposed to your job ad. This means you open up your talent pool wider and potentially attract better quality candidates. These people are not actively looking for job roles but headhunter will use their networking or outreach skills to proactively seek them out and approach them.

• Improve Efficiency: Headhunters can improve the efficiency of your recruitment process by taking over the responsibility of locating and approaching talent and using their skills and experience to identify the most suitable candidates for the vacancy. They can save you time by removing the need for you to filter through huge number of unqualified job applications and only presenting you with the most relevant candidates.

• Reduce Costs: Although headhunting services come with a cost, you need to weigh that up against the savings you will make against internal costs. It can be a time-consuming task to peruse hundreds of CVs which is not a productive use of time. Headhunters will do a lot of the work for you saving you plenty of time and money plus a better quality hire can improve profitability moving forward.

• Hire Better Employees: Headhunters use years of talent sourcing skills to attract the best and most reliable employees. Having this experience allows them to spot the best talent but also the people who are the best fit for your company and more likely to stay with you in the long term.

• Keep It Confidential: There are certain job roles that you might not want to make public which can make it hard to advertise. A headhunter can carry out a campaign in confidentiality allowing you to attract candidates without making the role publicly available.

Why Headhunting May Be the Answer To All of Your Recruiting Woes

Many companies, big and small, are struggling with recruiting. It's a frustrating process that can take up a lot of time when you're not getting any viable candidates. When this happens, it's tempting to hire someone who isn't quite right just to fill the position quickly. But, if you're looking for long-term success or if your company has high turnover rates or low retention rates, then it might be time for headhunters.

If you’re looking to implement some headhunting strategies to your recruiting process, I can help with that! To learn more, schedule a call with Katy now!