Recruiter, Headhunter, Executive Search, Talent Acqusition Specialist

It wouldn’t be the first time we heard “What’s in a name?”

In Recruiting circles their are all sorts of distinctions between a “recruiter” a “headhunter” an “Executive Search Consultant” and a number of other related terms in the industry. I find clients and hiring managers don’t always know the differences and part of my role with a new client is to ascertain what their expectations are. Once this is nailed down I can tell if they are indeed looking for a recruiting shop or an executive search or even just a resume service.

Just as in any industry, a better client is the one who knows more about the product and service offering so spending a bit of time with the client to clarify this is valuable for both parties.

Getting a handle on how many resumes they expect to see, what time frame they are working within, whether they are onboard for an exclusive search, and many other variables need to be discussed also. Some recruiting firms don’t ask these questions — They get a job order for a certain person with a group of skills and go hunting before they’ve asked the right questions.