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Would you like to work for executive recruitment firms? Executive recruiters are recruiting professionals who focus specifically on filling high-level positions within companies. As the individual tasked with filling the position, you’ll be the gateway to this job opportunity and responsible for identifying the best candidate. Such a responsibility can be both exciting and rewarding for recruiters.

As an executive recruiter, time-to-fill, cost-per-hire and likely quality-of-hires will become three very important metrics in your life. Both your executive recruitment firm and your client will be counting on you to deliver the right candidate in a timely manner. While you can’t control every moving piece in this puzzle, you can bring structure to the chaos. The best executive recruiters learn to streamline certain processes while leveraging their interpersonal skills to form strong relationships with their candidates and clients.

If you’re wondering how to become an executive recruiter, these three steps will help you get started.

Step 1: Know your client.

Due to the high caliber of candidates that you’ll be pursuing as an executive recruiter, you will be an active partner in decision-making and team strategy for your client. Consequently, you’ll need to get up-to-speed quickly regarding your client’s work process and corporate culture so you can provide the strategic advice they’ll count on you to deliver. Even if you have a background in recruitment, you may find yourself recruiting in an industry that is unfamiliar to you. Doing your research in advance is essential to understanding the executive position for which you are recruiting.

Step 2: Build relationships with your candidates.

Executive recruiters are responsible for some very hard-to-fill openings that may take 90 days or longer to fill. These roles typically have specific, high demand talent and experience requirements with a low candidate pool. Filling these positions is not easy, which is why it is essential to build strong s with your ideal candidates. Communication is key to ensuring that the tough conversations are discussed early in the process.

Step 3: Always follow through.

The most common complaint I receive from candidates about their past experiences with other recruiters is that they felt “ignored” or worse, they felt “used.” As an executive recruiter, you’ll be busy with a lot on your plate and need to prioritize. You won’t be able to talk to a candidate every week. However, if you tell a candidate you will call on a specific day, follow through with the call. As the recruiter, you need to put in the effort to build and maintain the relationship. Networking is important, but that’s just the start; strong relationships and communication are essential to being a successful executive recruiter.

If you are considering a career change to executive recruitment, I’d love to hear from you. I welcome your feedback in the comments below.

How to Become an Executive Recruiter

by

Magda Gyerko

Managing Partner – Information Technology