Choosing the right executive search strategy is crucial for businesses aiming to secure top-tier talent. In executive recruitment, firms typically offer two distinct hiring models: retained and ad-hoc. Each model has its unique advantages and fits different hiring scenarios. At MorganLatif, we guide our clients through these options, ensuring that the chosen approach aligns with their strategic goals and operational needs. Let’s delve deeper into these strategies to help you determine the best fit for your organization.
Retained executive search is akin to a consultancy service where the search firm acts as an extension of the client’s team. This model is characterized by a high level of commitment and exclusivity, often reserved for senior-level and critical hires.
Retained Hiring: A Partnership for Strategic Success
Key Features:
Structured Search Process:
Retained search involves a systematic, in-depth process that includes market mapping, targeted headhunting, and comprehensive candidate assessments.
Exclusivity and Dedication:
The search firm works exclusively for the client on the role, ensuring dedicated resources and efforts that lead to finding the best fit.
Strategic Advisory Services:
Besides candidate search, retained firms offer insights into market trends, salary benchmarking, and role positioning, which are invaluable in making informed hiring decisions.
Benefits:
Alignment with Organisational Goals:
Retained searches are deeply aligned with the company’s strategic requirements, ensuring candidates not only fulfill the job specifications but also fit the corporate culture and ethos.
Long-term Success:
The thorough nature of the search leads to higher retention rates and more successful placements.
Confidentiality: This approach maintains a high level of confidentiality, crucial for senior positions or sensitive roles.
Ad-Hoc Hiring:
Flexibility and Speed:
Ad-hoc, or contingency recruitment, is more transactional and typically used for mid-level positions or roles that are less strategic in nature. This model is based on speed and flexibility, with payment contingent upon the successful placement of a candidate.
Key Features:
No Upfront Cost:
Clients pay only upon the successful placement of a candidate, making it initially a less costly venture.
Speed to Market:
Multiple agencies may work on the vacancy, creating a competitive environment that often results in quicker placements.
Broad Candidate Reach:
Working with various firms simultaneously can increase the number of potential candidates.
Benefits:
Cost-Effective for Non-Strategic Hires: Particularly effective for filling non-strategic roles where a perfect cultural fit is less critical.
Reduced Financial Risk:
The fee is paid only after a successful hire, which can be appealing for roles with a high turnover rate or for start-ups monitoring cash flow.
The decision between retained and ad-hoc hiring should be based on several factors:
Making the Right Choice
Strategic Importance: How crucial is the role to your organisation’s success?
Confidentiality Needs: Does the search require discretion?
Budget Considerations: What is your budget for the search process?
For critical roles where the impact of the hire on the organisation’s future is significant, retained search often provides a more suitable, albeit higher initial cost option. For less critical roles, the flexibility and cost-effectiveness of ad-hoc hiring may be more appropriate.
At Morgan Latif, we understand that each organisation’s needs are unique. Our expertise in both retained and ad-hoc hiring allows us to provide tailored advice, helping you to navigate these choices and secure the right talent effectively.
