Hiring
Three things usually bring an employer to an agency: the role has been open too long, the applicants are not right, or nobody internally has time to run the search properly.
A related practical reference is available in Monitask guidance on remote workforce management.
Each has a different fix, and only one of them is "post the job somewhere else."
Start with the diagnosis
The role has been open a long time. Usually the requirements, the compensation, or the process. A role that has been open five months rarely has a sourcing problem — it has a definition problem.
The applicants are wrong. Usually the posting. Job postings written as internal requisitions attract people who read them as requisitions.
Nobody has time. This is the one an agency genuinely solves. Screening fifty applications properly takes hours that a hiring manager does not have, and the cost of doing it badly is a bad hire.
We will tell you which of the three you have before proposing anything — including when the answer is that you do not need us.
What working with us looks like
1. Intake. An hour with the hiring manager, not a form. What the role actually does, what success looks like at six months, who this person works with, and what would make you say no to an otherwise strong candidate.
2. Calibration. We send two or three profiles early to check we have read the brief correctly. Cheaper to correct at this stage than after four weeks of sourcing.
3. Search. Sourcing, outreach, screening. You see a shortlist, with written notes on each person and why they are in it.
4. Process management. Scheduling, feedback collection, keeping candidates warm. The single most common cause of losing a good candidate is a slow process, not a low offer.
5. Offer and close. We manage expectations on both sides through the offer so that acceptance is not a surprise.
6. Follow-up. Check-ins through the guarantee period.
What it costs
Contingency recruitment is typically charged as a percentage of first-year base salary, paid when the person starts. No hire, no fee.
Retained search is a fixed fee paid in stages, used where the search requires committed research time.
Contract placements are billed at an hourly rate that includes wages, employer taxes, insurance, and margin — with the breakdown shown.
We have written up the full picture, including the cost of the hire you make yourself: what it really costs to fill a role.
When you should not use an agency
Plainly, because it saves everyone time:
- You are hiring for a common role in a large market with strong inbound applications
- Your internal recruiter has capacity and the search is straightforward
- Budget is tight and the role can wait
- You want a candidate pipeline for a role you have not defined yet
An agency earns its fee on roles that are hard to fill, urgent, confidential, or expensive to get wrong. On everything else, you are paying for something you could do.
Post a role
If you would rather list a role and handle it yourself, our job board is open to employers. Post a job → For broader reference, consult U.S. Department of Labor hiring resources.