Many candidates are willing to hear of outstanding opportunities, which could advance their careers, but few are willing to explore those opportunities on their own in fear of jeopardizing their current position. An executive recruiter is a third-party representative that knows how to gain the confidence of nervous candidates. The objectivity and feedback from an executive recruiter is invaluable to an employers. They can help employers evaluate their expectations, and bring industry expertise to assist with the development of job descriptions, reporting relationships and compensation programs. They can also usually provide investigative reports on candidates, third party referencing, personality testing, foreign language proficiency assessment, relocation assistance and other specialized services.
Executive recruiters help balance the emotional reactions and biases of corporate management.
The use of executive recruiters should be viewed as an investment in improving the quality of an organization's managerial might. The fees associated with any particular search become almost incidental considering the ultimate payback. A good way to view cost is to measure the cost of a bad hire. This employee will have to be replaced and the overall downtime for having the position unproductive can be staggering. Employers often engage executive recruiters to ensure that such trauma and expense are kept to a minimum.