This is important to remember, in that when you interact with executive recruiters, you are essentially interacting with an agent or representative of the employer. Recruiters are more loyal to employers than they are to job candidates because they work for the employer. This should not present a problem, but, should cause you to develop your relationship with the recruiter with the same integrity and professionalism that you would with the employer. Recruiters are usually paid retainer or contingency fees. This is an important distinction and will affect your process with both the employer and the recruiter.
Some employers prefer working with contingency firms and some with retained firms.
Both are respected by employers and useful in your job search, but, the two types of firms will not be handling the same positions with the same employers simultaneously. The retained recruiter, then, is likely to advertise a position, sharing the specifics of the position, location and employer openly. The retained firm feels a great obligation to fulfill the contract by finding the best person for the job. The contingency recruiter, on the other hand, usually does not have an exclusive relationship with the employer, and is only paid a fee if the job search is successful. Often, if the employer uses contingency firms, there will be more than one contingency firm competing to fill a certain position.