Four Steps to Becoming a Headhunter

Headhunting is a well-known and highly effective method for recruiting senior staff. However, the problem with headhunters is that they are expensive. It is not uncommon to pay 30 per cent of the employee's first year's salary to the headhunter, and few small businesses can afford a $15,000 fee to recruit an employee who will earn $50,000. By following the four steps below, you may find that you can fill that all-important vacancy yourself and save a lot of money.

Draw up a shortlist
Start by compiling a list of the people you know who might fit your brief. Although one of the richest sources of candidates will be your competitors, they are by no means the only ones. It pays to think laterally about where you find your candidates.

By focusing on the skills required to do the job, rather than purely on the experience traditionally associated with it, you should be able to expand the field quite considerably. Think of people you've met at industry events, or those you've read about or heard speak. If you've not met anyone, read about anyone or heard anyone speak, then it might be time to get out and start networking for these leads.

You can also use the contacts you do have. If they've not been able to persuade any of their contacts to apply for your position, give them an easier question: ask them who they think would be really good for this job. Finally, try using the internet. Join online industry forums and see who is active and impressive there.

Do your research
For many, the secret of successful headhunting is research. When good headhunters call potential candidates they already know a lot about them. So, before you pick up the phone to the people on your shortlist, dig around a little.

Find out about their current role, how long they have been in it, the highlights of their time in it, what they were doing before, what colleagues, clients and other business contacts think of them and so on.

When you make your approach you want to be able to flatter them with the effort you've gone to, and you also want to be able to develop a conversation with them. You will only achieve these goals with proper preparation.

Pick up the phone
Once you've done this, the next step is simply to call them up. Call outside of work hours, ideally on a mobile phone, and introduce yourself immediately, telling them honestly why you're calling.

You might find that some will refuse to talk to you. Some might even go straight to their employers. Don't worry too much about that. You're not doing anything wrong. The worst that can happen is that you get on the wrong side of a competitor. So what? This is business. You're not here to make friends with your competitors. Just as customers are free to shop where they like, so employees are free to work where they like - you wouldn't worry about approaching a competitor's customers, so why worry about approaching their staff?

In fact, you'll find that very few people will tell their employers about it. Most people will feel complimented and will be very happy to talk to you.

Softly, softly
Headhunters have a reputation for being aggressive. Indeed, many of them subscribe to the 'second-hand car salesman' school of thought and try at all costs to push people into unsuitable roles. It is easy to see why. Senior executives get dozens of calls every week from headhunters, most of which they dismiss. Those headhunters have to work hard to get a foot in the door and stand a chance of making their 30 per cent.

You, on the other hand, are only interested in finding the right person for the job. You will adopt the tactics of the more sophisticated head-hunter and make unobtrusive, friendly calls to people. Rather than going straight in to discuss the job on the table, you will talk about how the executive is developing their career, where they see it going, what they want from their work and so on.

Most people prefer talking about themselves to listening to a salesperson talk up a job, so you will achieve a much better response this way. You may find that it takes longer and some conversations go nowhere. However, a relaxed chat over a coffee that leads nowhere now might in three years' time produce your best ever hire. Successful recruitment is a long-term game, so raise your sights beyond your immediate goal.