Why You Should Use BEST For Your Retained Executive Search

Finding the Right Executive Search Firm

When partnering with a top executive search and recruiting firm, a company will experience an increased return on investment. A newly placed candidate will begin performing on or above expectations in a short amount of time. BEST Human Capital and Advisory stakeholders have successfully researched and placed executive-level candidates for over 15 years.

A recent industry trend report provided qualitative information about the best recruiters. Respondents were asked to write in their ideas about the most exceptional qualities of a successful recruiter, and the most dominant answer was “persistence.” The second was “the ability to listen,” and supporting the importance of holding on against all the odds, “tenacity.” These are the exact traits of the recruiting and search professionals at BEST Human Capital & Advisory Group who also deliver on the following commitments to their clients:

To provide a highly professional, transparent, and confidential search process, with clear expectations set through a complete description of how the search will be conducted, fees, and policies.
To provide experience, tenure, and the ability to educate constituents.
To provide full due diligence and business acumen, including thorough client interviews to understand requirements, extensive industry, and target candidate research.
To provide vast industry knowledge and experience learned over years of recruiting candidates at the executive level.

A focus on the details with well-defined processes, documentation, follow-through, confidentiality, and constant communication with client organizations to ensure the best candidate fit moving forward.

The Benefits of Retained Executive Search

When organizations consider engaging an outside firm to assist with placing new executive talent, they must decide between retained executive search and contingency recruiting. There are distinct advantages in utilizing a retained executive search firm.

A retained executive search firm is engaged in every aspect of the search process, starting with defining a tailor-made search strategy through candidate onboarding. Retained executive search firms often continue consultation and follow-up months after the hire, since their success is based on the impact and long-term commitment of the executive hired.

Retained Search firms search exclusively – no other recruitment agencies will take part – so that it will be very client-focused with a full investment of resources to find the right candidate for the position and company culture. Retained search firms work very closely with each client, take their time and use an agreed-upon methodology to find the best person for the job. The process is rigorous with a shortlist from 4 to 6 quality prospects developed after an exhaustive national sourcing process, many times beginning with upwards of 300 initial targets.

While retained executive search may seem expensive, it always has proven to be less costly in the long-run. First, the client is not paying any more since the retainer is deducted from the final invoice upon placement. The key is that retained search firms are looking for the most qualified candidate, which leads to a better return on investment. On average, a retained placement ends up being a better fit in their position and ultimately stays in the role longer than with any other type of recruiting scenario. Companies will most often request a retained search when they are looking to fill an executive-level position, and sometimes when all other less expensive – and ineffective – search options have been exhausted.