Choosing a recruitment agency
For many employers a recruitment agency is the first thought when a vacancy proves hard to fill. Sometimes rightly so. Here you will read how the business model works, what to look for when choosing, what it costs and when another model is the smarter choice.
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What is a recruitment agency and how does it make its money?
A recruitment agency searches for, approaches and selects candidates for a vacancy and presents them to you. You only pay on placement: a fee that is commonly calculated as a percentage of the gross annual salary of the candidate you hire. The scarcer the profile, the higher that percentage usually is. SocialFind works differently: structurally, without placement fees.
Lees verderWhen is a recruitment agency the best choice?
Honest answer: more often than you would expect us to say. A recruitment agency is the logical choice if:
- You have a single, specialist vacancy and do not expect a structural hiring need in the coming period. Think of a finance director or a specialist in healthcare or IT for whom a niche agency has a proven network.
- You have no in-house recruitment capacity and do not want to build it. Someone has to call, screen and follow up; an agency takes that off your hands for that one vacancy.
- Speed matters more than cost. A specialised agency with a warm candidate pool can sometimes present candidates within weeks where a campaign has to start from zero.
If you recognise yourself in this, you do not need to look any further for alternatives. Just make sure you pick a good agency. If you have several vacancies a year or recurring intake, also read RPO versus recruitment agencies.
What should you look for when choosing a recruitment agency?
On paper, agencies look very much alike. The differences are in the terms and in who actually does the work. Go through these points before you sign:
- Specialisation. An agency that knows your field or sector (healthcare, IT, engineering, sales) has a relevant network and understands what moves candidates. A generalist agency often starts from zero for your vacancy.
- Guarantee. What happens if the candidate leaves during the probation period? Ask about the guarantee period and whether you get money back or a new search without an extra fee.
- Exclusivity. Some agencies ask for exclusivity for a set period. That gives them certainty but ties you down. Agree on what happens if you find a candidate yourself.
- No cure no pay or retained. With no cure no pay you only pay on placement; with retained you pay part upfront and your vacancy is guaranteed attention. Both have their logic; read what no cure no pay really means.
- Reporting. Do you get insight into how many candidates were approached, why they dropped out and what the market says about your terms of employment? Or do you only hear something once a CV lands?
- Who does the search. The account manager you speak to is rarely the one making the calls. Ask who is actually working on your vacancy and how many other assignments that person is running at the same time.
What does a recruitment agency cost?
The common model is a fee per placement, calculated as a percentage of the gross annual salary of the candidate you hire. The logic behind it: the scarcer and more senior the profile, the higher the percentage, because the search takes more time and network. The fee for an operational role is therefore lower than for a board-level role, even though the agency does comparable work.
That fee usually covers searching, approaching, pre-selecting and presenting candidates, plus guidance up to and including the hire. What is usually not included: employer branding, a talent pool that becomes yours, data about your target group and the candidates who were not quite hired. Those stay with the agency.
When looking at the total cost of a recruitment agency, also pay attention to what is less visible:
- Exclusivity can mean you are not allowed to use any other route during the term, even if it is faster.
- The guarantee period determines your risk: a short period shifts the risk of a wrong match to you.
- Multiple vacancies mean multiple fees. The agency starts over every time and nothing accumulates that is yours.
Want to do the full calculation, including the cost of a vacancy that stays open for months? You will find it on the business case page.
The alternatives
Recruitment agency, RPO, interim recruiter or recruitment marketing?
Four routes to the same hire, compared on the points that determine what you ultimately pay and keep.
| Recruitment agency | RPO | Interim recruiter | Recruitment marketing | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Payment model | Fee per placement, percentage of annual salary | Fixed monthly fee, no placement fees | Hourly or daily rate | Monthly budget plus media budget |
| Suits | A single specialist vacancy without a structural need | Structural or varied staffing needs | Temporary peak on an otherwise well-running process | Enough internal process, too little visibility |
| Lead time | Depends on the network; fast with a warm pool | First campaigns within weeks, then ongoing | Available immediately, for the duration of the assignment | First applicants as soon as the campaign goes live |
| Owner of the process | The agency; you get the hire | You; the partner executes under your name | You, with temporary extra hands | You; the agency delivers applicants |
| Employer brand | Not part of it; candidates get to know the agency | Core part, grows stronger with every campaign | Not part of it | Part of it, as long as the campaign runs |
| Cost with multiple vacancies | Every placement a new fee | One partnership; cost per hire falls with volume | Limited by the capacity of one person | More vacancies means more media budget |
None of these models is always better. Choose based on your volume, your time pressure and what you want to build.
When you are better off not using an agency
Not every open vacancy calls for an agency. Sometimes the problem is not finding people, but the way your vacancy is positioned in the market. A vague job title, a text full of requirements and not a word about what you offer: no agency can help with that, and you still pay a fee for it.
If you recognise this, try this first:
- A good job ad that tells what someone will do, with whom and why it is worth it. Not a list of requirements.
- A targeted campaign on the channels where your target group really is, with an application funnel that can be completed on a phone in a minute.
- Fast follow-up. Many candidates drop out because they hear nothing for a week. You solve that internally, not with an agency.
And if your terms of employment are clearly below market, an agency will not solve that either. Not sure where things get stuck for you? The recruitment diagnosis answers that in a single session.
What SocialFind does when you structurally need people
SocialFind is not a recruitment agency. We work as an RPO partner: one team that runs your complete recruitment, from labour market analysis and campaigns to screening and follow-up, under your name. Candidates get to know your organisation, not an agency, and everything we build (employer brand, talent pool, data) stays yours.
We do that for a fixed fee. START costs EUR 6,500 per month, including a EUR 1,000 media budget, with no placement fees. Whether you hire three or thirty people a year, the price does not change per hire. The full pricing logic is on our pricing page, how the partnership works on what is SocialFind RPO and all forms of outsourcing side by side on outsourcing recruitment.
Do you have one difficult vacancy and nothing else? Then we say so honestly, and refer you to a good agency.
Compare further
One vacancy or a structural need?
Not sure whether an agency, recruiting yourself or an RPO partner fits your situation? We take an honest look and will tell you if a recruitment agency is simply the best choice in your case.
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