How recruiters actually work (and why their incentives matter)
The most important thing to understand about working with a recruiter: contingency recruiters are paid by the employer, not by you. Their fee (typically 15–25% of your first-year salary) is paid by the company that hires you. This creates a specific set of incentives you need to understand.
What this means in practice:
- A recruiter's job is to find candidates the employer will hire — not to find jobs for candidates
- They will invest time in candidates who are easy to place (strong profile, realistic expectations, responsive, not over-represented in the market)
- They will move quickly when you're a strong match and go quiet when you're not — this is not rudeness, it's economics
- They may present you for roles that are close to but not exactly what you want — always know your hard limits before the conversation starts
Types of recruiters and how their incentives differ:
| Type | Who pays them | Their motivation |
|---|---|---|
| In-house (internal) recruiter | Their employer | Fill the role with the best candidate |
| Contingency agency recruiter | Client company on placement | Place candidates fast; no placement = no fee |
| Retained executive search | Client company upfront | Find the best candidate (slower, more selective) |
| RPO (outsourced HR) | Client company on retainer | Volume hiring, process efficiency |
The practical implication: a contingency recruiter who goes quiet after your first call hasn't necessarily decided you're unqualified. They may have found a candidate who's a faster placement. Follow up once; if no response, keep the relationship warm but invest your energy elsewhere.
What to tell a recruiter (and what to keep private)
The intake conversation with a recruiter is not a casual chat — it's a positioning exercise. What you share and how you frame it directly affects which roles you get presented for.
Tell the recruiter:
- Your target job titles (be specific — 2–3 titles maximum)
- Your target industries or company types (size, stage, sector)
- Your geographic preferences and remote flexibility
- Your timeline (how soon can you start; are you giving notice)
- Your key skills and most relevant experience — frame these in terms of value, not just resume bullets
- Any significant achievements that differentiate you (specific numbers, deals closed, products shipped)
Be strategic about:
- Your current salary — in many jurisdictions, employers cannot ask for your current salary, and you're not obligated to share it with recruiters either. Instead, give your target salary range: "I'm looking for £60–70K." Sharing a lower-than-market current salary anchors negotiations downward.
- Why you're leaving — "I'm looking for more growth opportunity" is sufficient. You don't need to share details about internal politics, a difficult manager, or a performance issue. Keep it positive and forward-looking.
- How many applications you're running — a recruiter may be less motivated if they think you're already deep in conversations with competitors. You don't need to lie, but you also don't need to share your full pipeline.
- Desperation signals — avoid phrases like "I need something quickly" or "I'll consider anything." These reduce a recruiter's leverage on your behalf and make you a less attractive candidate to their clients.
Never hide:
- Hard skills you lack that are listed as requirements (misrepresenting qualifications wastes everyone's time)
- Gaps in your resume (recruiters will find out during screening; being upfront lets them prepare a narrative)
- Notice periods and competing offers (this is information recruiters use to negotiate on your behalf)
What makes a candidate easy (and hard) to place
Recruiters have a mental scorecard for every candidate they speak to. The easier you are to place, the more effort they'll invest in you.
What recruiters look for in a candidate they'll actively champion:
Clear, realistic expectations
Candidates who know exactly what they want (role, level, salary, location) are faster to place than those who are "open to anything." Paradoxically, being specific makes you easier to help — vague candidates generate too many near-misses.
Market-rate salary expectations
A recruiter can't place a mid-level candidate who demands senior-level compensation. Before the conversation, research market rates for your role (LinkedIn Salary, Glassdoor, Levels.fyi). Know your range; be flexible at the top end if the role is exceptional; hold your floor.
A strong, searchable LinkedIn profile
Recruiters present you to clients by sending your LinkedIn profile or a reformatted resume. A profile with a clear headline, complete experience section, and relevant keywords makes their job easier and makes you look more credible. An incomplete profile is a friction point recruiters notice.
Responsiveness
Hiring moves fast. A recruiter who can't reach you for 48 hours during an active search will move to the next candidate. Be responsive during an active search: set up email and phone notifications, respond to messages within 24 hours, and give a clear signal when you're temporarily unavailable.
One point of contact
If two recruiters from different agencies submit you to the same company, it creates a fee dispute and often results in both submissions being disqualified. Track where each recruiter submits you. Tell each recruiter you're working with multiple agencies and ask them to confirm where they plan to submit before doing so.
How to tell a good recruiter from one wasting your time
Not all recruiters are worth your time. These signals separate the ones who will genuinely help from those who are just building their database.
Signs of a recruiter worth working with:
- They ask specific questions about your experience, skills, and target roles — not just your salary
- They describe actual open roles they have (not "roles in your area")
- They explain their client's business and why the role is open
- They prep you before sending your profile to a client
- They give you feedback after interviews — win or lose
- They're transparent about the hiring process, timeline, and competition
- They check in periodically even when there's nothing live
Red flags:
- They ask for your current salary in the first 60 seconds of the conversation
- They promise to "keep you in mind" but never follow up with specifics
- They pitch you for roles clearly below your experience or salary level ("just to see if there's interest")
- They resist telling you the client company's name before submitting your profile
- They pressure you to accept an offer quickly without giving you time to evaluate
- They go completely silent after an unsuccessful placement without any feedback
The recruiter relationship is long-term:
The best recruiter relationships are built over years, not job searches. Stay in touch with recruiters who placed you or came close — send a brief update every 6–12 months. When you're actively searching again, a recruiter who knows your history will move much faster on your behalf than starting cold.
Staffing agency vs recruiter vs headhunter: the differences
These terms are often used interchangeably but describe meaningfully different services.
| Type | Focus | Typical roles | Who pays | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Staffing agency | Temporary & contract placements | Admin, warehouse, clerical, light industrial | Employer | Fast (days to weeks) |
| Agency recruiter | Permanent or contract professional roles | Mid-level, specialised, professional services | Employer (on placement) | Medium (weeks) |
| Executive search / headhunter | Senior and C-suite permanent roles | Directors, VPs, C-suite | Employer (retainer) | Slow (months) |
| In-house recruiter | All roles at their employer | All levels for one company | Their own employer | Varies |
Which to use and when:
- Staffing agency — if you need income quickly, a temp-to-perm path works in your industry, or you're between jobs and want to bridge
- Agency recruiter — if you're a mid-to-senior professional in a specialised field (tech, finance, legal, sales, engineering). Most of the recruiter outreach you'll receive on LinkedIn is from this category.
- Executive search — only relevant if you're at Director level or above ($120K+ roles). These firms won't take cold calls; you need to be on their radar through your reputation and profile.
- In-house recruiter — the most direct path to a specific company. Combine LinkedIn outreach with direct applications through the company's careers page.