Insights
Hiring intelligence, in plain English.
Straight answers on direct-hire recruiting, executive search, fees, guarantees, and offers — for the leaders making the hire.
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The Cost of an Open Seat: Time-to-Fill Economics for Direct-Hire Roles
Time-to-fill is usually reported as a number of days. It should be reported as a number of dollars. Here's how to build that number and use it to make better search decisions.
How to Set a Compensation Range That Doesn't Kill Your Search
The single most common reason a direct-hire or executive search stalls isn't the recruiter. It's a range that was never realistic to begin with.
One Recruiter or Five? The Exclusivity Decision in Direct-Hire Search
Sending a req to multiple agencies feels like more coverage. It usually produces less effort, more candidate confusion, and fee disputes you didn't see coming.
The Interview Loop Audit: How Many Rounds Before You Lose the Candidate
A practical framework for sizing, sequencing, and closing your interview process before a strong candidate drifts to someone else's offer.
How to Build a Hiring Scorecard That Actually Predicts Performance
Unweighted gut-feel interview notes produce bad hires and legal exposure. Here's how to build and run a scorecard that turns five subjective opinions into one defensible decision.
Retained vs Contingent Search: How to Pick the Right Model
The fee percentage isn't the decision that matters. The engagement model is — and picking wrong costs you the search, not just the money.
How to Brief an Executive Recruiter: The Intake That Determines the Whole Search
The first hour with a recruiter sets the ceiling on the search. A sharp brief produces a calibrated slate in weeks; a vague one produces resumes that teach you what you should have said.
How Long Does an Executive Search Take? A Realistic Timeline, Stage by Stage
The honest answer is a range with reasons: most professional and executive searches run 8 to 16 weeks from kickoff to accepted offer, and the variance lives in three places you can actually control.
Retained Executive Search: How It Works, What It Costs, and When It's the Right Model
Retained search is a different instrument from contingent recruiting — paid differently, run differently, and built for a different class of hire. Here's the mechanics, honestly, including when you shouldn't use it.
Direct-Hire Offer Strategy: How to Close Candidates Without Losing Them
The interview went great and then the offer stalled. Here's how to structure, deliver, and sequence a direct-hire offer so it holds.
The Direct-Hire Guarantee: What's Actually Covered, and What Voids It
Most guarantee clauses aren't insurance — they're a replacement clause with specific triggers and specific ways to lose your claim. Know both before you sign.
Direct-Hire Recruiting Fees Explained: What You're Actually Paying For
A practical breakdown of contingent, retained, and flat-fee search models, what actually drives the percentage, and why the guarantee clause matters more than the price.
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