Executive Search
Recruitment by direct approach
The headhunter's method, explained in five minutes: what it is, how an assignment runs, when it beats a job ad, and what the law says.
Definition
Direct approach, headhunting, executive search: three terms, three levels
Direct approach recruitment means going to candidates where they are, in post, rather than waiting for them to apply. The recruiter maps the market, identifies by name the people who fit and contacts them one by one.
- The method
The direct approach
Identifying people in post and contacting them individually, without a job ad.
- The profession
Headhunting
The firm that uses the direct approach on behalf of a company. Headhunter and direct approach firm describe the same activity.
- The segment
Headhunting applied to leaders: CEOs, executive committee members, C-level. Where the direct approach is the norm, not an option.
How a direct approach assignment runs
- Step 1
Scoping the need
Scope of the role, the challenges of the next eighteen months, compensation, deal-breakers. This brief becomes the pitch we use when approaching candidates.
- Step 2
Mapping the market
The companies comparable to yours, then the people who hold the role there. Every name on the list is known before the first contact.
- Step 3
Approach
Each person is contacted individually, with a project rather than a job offer. A leader in post does not move for a job ad. With follow-ups, nearly one candidate in two ends up replying: our figures are detailed in our guide to sourcing in recruitment (in French).
- Step 4
Qualification
Interviews, reference checks, a check on real motivation, and on request our leadership assessment offer. Only available and well-aligned candidates make it through.
- Step 5
Shortlist and closing
Three to four candidates presented, iterations on your feedback, and support through to the signed offer and the first day in the role.
Our stack
The tools we use for the direct approach
We work with the most powerful tools on the market, in their most complete versions. A firm is only as good as what its consultants can see and reach.
- Mapping
LinkedIn Recruiter
The version built for recruitment firms: access to every profile in post and the advanced filters that make it possible to map a market.
- Recruiter Professional Services
- Advanced filters
- Approach
Leonar
Multichannel outreach sequences, tracking of every contact and a full history of exchanges: no approached candidate gets lost along the way.
- AI-first ATS and CRM
- Multichannel outreach
- Talent pool
The Licorne Society community
The platform and its registered candidates, 4,500 of them actively looking: the second talent pool of every assignment, alongside the direct approach.
- 40,000 candidates
- 4,500 actively looking
Benefits and limits
What the method brings
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Access to people in post
Most managers in post do not read job ads. The direct approach is the only way to reach them.
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Confidentiality
No public job ad. Essential when replacing a leader who is still in the role.
-
Quality of assessment
Candidates chosen for their fit with the role, not for their availability.
Its limits
-
Cost
Higher fees than hiring through a job ad, justified on roles where a mistake is expensive.
-
Volume
Hiring ten junior salespeople is a job for ads and sourcing, not for the direct approach.
Direct approach or job ad: how to choose
- Type of role
- Job ad Common roles, large talent pool
- Direct approach Rare, leadership or highly specialised roles
- Candidates
- Job ad Available and looking
- Direct approach In post, in demand, hard to see
- Confidentiality
- Job ad Public search
- Direct approach Discreet assignment, no job ad
- Timing
- Job ad Fast if the pool responds
- Direct approach First qualified candidates within a few days
- Budget
- Job ad Low cost per role
- Direct approach Search firm fees, justified on high-stakes roles
At Licorne Society
The best of both worlds
We do not choose. Every assignment combines the direct approach to people in post with outreach to our community of more than 40,000 candidates, 4,500 of them actively looking. You see both talent pools in the same shortlist.
What the law says
In France, the direct approach is regulated, not forbidden. Four points to know before launching an assignment.
-
Poaching is lawful
Approaching an employee in post is legal. Only unfair practices, such as disparaging or deliberately disrupting a competitor, are penalised.
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Contract clauses
Non-compete, non-solicitation, notice period: check them before the offer, not after.
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Off-limits
A firm does not headhunt from its clients for an agreed period. Ask for the rule before signing.
-
GDPR
The data of the people approached is processed on a legal basis, with clear information and a right to object.
How much does direct approach recruitment cost?
Fees usually range from 23 to 30% of the role's gross annual salary. Billing varies from one firm to another: contingency, with a retainer, or in three instalments on leadership assignments. The models and amounts charged in France are detailed in our pricing guide.
Choosing a direct approach recruitment firm
Five questions to ask before you hire a firm.
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A specialisation
A firm that knows your roles maps the market better and approaches with credibility.
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An explicit method
Stages, timelines, deliverables: everything should be in writing before the start.
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Verifiable references
Assignments comparable to yours, with clients you can call.
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A clear off-limits rule
Know where the firm will not headhunt, and for how long.
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A transparent fee model
Contingency, staged or fixed fee: the right model depends on the level of the role.
- Discover our Executive Search service