Searching for a job in today’s market is time-intensive, so job seekers rightfully turn to staffing agencies and other resources for help. But from the outside, many of these services look alike, and even experienced job seekers get them confused. Which career services and staffing agencies are right for you?
There are five different types of service providers:
- Staffing agencies
- Outplacement firms
- Search firms
- In-house recruiters
- Career coaches
Let’s make sense of it all, so you can tell in a nanosecond whether you’re working with the right resource and spend your job search time where it matters most.
#1. Staffing Agencies
Traditional staffing agencies are the larger organizations in this landscape.
Most have hundreds of offices across the country, many are publicly traded, and the primary money-maker for almost all of them is temporary staffing.
They work with a variety of local and national companies, large and small, through branch locations serving their local markets. Ever been on a temp assignment? Chances are you worked with a staffing agency.
Their clients have openings for all kinds of reasons: maternity coverage, sick leave, vacancies, limited headcount, large projects, and busy-season labor shortages.
And staffing agencies can be generalists or specialists, with firms dedicated to accounting, IT, legal, clerical, creative, and healthcare roles. Well-known names include Kelly Services, Randstad, Aerotek, and Robert Half.
How do staffing agencies work?
Staffing agencies are experts at supplying companies with on-demand labor, and their goal is to cultivate skilled workers who are ready to go when a customer calls. Registering with an agency means filling out an application, taking skills assessments, providing references, and completing a background check.
At some point you’ll interview with a recruiter to discuss your employment history, compensation rates, and assignment preferences.
Once you’re registered, be responsive to their phone calls. Many assignments start the next morning or even that afternoon. Miss the call, and the agency won’t always have time to wait for a callback. They’ll need to move on to the next skilled worker, because when a customer needs someone on site tomorrow, time is of the essence.
Assignment length, employers, and performance
Temporary assignments can be as short as a day and as long as several years. It’s important to note the staffing agency serves as the employer of record, which means contract employees report to the agency. At the job site, the line manager directs the work. Outside the job site, the agency directs everything else: where to report, who to report to, compensation, and any employee concerns.
But keep in mind, the agency ultimately takes direction from its clients. When a client wants to end your assignment early, the agency will be the one calling you with unexpected news.
And believe it or not, when a client is unhappy with a temp’s performance, they may ask the agency to replace the contract worker, or fire the agency altogether.
#2. Outplacement Firms
Outplacement firms work with senior-level employees exiting an employer due to a layoff. The important distinction: they’re hired by corporations, not individuals.
Employers purchase outplacement services during separations as a way to help executives transition to a new employer, and the extent of the services you receive depends on the package your employer bought.
Outplacement firms provide some or all of the following:
- Job search services
- Resume writing
- Job skill development
- Career coaching
- Interview coaching
Well-known and highly regarded firms include Lee Hecht Harrison, Challenger Gray & Christmas, and GetFive.
#3. Executive Recruiting Firms, Search Firms, and Headhunters
Full disclosure: this is my category, so I know it from the inside. Recruiting firms go by many names, including headhunters, direct placement, executive search, agency recruiters, independent recruiters, and search consultants.
Direct placement search consultants act as intermediaries between employers and job seekers.
Like temp agencies, they work for a variety of clients simultaneously, helping each one find talented professionals for specific openings on a direct-hire basis. In other words, when you accept the job, you’re employed by the employer, not the agency.
Executive recruiters work on behalf of the employer to identify, attract, and recruit candidates who match the employer’s requirements. And keep in mind, agency recruiters are not employed by their clients.
They have some influence but no control over the job requirements. Fall outside those requirements, and the recruiter lacks the leverage to get you an interview anyway.
A headhunter is not a career coach
Although the services can overlap, recruiters have one goal: find suitable candidates for their active clients. When that potential hire is you, they’ll do everything they can to help you land interviews with their client.
But there’s little they can do for a candidate who doesn’t match their clients’ needs, and it’s why recruiters can’t help with career transitions. Unlike career coaches, recruiters don’t charge candidates; their fees are paid by employers.
When should a job seeker work with a headhunter?
1. When they come looking for you. That means you’re a solid potential match for one of their clients, and that’s when a headhunter can do the most for you.
2. When you’re referred to them. Recruiters trust referrals. If you can get a referral to a recruiter in your space, take it.
3. When they work in your specialty. Software salesperson? When you come across a software sales recruiter, get to know them, because they may come across opportunities you want to know about.
It’s essential to remember that most of the “job seekers” recruiters place weren’t actively looking when the recruiter called. So a headhunter may not fit your timeframe when you’re in a rush to find a new job.
#4. Talent Acquisition (In-House Recruiters)
In-house recruiters work directly for their employers.
Because they’re company employees, they have first-hand knowledge of the corporate culture, a front-line perspective on their employer’s strengths and weaknesses, and a working understanding of each hiring manager’s preferences.
How do you get noticed by talent acquisition?
Strong talent acquisition teams collaborate relentlessly with current and past employees to drive internal referrals.
So when you have friends at companies you’re interested in, ask them for an introduction to their internal recruiting team. Coming through someone they already know beats whatever happens when you apply online.
Many in-house recruiters are generalists with some sub-specialties, which means they may be recruiting an enterprise sales rep one day and a product manager the next.
They’ll know enough about a role to decide whether to move you forward, but not enough to answer all of your technical questions, so save the in-the-weeds questions for the right audience: the hiring manager.
Although an internal recruiter may not know every nuance of a role, they’re experts where it counts. They are people experts and company historians, and in many cases they’ll collaborate with you all the way through the offer process.
Make them your ally, and go out of your way to help them help you.
#5. Career Coaches
Career coaches are hired by individual professionals looking to achieve defined career goals. Unlike outplacement firms and headhunters, they work directly for the job seeker, and their fees are usually paid directly by the job seeker. Coaches provide services like:
- Resume writing
- Interview coaching
- Job placement services
- Workforce transition assistance
- Leadership coaching
- Career assessments
One thing they rarely provide: interviews, job leads, or introductions to hiring managers. What they do provide is structure and perspective.
Hiring a career coach might be right for you if you want to change careers, change employers, or move into leadership. Change is hard, and a fresh way of seeing your situation might be the catalyst you need.
Pick the Resources That Fit Your Situation
Next time you find yourself knee-deep in a job search, you’ll know which of these five can help and what to expect from each.
The staffing agency wants you available tomorrow, the headhunter wants you when a client needs you, talent acquisition wants a referral, and the coach works for you alone.
Ask yourself which of these resources will enhance your search, and which ones would be a waste of your time, and spend your energy accordingly.
Choosing your resources is one piece of the complete guide to the software sales job search.
