
Ask HN: How do recruiting firms make sure they get paid? - Gammarays
I understand many recruiting firms (tech) take 20-30% from a successful candidate&#x27;s starting salary.<p>How do they make sure the employer discloses that the candidate was hired and their salary?<p>What if multiple firms are reaching out to the same candidate for the same employer? I know I&#x27;ve received duplicate job offers from different sourcers on linkedin.
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liquidcool
In general, you have a contract in place first. Sometimes they'll send in
nameless resumes, and if the hiring manager likes them, they get the contract
in place then. I've had clueless recruiters do that to me, and I suspect some
are fake resumes. I've gotten good at spotting recruiter submissions and just
ignore them now.

My clients have me do all the coordination with the candidate, and we keep
each other in the loop. I only work with reputable companies, but there are a
couple lawyers out there who specialize in collecting from deadbeat staffing
clients, so it is a risk. I understand it's more an issue with small
businesses (kind of like software consulting).

The contract will stipulate grace periods, and usually if the candidate
applied in the last 6 months, through any means, you are ineligible for the
placement fee.

The first recruiter to submit the candidate "wins," and of course this
includes internal recruiters, who get credit for website applications. I was
bitten my this once, where I essentially placed a client by selling them on
someone who was already in their system, but had been ignored. He had
shotgunned his resume and didn't pay attention where, so he wasn't lying when
he said he wasn't familiar with the company. It was painful to lose out, but
at least he and the hiring manager are very happy with me, so small
consolation.

This "first submission wins" has motivated recruiters to submit resumes as
soon as they get them, before even talking to the applicant. To me, that is
unethical and would hurt my reputation. However, I've had job seekers tell me
they trust me to apply to relevant jobs on their behalf. Obviously, that's
very different.

