What does an executive recruiter do?
Often working for recruiting agencies, an executive recruiter is primarily in charge of interviewing and hiring job applicants. Their responsibilities revolve around gathering candidates' applications and requirements, verifying documents and reaching out to references, and conducting a background check, all to ensure that the potential hires are suitable for their designated positions. An executive recruiter must also post job advertisements in different areas such as online platforms, coordinate with the hiring team, and offer job positions to the most suitable candidates. Furthermore, they may also develop training programs for new employees, in adherence to company policies and regulations.
Executive recruiter responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real executive recruiter resumes:
- Create and manage company's social media pages (Facebook & LinkedIn).
- Recruit a team of QA experts to do framework lead solution as a testing bed foundation for quarterly regression testing.
- Utilize Linkedin, Google, Facebook, and other search engines to seek out qualify candidates.
- Negotiate all salaries, rates and fees with clients, documenting all activity with precision into CRM system.
- Prepare for the search process by identifying technical requirements and seeking candidates through networking, ATS database and internet research.
- Participate in project teams to improve the applicant tracking system (ATS) and the employee referral program (ERP).
- Conduct research on emerging healthcare business trends and positions of competitors.
- Recruit nurse executives, surgical services top jobs, physicians and other administrative healthcare executives.
- Create and deliver presentations to senior leadership of technology companies regarding MRI executive search capability and methodology.
- Present and prepare PowerPoint presentations on various topics to educate colleagues in the office and operate WebEx technology for conference calls.
- Utilize ICIMS applicant tracking system throughout the recruiting and hiring process.
- Input information regarding candidates/pay scale/forecasting in PeopleSoft.
Executive recruiter skills and personality traits
We calculated that 15% of Executive Recruiters are proficient in Customer Service, Applicant Tracking Systems, and Human Resources. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Detail oriented, and Interpersonal skills.
We break down the percentage of Executive Recruiters that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Customer Service, 15%
Build lasting and successful relationships with leading companies by consistently presenting exceptional and tailored talent and delivering topnotch customer service.
- Applicant Tracking Systems, 13%
Utilized applicant tracking systems to retain candidate information.
- Human Resources, 12%
Maintain high levels of customer satisfaction by servicing existing accounts and providing client and candidate consultations in various Human Resources areas.
- Logistics, 7%
Run full desk for permanent placement recruiting in the areas of HR, Supply and Logistics, Information Technology and Manufacturing.
- Healthcare, 7%
Call on all levels of hiring authorities in order to promote HealthCare Recruiters and it's services.
- Direct Hire, 4%
Opened firm to leverage direct hire placement in conjunction with contract sales and operations position while marketing/promotions for ActionCoach Colorado Springs.
Most executive recruiters use their skills in "customer service," "applicant tracking systems," and "human resources" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential executive recruiter responsibilities here:
Communication skills. One of the key soft skills for an executive recruiter to have is communication skills. You can see how this relates to what executive recruiters do because "listening and speaking skills are essential for human resources specialists." Additionally, an executive recruiter resume shows how executive recruiters use communication skills: "maintained constant communication with candidates throughout the recruitment process. "
Detail oriented. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling executive recruiter duties is detail oriented. The role rewards competence in this skill because "specialists must pay attention to detail when evaluating applicants’ qualifications, doing background checks, maintaining records of an employee grievance, and ensuring that a workplace complies with labor standards." According to an executive recruiter resume, here's how executive recruiters can utilize detail oriented in their job responsibilities: "maintained detailed candidate profiles (3000+) on various applicant-tracking systems (ats such as resumate and taleo). "
Interpersonal skills. This is an important skill for executive recruiters to perform their duties. For an example of how executive recruiter responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "specialists continually interact with others and must be able to converse and connect with people from varied backgrounds." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of an executive recruiter: "utilize marketing skills to generate new account prospects via networking, referrals, cold calling, and interpersonal skills. ".
The three companies that hire the most executive recruiters are:
- Applied Materials123 executive recruiters jobs
- GPAC80 executive recruiters jobs
- Randstad North America, Inc.54 executive recruiters jobs
Choose from 10+ customizable executive recruiter resume templates
Build a professional executive recruiter resume in minutes. Our AI resume writing assistant will guide you through every step of the process, and you can choose from 10+ resume templates to create your executive recruiter resume.
Compare different executive recruiters
Executive recruiter vs. Staffing consultant
A staffing consultant develops and maintains the accounts of clients through outside and inside organizational activities. Staffing consultants induct, assess, and monitor the job applicants preparing them for their assignments. They match jobs to applicants and the candidates to their jobs. Their duties include helping both employees and employers in their respective responsibilities. They also act as business development and sales consultant to talent acquisition firms.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between executive recruiters and staffing consultant. For instance, executive recruiter responsibilities require skills such as "customer service," "shared services," "logistics," and "strong negotiation." Whereas a staffing consultant is skilled in "r," "criminal background checks," "linkedin," and "drug screens." This is part of what separates the two careers.
The education levels that staffing consultants earn slightly differ from executive recruiters. In particular, staffing consultants are 4.2% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than an executive recruiter. Additionally, they're 0.9% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Executive recruiter vs. Senior human resources specialist
A senior human resources specialist is responsible for monitoring the human resources operations of an organization, managing employment processes and policies, and handling staffing needs and concerns. Senior human resources specialists design training and programs to maintain staff's efficiency and maximize the employees' productivity to support business functional operations. They also coordinate with management leaders to identify their hiring needs, evaluating their specifications for recruitment. A senior human resources specialist reviews the company's policies and guidelines regularly, adjusting procedures according to state regulations and business requirements.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real executive recruiter resumes. While executive recruiter responsibilities can utilize skills like "human resources," "logistics," "healthcare," and "direct hire," senior human resources specialists use skills like "payroll," "hris," "powerpoint," and "develop recommendations."
Senior human resources specialists earn a lower average salary than executive recruiters. But senior human resources specialists earn the highest pay in the finance industry, with an average salary of $77,555. Additionally, executive recruiters earn the highest salaries in the health care with average pay of $83,018 annually.Average education levels between the two professions vary. Senior human resources specialists tend to reach similar levels of education than executive recruiters. In fact, they're 4.3% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.9% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Executive recruiter vs. Human resources generalist
A human resources generalist is responsible for monitoring the human resources policies and procedures, making adjustments as needed to align with the company's goals and objectives. Duties of a human resources generalist also include improving employee relations system, organizing compliance and knowledge training, reviewing benefit plans, managing compensation inquiries, assisting in recruitment and staffing needs, communicating with department heads in employees' performance reviews, and storing employees' files for reference. A human resource generalist must have excellent communication and decision-making skills to address issues concerning the company and employees' welfare.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, executive recruiters are more likely to have skills like "human resources," "logistics," "healthcare," and "direct hire." But a human resources generalist is more likely to have skills like "hris," "performance management," "exit interviews," and "payroll processing."
Human resources generalists earn the highest salary when working in the technology industry, where they receive an average salary of $61,994. Comparatively, executive recruiters have the highest earning potential in the health care industry, with an average salary of $83,018.human resources generalists typically earn similar educational levels compared to executive recruiters. Specifically, they're 2.8% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.7% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Executive recruiter vs. Human resource specialist
A human resources specialist is responsible for assisting in the recruitment and staffing process. Duties of a human resources specialist include updating the requirements and qualifications of a job post, handling employees' inquiries regarding compensation and benefits, maintaining employees' records, updating the status of new joiners, tracking performance reviews, and generating reports as business requires. A human resource specialist must be detail-oriented, as well as excellent in organizational and communication skills. Additionally, a human resource specialist must have a broad knowledge of the recruitment process and structure.
Types of executive recruiter
Updated January 8, 2025
