Questions to Ask Headhunters
For candidates on a call with an external recruiter or executive search consultant. These 20 questions establish who pays them, whether the search is real, who else is in the process, and what they will do with your details.
The questions
Open any question for the note
Who is paying you for this search, and are you retained or working on contingency?
Why ask it
A retained consultant has an exclusive mandate and usually real access to the hiring manager, while a contingency recruiter is paid only on placement and may be one of several competing to submit candidates. It changes how much of what they tell you about the process is knowledge rather than assumption.
Do you have a signed agreement with this client for this specific role?
Why ask it
Some recruiters pitch roles they found on a job board hoping to place someone and negotiate a fee afterwards. If the answer is vague or about a longstanding relationship rather than this search, treat the timeline they describe as guesswork.
Have you placed anyone at this company before, and are they still there?
Why ask it
Prior placements are the difference between a recruiter who knows the culture and one reading the same job description you can see. The second half matters more, because placements who left within a year tell you something about the environment.
Will you tell me the company name before you submit me anywhere?
Why ask it
Some recruiters withhold the name to prevent you applying directly, which also stops you checking whether you have already been submitted or previously rejected there. Anyone unwilling to name the employer before submission should not be given your CV.
Will you confirm with me in writing before sending my details to any employer?
Why ask it
Unauthorised submission is common and can burn a company you were approaching yourself, or duplicate you into a process and get you screened out. Getting an explicit yes here, ideally by email, gives you something to point at later.
Who at my current employer might see that I am looking, and how do you handle confidentiality?
Why ask it
Recruiters sometimes work both sides of an industry and may have a relationship with your current employer. Ask specifically whether they would ever contact your workplace or references without asking first.
Why is this seat open, and how long has it been open?
Why ask it
A newly created role, a promotion and a resignation produce very different jobs, and a search open for six months usually signals a problem with the manager, the pay or the specification. A recruiter with real access will know which it is.
Who held this role before me, and what happened to them?
Why ask it
Repeated short tenures in the same seat are the clearest warning available and rarely volunteered. If the recruiter does not know, that itself tells you how close they are to the client.
What is the salary band the client has actually approved, and where in it do they expect to land?
Why ask it
Bands are usually set before the search begins, and the top of the range is often reserved for someone who exceeds the specification. Asking what the client expects to pay, rather than what the range is, gets you the real number.
Is your fee a percentage of my starting salary?
Why ask it
On contingency, the recruiter's fee usually rises with your base, which aligns their interest with yours on salary and against yours on closing quickly. Naming that dynamic out loud tends to make the rest of the conversation more candid.
How many candidates are you putting forward, and where are they in the process?
Why ask it
Being the third submission into a process that started weeks ago is different from being the first, and it shapes whether it is worth your time. Vagueness here often means the shortlist is already effectively decided.
Who makes the final decision, and have you spoken with them directly?
Why ask it
Recruiters routed through HR or a talent partner often cannot tell you what the decision maker actually cares about. Whether they have had that conversation determines how useful their briefing will be.
What is the interview process, how many stages, and what is the realistic timeline?
Why ask it
Ask for the number of stages and whether any require a presentation or task, since unpaid work is a real cost you should weigh. A process the recruiter cannot describe in order has not been agreed with the client.
What are the two or three things that get a candidate rejected in this process?
Why ask it
Asking for rejection criteria gets more specific answers than asking about the ideal candidate. A recruiter who has run stages with this client will name the actual patterns rather than list requirements from the specification.
What concerns would the client have about my background, and how would you frame them?
Why ask it
This surfaces the objection before it is raised behind closed doors, and it tests whether the recruiter will advocate or just forward your CV. If they say there are no concerns at all, they have not read your history closely.
Do you know what this company is like to work in beyond what is in the brief?
Why ask it
Specific answers about hours, travel, a particular manager's style or a recent reorganisation indicate real access. Generic culture language repeated from a careers page tells you the brief is all they have.
Will you give me the actual feedback after each stage, including if it is unflattering?
Why ask it
Detailed feedback is the main non-financial value a good recruiter provides, and many default to a polite non-answer. Agreeing to it up front makes it far more likely you receive something you can use.
If an offer comes, who negotiates, and will you represent my number or the client's?
Why ask it
A recruiter paid by the client can still be a useful channel, but you need to know whose position they will carry. Ask what they would do if you asked for more than the client wanted to pay.
Is there a guarantee period on this placement, and does that affect how you advise me?
Why ask it
Many agreements refund or rebate the fee if a placement leaves within a few months, which gives the recruiter a genuine interest in fit. It is a reasonable question and a recruiter who explains it is being straight with you.
If this role is not right, what do you cover, and how often would you want to hear from me?
Why ask it
This separates recruiters who own a specific market from ones filling whatever comes in, and the specialists are worth staying in contact with for years. Their answer on cadence also tells you whether you are a relationship or a submission.
Working With External Recruiters
Practical guidance for the conversation itself
Before the Call
Know Which Kind of Recruiter You Are Speaking To
Retained search consultants are paid in stages by the client and usually work one exclusive mandate. Contingency recruiters are paid only when someone is hired and may be competing with other agencies and the company's own team. Almost everything else about the conversation follows from which one it is.
Decide Your Number Before You Are Asked
The salary question usually comes in the first ten minutes and your answer anchors everything after it. Have a figure and a reason for it, and be ready to ask for their approved band before you give yours.
Ask for the Role in Writing
Request the specification, the company name and the process by email before agreeing to be submitted. It creates a record, and a recruiter unwilling to put the role in writing is usually not on a real mandate.
Keep Your Own Submission Log
Note which recruiter sent you where and on what date. Duplicate submissions to the same employer cause fee disputes that get candidates quietly dropped, and you will not be told that is why.
Signals of a Recruiter Worth Your Time
- They can name the hiring manager and describe having spoken to them
- They know why the previous person left and are willing to say
- They quote a salary band the client has approved, not a range from the advert
- They raise a concern about your fit rather than telling you it is perfect
- They ask what you want next before pitching what they have
- They deliver interview feedback with specifics attached
- They tell you when a role is wrong for you, including when that costs them the fee
Red Flags
- Refusing to name the company before you agree to be submitted
- Asking for your CV, references or current salary slip before describing a specific role
- Pressure to interview quickly for something they cannot describe in detail
- Any fee charged to you as the candidate, which is unlawful in many jurisdictions
- Contacting your current employer or references without your permission
- Talking you into a lower number by describing it as good for a first move
- Going quiet after submission and then reappearing about a different role entirely
After Each Stage
- 1Ask for feedback within a day or two, while the panel's notes are still fresh.
- 2Confirm in writing what was said about salary, start date and any conditions.
- 3Ask what changed since the last call, since specifications and timelines move quietly.
- 4If you hear nothing for a week, ask directly whether the client has gone another way.
- 5Keep your own contact with the company through official channels only, unless the recruiter has agreed otherwise.
- 6When you accept or withdraw, tell every recruiter who submitted you, since your reputation in a small market is worth more than one process.