Secrets of a Head Hunter

By Sean V. Beaver
Manager, IBT Recruiting Services

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I am a head hunter*. I work as a talent scout to identify, locate and evaluate outstanding candidates for companies who require the best. My clients realize that specialized, customized recruiting gets them the strongest candidates possible.

I work from the middle of an employment transaction. I solicit fee-paying clients who are looking for people with specialized skills in unique marketplaces. Companies realize they need me when their existing recruiting efforts fail to produce qualified candidates.

Companies use me to find new talent to target key slots vacated when existing talent moves up or moves on. They also ask for my help when they are increasing the size of their operations and want to bring in new folks for new jobs.

IBT Recruiting's main difference: unlike the rest of the “agencies or recruiters” in the marketplace who claim to understand industry, IBT Recruiting is industry. Simply put, we come from a position of real industrial knowledge and experience.

Since I am connected with IBT, I bring a great deal of resource and expertise in dealing with companies that actually make things. IBT has more than 55 years of supplying the essential goods and services that help our customers minimize down time and maximize productivity. We deal with the industrial marketplace, in depth and in detail, every single day.

And, that means dealing with people who understand the manufacturing, engineering and industrial sales world. Nothing against bankers, accountants, home office types and other guys who working guys think of as suits, but I can do a great job with guys who understand factories and have paid their dues in that environment.

IBT Recruiting is working with many vendors, suppliers, manufacturers and related industry players to align their organizations with the best talent in the marketplace.

We saw the rest of the “recruiting industry” and went the other way. Our real industry exposure makes us better qualified to target outstanding talent for our clients. IBT's industrial contacts are broad and deep. This allows us to provide a quicker solution for our clients.

My job is an adventure. I have to find the right candidates to fill positions in companies that may be anywhere in the US – or, actually, anywhere in the world.

I have to be able to make new friends quickly, size up people with minimal input, see through BS, listen to what is being said and not being said, determine who has the right stuff – and that right stuff changes with the opportunity – and be sensitive to the potential chemistry between people and the culture inside a company.

And, I have to do it all pretty quickly, while juggling a number of different assignments.

My greatest weapon is my imagination, but the internet and the telephone sure help, too. So do a great memory and a fantastic Rolodex® and database of professionals that make a difference in their industries. I can draw upon our roster of company people, our vendor partners and our customers to find suitable nominees – and check out their particulars.

These people lead me to other people. Before long, in many cases, I have a developed an extended list of players that leads to a select list of candidates for my clients. This is done in most cases faster than my competition. Why? One main reason is IBT’s history of more than 55 years of experience.

IBT's recruiting operation is the only full service recruiting organization exclusively for the industrial marketplace that comes from a position of real industry experience. I can not stress that enough. In selecting an external recruiting solution, our clients must consider IBT’s experience, reputation, and size. The next time a recruiter calls, consider the following:

• Small recruiting firms do not often have access to the networks and resources that larger more specific firms possess, thus limiting their ability to find and present the most qualified candidates.


• There are many new search firms that are inexperienced and do not yet have effective networking and researching systems in place. As a result, many turn simply to eRecruiting, take a client's job orders and try to fill them through searching online job boards.


• Your most qualified candidates cannot be found through this method because most top-performers do not post their résumés online. This leaves you with candidates who are actively looking for a job. When looking for quality talent, this route is one to avoid.

IBT is perfect for reaching a larger, more targeted candidate network. We are a perfect mix of size and experience. Although we are a large firm in our network with a small firm's attention to detail and service. All of this is combined with more than 55 years in the industry and specific understanding of the fields our clients are in.

Maintaining a focus on clients' needs, IBT Recruiting possesses the strength of top recruiters but with years of networking experience in specific industry areas, all combined with a reputation that is second to none. At IBT, we are very proud of our reputation as an innovative supplier to the marketplace, providing quality products and services to our customers.

Remember the selection of your recruiter or search firm should be approached with the same discretion and rigor as the selection of a candidate that will ultimately fill the role.

IBT Recruiting "unbundles" the typical services of large search firms. Their packages can make outside recruiting counsel unaffordable. We are accessible and much more successful. We regularly create successful placements for technical, production, sales, engineering, purchasing, and marketing slots at all levels, up to and including corporate level.

I take pride in creating matches that work and last. Every candidate I send to a potential employer company has the ability to affect my reputation and the reputation of IBT. So, I am very, very careful. I am only interested in creating happy applicants, satisfied clients and friends, not disappointed people and potential enemies.

I am always eager to hear from potential candidates who want to advance their career choices and grow professionally through a new opportunity. And, I am especially eager to talk to employers looking for those few and new key players that can help them improve their company's team.

Let's get together. Call me at 913-261-2186, fax me at 913-677-0225 or drop me an email.

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* A colloquial term for recruiter, search firm or executive search firm that brokers human resources.