This article was written by David Gibbons, Commercial Director at Adams Multilingual Recruitment
Senior hires carry a much greater risk to the business compared with the rest of your recruitment. When a Senior Manager, Director or Business Leader does not work out, the cost extends well beyond the fee and the empty desk into strategy that stalls, teams that lose momentum and the months it takes to begin the search again. Most employers understand this perfectly, but there are also country-specific aspects to take into consideration, particularly when the headquarters is based elsewhere. Recruitment of leaders and executives is a category of its own, and this article looks at what a successful search partnership looks like in practice in the Netherlands.
What makes executive hiring different?
The obvious difference is role seniority, but the more meaningful differences lie in how the search process is carried out and the relationship between the hiring company and the recruitment/search agency they have partnered with.
The people you want are rarely in the open market and, quite often, comfortable in their current role and well paid for what they do. Finding them and engaging with them depends on an extremely personalised approach with a strong message outlining the relevance of this new position to their own career status. The seniority of the recruiter who has approached them is also vital in building credibility.
Approaching people who are not actively seeking a new opportunity and building enough trust for a guarded conversation can take weeks before a single name reaches a shortlist. It is also why these partnerships are usually handled on an exclusive or retained basis, with the employer committing to one search partner.
Confidentiality is a vital component, particularly at leadership/executive level, and this applies to all parties involved. Quite often, a client will ask for an NDA to be signed before engaging with candidates. Equally, the candidate expects confidentiality too, so reference or referral calls will only happen at the end of a recruitment process and with the consent of the candidate.
What about the executive recruitment process? What is different?
The most important part of any recruitment process is the initial job qualification between the hiring company and the recruiter/headhunter appointed. This would be a much deeper dive into the business as a whole rather than just being role-specific. Here at Adams, we would put ourselves in the mind of the candidate they are seeking and the kind of questions they would ask. Questions about the industry, the market challenges, the geopolitical differences, the business strategy, the current leadership, the relevant teams/departments and so much more.
When we discuss executive roles with our clients, we also focus on the expectations and deliverables for the candidate in the first 3-6 months, as well as the longer-term strategy in which they are expected to play a major part.
Another important aspect is the market mapping of other businesses and organisations which are relevant and interesting to the hiring company. Who are the main competitors? Which other industries are relevant to the search? Is experience in the same industry essential, or is the company open to something different? A fresh perspective? What about the relationship with headquarters and the cultural aspects? Do they have experience working with Asia/US/Europe? All this information is vital in kicking off the recruitment process.
Of course, the dedicated recruiter will also question you in detail about the job description and the key responsibilities, as well as spending a lot of time on the ideal candidate profile. What is essential? What is desirable? What can be relaxed?
Once we have clarity on all the above, we will discuss the ideal recruitment process. Who will be involved and at which stage? How many interview rounds? Any business cases or presentations required? Any online assessments? When do you want the interview process to begin and, ideally, end?
We would then adapt our recruitment process to fit in with your timelines. If we feel that your expectations are unrealistic, we will tell you and work together to formulate the plan. Always remember that we are working in partnership from the beginning to the end and that we all have the same goal.
What changes when you hire executives in the Netherlands?
The process
Most of our clients at Adams tend to have international headquarters in other countries/regions, but we do partner with some internationally focused Dutch businesses too. The decision-making with Dutch businesses is sometimes different and can involve more people and more layers – HR/department heads/leadership team/supervisory board etc. This can lead to a longer and slower recruitment process, and it is vital that the candidates are aware of this in advance.
Compensation structure
Dutch senior compensation packages lean more heavily on fixed salary than their American or British equivalents, with smaller bonuses and meaningful equity largely confined to scale-ups and private equity-backed businesses. Employers should also be preparing for pay transparency rules that will require salary ranges to be published during recruitment and prohibit questions about a candidate’s salary history. This applies to executive roles too.
Notice periods
Even with a permanent contract, Dutch-based executives generally have a maximum 2-month notice period. On occasion, an executive may have agreed to a longer notice period but, in our experience, this is rare. We often recruit executives from other countries, and they all differ. In Germany, for example, the notice period could be anywhere between 3 and 6 months. Very important to factor this into any hiring process.
What a good executive recruiter needs to bring
A good executive recruiter acts as a strategic advisor to client companies. They define leadership needs, tap into hidden networks of passive candidates, rigorously vet top-tier talent, and manage confidential, high-stakes searches to secure the right C-suite or senior leader.
Strategy and role definition
- Refine the job scope: Help the client shape realistic role expectations, reporting structures, and organisational needs.
- Benchmark compensation: Provide market data on competitive salary and benefit packages to attract elite talent.
- Align stakeholders: If possible, build consensus among the client’s hiring team regarding essential requirements versus wish-list traits.
Sourcing and outreach
- Target passive candidates: Reach out discreetly to high-performing leaders who are not actively looking for a job.
- Leverage deep networks: Tap into exclusive industry connections, proprietary databases, and trusted referrals.
- Maintain confidentiality: Protect the client’s strategic plans and sensitive personnel shifts from competitors.
Evaluation and selection
- Conduct extensive interviews: Evaluate candidates on business acumen, leadership capability, and cultural fit, as well as the motivation for the role being managed.
- Provide objective feedback: Deliver unbiased evaluations of short-listed candidates and challenge the client’s assumptions when needed.
Closing and negotiation
- Manage the candidate experience: Keep top leaders engaged and informed throughout a lengthy interview cycle.
- Facilitate offers: Handle sensitive compensation negotiations to bridge gaps between what the client can pay and what the executive expects.
What about the fees and payment structure?
Traditional search and selection firms tend to work in the same way. They offer a retained search model with milestone payments. The total fee level is calculated in advance and most search firms will include expected bonuses as well as the annual fixed base salary. They will then calculate their charge rate, which could be anywhere between 25-35% of the salary/bonus. This fee is then split into 3 separate instalments. One third is paid upfront to begin the search. One third is paid when the candidate shortlist has been presented, and the final third when the process has been finalised and an offer accepted.
What we do differently at Adams
Firstly, we only calculate our charges based on the full annual salary. We do not include bonuses or other benefits in our calculation. Our fee level is transparent from the start — 25% to 27% based on the annual salary.
For clients we work with on a regular basis, we do not ask for a retainer. We only ask for exclusivity as a dedicated recruitment partner. For new clients, we calculate an initial payment to guarantee the search and then a final payment when we have successfully delivered the selected candidate.
Most executive search companies spend many weeks working on your assignment before delivering a shortlist of candidates at the end of the month. We prefer to work in a much faster and more fluid way. We share exceptional candidates with you as quickly as we meet with them. This enables you to view candidates who are ‘hot off the press’ and often new to the market. Even executive candidates want to move quickly in the process, and fast responses and feedback from you ensure an exceptional candidate experience. Sharing candidates with you quickly also means that we take your feedback on board and fine-tune our search in real time.
Finally, we have been instrumental in helping to build and scale many international businesses in the Netherlands and are happy to share case studies and testimonials with you whenever required.
If you are planning to hire for an executive or leadership role in the Netherlands and would like to talk it through before you begin, you can reach out to David Gibbons at davidgibbons@adamsrecruitment.com.
