What is Rec2Rec?

TL;DR

• Rec2Rec means recruitment to recruitment. It is recruitment for recruiters: a specialist firm whose candidates are recruiters, placed into new recruitment roles.
• It works for both sides of the market. Agencies brief the firm on a seat, and recruiters are approached or ask to be represented.
• The hiring business pays the fee. The recruiter doesn’t pay to be placed, and rules in Great Britain and New South Wales generally bar charging job seekers for finding them work.
• The basics match in Australia, the UK and the US. What changes is the rule behind who pays and the notice terms in the recruiter’s contract.

Decision matrix: ways a recruiter and an agency can find each other

Through a Rec2Rec

• Best when: the agency wants recruiters who aren’t on the market, or the recruiter wants a quiet search with someone else making the approaches.
• Watch out for: a firm that sends CVs (curricula vitae) without agreeing each introduction first, or one that asks the recruiter for money.
• Cost or effort: the hiring business pays a fee; the recruiter pays nothing.

A job ad and direct applications

• Best when: the agency has a known brand and wants to see who is actively looking.
• Watch out for: an ad reaches only people who are looking, so settled recruiters who are billing well may never see it.
• Cost or effort: advertising costs plus the agency’s own time to screen applicants.

A referral or a personal network

• Best when: someone you trust knows both sides and can vouch for the fit.
• Watch out for: a small pool, and a referral is a recommendation rather than a check of the person’s billing record.
• Cost or effort: little or no fee, but it depends on who you happen to know.

A direct approach by the hiring agency itself

• Best when: the agency already knows the recruiter it wants and that person is open to a call.
• Watch out for: the approach can’t stay anonymous, and a rival’s staff may be bound by restraint terms.
• Cost or effort: no agency fee, but the agency’s own time and reputation are on the line.

The case for going direct: if you already know the person you want and they want to talk to you, a direct approach is faster and cheaper than any Rec2Rec. A Rec2Rec makes sense when the recruiters you want aren’t looking, or when the first approach has to stay confidential.

Verdict: When a recruiter and an agency don’t already know each other, a Rec2Rec is the most practical route, because it reaches recruiters who aren’t looking and keeps the first approach confidential while the hiring business pays the fee. Go direct only when both sides already know each other and want to talk. Either way, the recruiter should agree to each introduction before a CV goes anywhere.

Who does a Rec2Rec work for?

A Rec2Rec (recruitment to recruitment) firm works for two groups at once: businesses that want to hire recruiters, and recruiters who want their next role. It is a recruiter whose candidates are recruiters. You will also see it written as rec to rec or rec 2 rec.

The model is the same as any recruitment agency, but the market is recruitment itself. In Australia, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) lists Recruitment Consultant as its own occupation in the Occupation Standard Classification for Australia (OSCA), code 222231. It describes the job as one that “assists employers to find suitable staff”.

In the US, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) groups recruiters with human resources specialists. It also notes that “Some organizations contract recruitment and placement work to outside firms”. A Rec2Rec is that kind of outside firm, with recruiters as its candidates.

Stage 1: An agency briefs the Rec2Rec

The process starts when a hiring business, such as a recruitment agency, briefs the Rec2Rec on the seat it needs to fill. A clear brief saves both sides time, because the firm can then approach only the people who fit.

A useful brief covers:

• the desk and the market it bills in
• the package range, including base and any commission
• why the seat is open, whether it is new or a replacement
• what good looks like after six months in the role

• For agencies: be clear about the package and why the seat is open, because good candidates will ask.
• For recruiters: a good Rec2Rec should be able to tell you why the role exists and what the agency expects.

Stage 2: The Rec2Rec finds and approaches recruiters

Next, the firm searches for recruiters who match the brief and approaches them directly. The people who fit best are often passive candidates: billing well, settled and not on the market. Recruiters can also go to a Rec2Rec themselves and ask to be represented.

Managed Growth Partners (MGP) runs a Rec2Rec for tech recruiters and also headhunts proven, currently-billing recruiters for recruitment agencies. We represent recruiters confidentially, including passive candidates who aren’t on the market.

A good first approach:

• describes the role, the desk and the package range
• can keep the hiring agency’s name back until the recruiter is interested
• asks whether the recruiter wants to talk, with no obligation to move

• For agencies: the recruiters you want may not be looking, so an ad alone can miss them.
• For recruiters: an approach isn’t a commitment, so you can listen and still say no.

Stage 3: Agreeing where the recruiter is put forward

Before a CV goes to any hiring business, the recruiter should agree which roles and agencies they are put forward to. Ask what will be shared and with whom.

Questions worth asking a Rec2Rec:

• Which agency is this, and when will you name it?
• What will you share about me, and with whom?
• What information do you hold about me now?

Privacy law backs that last question. In Australia, the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) says you have a general right to access your information, and that asking for it is free.

In the UK, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) says you can ask an organisation for copies of your personal information, known as a subject access request. The ICO notes this guidance is under review, so check the page before you rely on it.

• For agencies: a recruiter who has agreed to the introduction arrives knowing the role and ready to talk.
• For recruiters: your CV should go only where you have agreed it can go.

Stage 4: Interviews, offer and notice

Once both sides want to talk, the Rec2Rec sets up interviews, passes feedback each way and helps agree the offer. When the recruiter accepts, they resign and work out their notice. How much notice they give depends on their contract and the country they work in.

In Australia, the Fair Work Ombudsman says an award, enterprise agreement or employment contract may set the notice you give. It also says it’s best practice to resign in writing.

In the UK, GOV.UK says you must give at least a week’s notice if you’ve been in the job for more than a month. Your contract tells you whether notice must be in writing.

In the US, check your contract for any notice terms. Restraint or non-compete clauses can also affect a move, so read them before you resign. This is general information, not legal advice.

Stage 5: Who pays the fee?

The hiring business pays the Rec2Rec’s fee, and the recruiter doesn’t pay to be placed. That is how the model works in all three markets, though the rule behind it differs from place to place.

In Great Britain, the Employment Agencies Act 1973, section 6 says an employment agency must not ask for or receive a fee for finding someone work, except in cases the Secretary of State prescribes. In New South Wales (NSW), the NSW Government says an employment placement service must not “charge a job seeker a fee for the purpose of finding the job seeker employment”.

In the US, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) says honest placement firms “do not typically charge a fee to job candidates”. Instead, it says, the hiring company pays them a fee to find qualified candidates. That is consumer guidance, not a law.

Recruiters never pay MGP, and we charge agencies no retainer. Agencies choose between two fee options, and each hire comes with a six-month like-for-like replacement guarantee, with no refunds. This is general information, not legal advice.

How MGP can help

Managed Growth Partners (MGP) is a tech-led Rec2Rec firm that helps tech recruiters find their next role, confidentially and at no cost to them. We also headhunt proven, currently-billing recruiters for agencies in Australia, the UK and the US. Whether you’re weighing a move or hiring for a desk, book a confidential call to talk it through.

Guides in this cluster

• Do recruiters pay a Rec2Rec?
• What a Rec2Rec charges an agency
• Job hunting without your boss knowing
• Moving into tech recruitment
• Moving to Australia for tech recruitment
• Hiring recruiters who stay
• Stopping your recruiters being poached