01

Reverse recruiting: a search team that works for you

A headhunter works for the company and looks for candidates. A reverse recruiter works for the candidate and looks for the company. Reverse recruiting means a dedicated team runs your executive job search on your behalf: mapping the market, identifying target companies and decision makers, reaching out, applying and following up, while you focus on the conversations that matter.

For executives, the appeal is simple. You stop depending on whether a mandate happens to match your profile this quarter, and you start creating your own opportunities, including roles that are never advertised.

02

Who works for whom, and who controls the timing

Headhunters are paid by employers to fill a specific mandate. They are an essential part of the market, but they call you when a role fits their client, not when you need a move.

Career coaches help you think, prepare and decide. The execution of the search stays with you.

Classic outplacement is paid by your former employer and prepares you for the market, but rarely runs the search itself.

Reverse recruiting is paid by you or your employer and actively creates opportunities on your behalf. It complements headhunters rather than replacing them: search firms are one of the segments a reverse recruiter reaches for you.

03

From target list to offers

1. Calibrate. Target roles, sectors, geographies and compensation, the story you want to tell and the companies to exclude for discretion.

2. Map the market. Company and contact lists built segment by segment, ranked by profile fit, segment size, share of verified emails and hiring signals.

3. Reach out at scale. Email, LinkedIn and calls to decision makers, search firms and investors, at a constant weekly volume, with systematic follow-ups three to seven days later.

4. Convert. Research before every meeting, senior coaching, interview preparation and support through negotiation, until you have offers to compare.

04

Reverse recruiting prices at 1Signature

Traditional reverse recruiters often charge a share of the expected salary, which aligns their fee with your package rather than with the work. We use simple, fixed prices:

• Search plan, €500 one-off: your targets, segments and week-by-week workplan, to run yourself.
• Network as a service, €500 per month: we run outreach and follow-ups for you, month by month.
• Spot search, €2,500: a complete three-month search with senior coaching.
• VIP, from €7,500: everything included, from a branding film and Data 360° to a 3 to 6 month search led by a dedicated senior partner.
• Companies and HR teams: outplacement and newplacement programmes by cohort, tailored pricing.

05

Four situations where it pays off

• You are changing sector, function or country and your network does not reach far enough.
• You are still in a demanding role and have no time to run a serious search.
• Your search has stalled and you need volume and precision, not more advice.
• You want several options to choose from, rather than a single process you depend on.

Example. A supply chain director moving from consumer goods to life sciences has a strong network in food and retail, and almost none in pharma. A reverse recruiting plan maps pharma operations leaders, biotech scale-ups, CDMOs, medtech, consumer health, private equity operating partners and specialised search firms, and reaches hundreds of the right people in twelve weeks instead of a dozen familiar contacts.

06

Standards to insist on

• A written plan with target segments and weekly volumes.
• Full transparency and your approval on every message sent in your name.
• A dashboard of replies, meetings and interviews, updated weekly.
• Senior coaching to convert the conversations it creates.
• Discretion if you are still employed, including excluded companies.

07

Frequently asked questions

Is reverse recruiting confidential? Yes. Targets and messages are agreed with you, and sensitive companies or sectors are excluded.

Does it replace headhunters? No, it complements them. Search firms are one of the segments we reach on your behalf.

How long until the first interviews? Outreach starts after the first weeks of calibration and planning; interviews follow as replies come in, and our clients typically reach an offer in 3 to 6 months.

Start your search: compare our Opportunities packages, from €500.