The result is the same for both: they are offering employers a choice of candidates from which they can select the most suitable person for the role they want to fill.

What is different though is the method. To me, the following picture illustrates the difference quite simply:

• A placement agency will get a search request from an employer, then takes the boat, goes out on the lake and starts fishing with the rod.
• A headhunter gets a search request from an employer, then takes the boat, goes out on the lake, squeezes into the diver suit and goes looking for the right candidate.

Headhunter / Recruiter /Search Consultant (terms are used interchangeably)
Headhunters are usually used for senior positions, where discretion is needed or for positions where specialist knowledge is the main focus. Their focus is on research – spending hours and hours to find the right profile for the role. You will be contacted directly by a headhunter once he/she finds you (through on-line networks, his/her own industry network or external search specialists). In most cases the search is an exclusive one and will only be handled by this particular headhunter.

Headhunters maintain a very limited candidate database – if any at all – because they do not present candidates to employers unless they have a search order form them.

Some headhunters do have their (non-discreet) search orders on their websites – best to check this regularly.

Employment Agency
The traditional employment agency assists job seekers in finding work. In Switzerland, agencies are paid by the employer and not by the job seeker. Law clearly stipulates that one party - either the employer or the job seeker, can only pay agencies. The only exceptions are outplacement companies that are paid by job seekers (but usually the employer terminating the employment with the job seeker pays for this).

In most cases agencies have an extensive database and you can deposit your resume with them. They will contact you if they have something suitable or offer to introduce you possible employers. Agencies have/have not exclusivity in a search.

If you choose to work with multiple recruiters, it's important to let each one know you are also working with someone else.

And it certainly pays to scout their on-line job offers as well: four eyes always see more than two eyes.

Marion Russek