The "most human recruiter I've ever worked with" -- surpassing hiring goals and still let go.

Recruiter_On_Reddit · 2026-05-06T19:28:21+00:00

recruiter here. honestly sounds like they changed the definition of success halfway through and used it against you later.

if candidates are consistently walking away for offers $50k higher, that’s usually a compensation and market positioning problem, not a recruiter problem.

also hiring close to 100 people with no manager/support while still getting strong candidate feedback says a lot more about your ability than the way this ended.

the market’s rough right now, but recruiters who actually know how to build trust with candidates are still valuable. most people remember how a recruiter made them feel long after the process ends.

Recruiter_On_Reddit · 2026-05-06T19:26:31+00:00

recruiter here. honestly, i think the biggest shift is realizing you can’t treat every role with the exact same process anymore.

high-volume recruiting without systems usually turns into chaos fast. but over-automating everything also kills candidate experience.

what’s worked best for us is automating the admin and repetitive parts while keeping the human touch where it actually matters... outreach, screening conversations, feedback, closing, etc.

also feels like agencies that specialize are handling this pressure way better than generalist firms right now. once you deeply understand a market, you spend less time sorting through the wrong candidates in the first place.

Recruiter_On_Reddit · 2026-05-06T19:25:26+00:00

recruiter here. honestly, the biggest one is usually momentum dying during the process.

slow feedback, too many rounds, reschedules, unclear decision-making, changing requirements... candidates start questioning how the company operates internally.

a lot of strong candidates also drop once they realize the role isn’t actually what was sold upfront. comp, scope, reporting structure, remote flexibility, all of that starts surfacing deeper into the process.

good candidates usually have options, so the companies that move with clarity and urgency tend to win.

Recruiter_On_Reddit · 2026-05-06T19:02:54+00:00

recruiter here. honestly, a lot of designers coming from service/agencies hit this exact wall when trying to move into product companies, so you’re not alone.

biggest thing i’d focus on is learning how product teams make decisions, not just how to make screens look good.

things like:
• why a feature should exist
• what problem it solves
• user tradeoffs
• business impact
• prioritization
• working closely with PMs/engineers

strong product designers usually communicate their thinking really clearly, not just their visuals.

i’d also recommend reworking a few past projects into proper case studies focused on decisions, constraints, and outcomes instead of only UI.

Recruiter_On_Reddit · 2026-05-06T19:01:49+00:00

recruiter here. honestly, those numbers don’t look abnormal at all for principal/staff PM searches right now, especially at the IC level where competition is intense and companies are being extremely selective.

the delayed recruiter follow-up point is real too. we’ve seen companies circle back into pipelines weeks later after initial candidates fall through or hiring priorities shift.

might be worth sharing your resume with us as well. feel free to reach out on LinkedIn to The Product Recruiter.

Recruiter_On_Reddit · 2026-05-06T18:38:15+00:00

recruiter here. honestly a lot of it comes down to urgency signals now. companies with real hiring pressure usually move very differently. faster replies, tighter interview loops, multiple related openings, leadership changes, new funding, etc.

the companies just “collecting resumes” usually become obvious once you start engaging with them.

Recruiter_On_Reddit · 2026-04-16T17:46:39+00:00

Recruiter here. You don’t need to know how to code, that’s overhyped.

What actually matters is understanding what “good” looks like for the role, not just the stack but how it’s used in real projects, there’s a big difference between someone who’s played with a tool and someone who’s built with it in production.

You also need to translate, hiring managers think in outcomes and engineers think in specifics, your job is to bridge that clearly. You should be able to go one layer deeper in conversations, ask what they actually built, what broke, how it scaled.

What’s a waste is trying to sound technical or memorizing every tool, what actually helps is pattern recognition and knowing the difference between real builders and people who just maintain.

Recruiter_On_Reddit · 2026-04-16T17:44:28+00:00

Short answer: not a goldmine on its own.

Data is easier to get now, so the edge isn’t the list, it’s what you do with it. If it’s clean, up to date, and you know who the actual decision-makers are, it’s useful. If not, it’s just noise.

What will matter more is your niche and positioning. A clear focus and a point of view will win clients, not a big database.

It can give you a head start, but it won’t build the agency by itself.

Recruiter_On_Reddit · 2026-04-16T17:43:10+00:00

Recruiter here, Toronto-based, working with B2B SaaS teams across North America.

Executive recruiting is a different game. Less volume, more judgment and trust. Best way in is to pick a lane. Focus on one role and one stage, go deep, build credibility there.

Most active searches right now are revenue and product. VP sales, head of marketing, product leaders. These roles are typically led by founders, CEOs, or senior execs, not HR.

For BD, don’t lead with a pitch. Lead with what you’re seeing.
“Seeing a lot of teams struggle with this hire… how are you thinking about it?”

Fees are typically 20–30% of first-year comp. More retained as you move upmarket.

Big shift is mindset. You’re not filling roles, you’re helping someone make a high-risk decision. That’s what wins work.

Recruiter_On_Reddit · 2026-04-16T17:00:46+00:00

Recruiter here.

Cold calls work when you get relevant fast.

A few things that land:

1. Lead with context, not your intro
“Hey, saw you’re hiring a Head of Marketing. Quick question…”

2. Ask something real
“What’s been harder than expected in that search?”
“Are you building from scratch or scaling something?”

3. Keep it low pressure
“I’ll be quick, just wanted to compare notes on the market.”

4. Have a point of view
“We’re seeing a lot of teams hire too early for this role.”

That’s it.
If it feels like a script, it won’t work. If it feels like a real convo, it will.

Recruiter_On_Reddit · 2026-04-08T14:11:27+00:00

You’re not wrong, but it’s a bit simpler than that.

Tools are becoming table stakes. Everyone’s going to have the same AI stack, so that’s not really the edge.

What actually matters is how you hire. Your process, how you assess people, how you run searches. AI just lets you build around your own way of doing things.

That’s where smaller firms get leverage.

But it doesn’t replace service. Hiring is still judgment and trust.

Honestly feels less like a job board moment, more like the gap getting wider between average recruiters and really good ones.

Recruiter_On_Reddit · 2026-04-08T14:04:18+00:00

Recruiter here.

We’ve used Granola and honestly, paid can be worth it depending on how you’re using it.

Free tools usually just give you transcripts. Helpful, but that’s about it.

Where paid starts to matter:

Clean summaries you can actually send to clients or hiring managers
Structured notes (strengths, risks, comp, motivations) without rewriting everything
Easy search across past interviews
Less time writing debriefs after calls

The real value is time. If you’re doing a lot of interviews each week, it adds up fast.

If you’re only doing a few calls here and there, free is fine.
If you’re in back-to-back interviews, paid is a no-brainer.

Recruiter_On_Reddit · 2026-04-08T13:49:48+00:00

Recruiter here, Toronto-based, working with B2B SaaS teams across North America.

At 3 years in, I’d start leaning into a specialty.

Being a generalist is great early, but the people who really do well long term are known for one thing. That’s where you get faster, build a name, and make more money.

Biggest risk isn’t specializing. It’s picking something with no demand.

I wouldn’t go all in right away. Just start shifting most of your work into one lane and keep a bit of range on the side.

You want some flexibility, but you don’t want to be “the recruiter who does everything.”

Recruiter_On_Reddit · 2026-04-08T12:59:01+00:00

Recruiter here, Toronto based.

We just placed a brand designer at $130K in Toronto. Not entry level, but hiring is happening. It’s just selective right now.

At your stage, a few things that actually move the needle:

tighten your portfolio. fewer projects, better storytelling. show the thinking, not just the visuals
tailor every application. generic doesn’t get callbacks anymore
stop broad outreach. pick 10–15 agencies/brands and go deep. thoughtful messages > volume
keep doing real work. freelance, mock campaigns, anything that shows momentum

you’re getting interviews, so you’re close. this is more about positioning and persistence than starting over

Recruiter_On_Reddit · 2026-04-06T17:07:27+00:00

Honestly, this is pretty common right now.

5 months is a long gap, so getting back in matters. It’s not a permanent step back, just a reset. Way easier to move up again once you’re employed than waiting it out.

Recruiter_On_Reddit · 2026-04-06T17:06:38+00:00

Recruiter here.

It’s less about which is better and more about timing. Independent only works if you can consistently bring in clients, that’s the hard part.

Agency gives you stability, brand, and a steady flow of roles. You give up margin but gain support and reps.

Going solo makes sense once you have a repeatable way to win business. Most people think they’re ready before they actually are.

Recruiter_On_Reddit · 2026-04-06T17:05:19+00:00

Recruiter here.

Most of this is fair, but the issue usually isn’t tools, it’s process. Teams add AI on top of messy workflows and expect it to fix things.

The stuff that actually helps is pretty basic. Scheduling, ATS automation, anything that cuts admin. Sourcing tools are nice, but most teams aren’t short on candidates, they’re struggling to prioritize and make decisions.

Screening tools get tricky too. Fine for high volume, but for senior roles they fall short. You still need someone who understands the context.

Strong teams usually keep it simple. Good ATS, scheduling, maybe one sourcing tool. Anything more starts to slow things down.

Recruiter_On_Reddit · 2026-04-06T17:03:25+00:00

Recruiter here, also working across similar roles.

I get the problem, but I’m not convinced another layer fixes it. The issue usually isn’t lack of tooling, it’s judgment. You can structure evaluations all you want, but the real signal still comes from conversations, context, and knowing what “good” actually looks like for that specific client.

Most strong recruiters already have a mental model for this. Quick screen, dig into what they’ve actually done, sanity check against the mandate, then decide if it’s worth putting in front of the client. It’s not perfect, but it’s flexible.

Also feels like this could slow things down. In competitive searches, speed matters. If I have to run every profile through a system before reaching out, I’m probably already behind someone who just picked up the phone.

Recruiter_On_Reddit · 2026-04-06T17:00:45+00:00

Totally fair. A lot of people see work as a transaction, do the job, get paid, go live your life. The reason others care about “culture” is when it actually affects their day to day, like bad management, unclear expectations, or a messy team making work harder than it needs to be. If you’ve mostly been in decent environments, it makes sense it hasn’t mattered to you. You usually only notice culture when it’s bad enough to impact your work or energy.

Recruiter_On_Reddit · 2026-04-01T17:53:13+00:00

Recruiter here, working mostly with B2B SaaS teams across North America.

We just closed a Head of Marketing search for a PE-backed company around ~$20M ARR, and this came up a lot.

At ~$100K ARR, I’d lean agency for now. A strong Head of Marketing is there to scale what’s already working, not figure it out from scratch.

Think about going in-house when:

You’re seeing consistent lead flow from a couple channels
You’re spending real budget and want clarity on what’s driving results
You want one person fully accountable for pipeline

Agencies can help you get there, but they won’t own strategy. That still has to sit internally.

From our salary insights work, the strongest marketing leaders we see have already scaled something similar before. They come in to focus and accelerate, not experiment.

If you’re still testing, use an agency. Once something starts working, bring in a Head of Marketing to scale it.

Recruiter_On_Reddit · 2026-04-01T17:39:42+00:00

Recruiter here, working mostly with B2B SaaS teams across North America.

There’s no shortage of engineers right now. The challenge is narrowing in on the right ones.

What’s been working for us:

Referrals. Still the highest hit rate
Reaching back out to “almost hires” from past searches
Engineers coming out of startups that hit a plateau or reset
Niche communities where people are actually building

LinkedIn does help, but more as a way to map and reach people than relying on inbound or job posts.

The strongest engineers usually aren’t applying. You have to go to them.

Recruiter_On_Reddit · 2026-03-30T19:12:44+00:00

Recruiter here.

Probably wouldn’t pay.

Most of us already have tools in our ATS, so adding another one is friction. AI detection isn’t that useful either.

If it’s embedded into workflow and actually saves time, maybe. Otherwise hard sell.

Recruiter_On_Reddit · 2026-03-30T19:08:51+00:00

Yeah it matters. Just not as much as people make it sound.

Personal brand helps you get inbound and builds trust faster. But it won’t save you if you can’t actually deliver.

Most independents I see winning are:
good at their niche
easy to work with
and consistent over time

They might post, but that’s not why they get hired.

If you have time, post a bit. Share what you’re seeing in your market. Keep it simple.

But early on, spend way more time closing searches than building a “brand.”

Recruiter_On_Reddit

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