A self-described “executive search” firm recently dropped this line that deserves a trophy for professional comedy:
“Real executive search firms advertise roles.”
I couldn’t believe it. Are you kidding me? Was it a joke? Perhaps beginners’ ignorance and stupidity?
By that logic, the global giants of executive search, Egon Zehnder, Heidrick, Korn Ferry, Russell Reynolds, Spencer Stuart, and even Thailand’s leading executive search firm, Tom Sorensen, are all fake. Their mistake?
They don’t post confidential CEO searches on LinkedIn under a stock photo of a handshake. Oh yeah?
That sentence alone, “real search firms advertise roles”, tells you everything about the sad state of the recruitment market. Loud confidence. Zero understanding.
What was once a marker of senior expertise has become a misleading shortcut for self-promotion.
‘Headhunting’ no longer signals expertise. It signals marketing. Headhunting was once earned. Now it is claimed.
Many newcomers and amateurs adopt the label ‘headhunter’ to sound established.
- They did not inherit the discipline.
- They did not build the networks.
- They did not learn the craft.
- They simply took the name.
This is not evolution. It is dilution. It is fake.
The term “headhunter,” once a premier term, has been around for decades and is now being reused by people still learning the basics of recruitment.
When beginners use an old elite label to mask inexperience, the market pays the price. Clients struggle to tell the difference between real search and surface-level sourcing.
‘Headhunting’ was once a reputation you earned
Yes, true. Headhunting was once a reputation you earned. Today, it is a word that is too easily taken.
Tom Sorensen: I vividly remember when I started my recruitment career 23 years ago (in 2003), the word ‘Headhunter’ was a badge of honour. It was used by very few in Thailand because there was respect, and everyone understood that a headhunter was like flying First Class.
Sadly, these days, headhunting no longer signals seniority or rigor. It once described disciplined, discreet work at the top of the market. Today, the word has been diluted to the point of meaning very little.
What used to sit at the peak of executive search now gets used by anyone who owns a LinkedIn Recruiter license.
Keyword searches have replaced market mapping. Job ads have replaced discretion.
Calling yourself a headhunter no longer tells a client how you work. It only tells them how you market.
Many so-called headhunters do not hunt at all. They browse and shop on LinkedIn and repost roles on job boards.
When everyone adopts the label, the standard collapses. Headhunting stops being a craft and becomes a slogan. The result is noise, not search.
If you want to know whether someone runs real executive search, ignore the title. Look at the process. Look at who retained them. Look at whether the work stays off LinkedIn and other job boards.
What real Executive Search looks like
Real executive search firms dominate the top tier of the recruitment industry because they serve a different market entirely.
In Thailand, true executive search firms are so rare that you can count them on one hand, and still have fingers left.
Their work involves:
- C-suite transitions.
- Confidential leadership replacements.
- Pre-IPO and post-merger executive reshuffles.
We do not post jobs because that’s not how executive search works. Posting a confidential CFO search online is not proactive recruitment; it’s professional malpractice.
Instead, we are retained by boards and head offices. We map the market, identify discreetly, assess rigorously, and present a shortlist quietly. Every step is controlled and confidential. The credibility of our process depends on silence.
So when someone insists that “real” search firms advertise roles, what they’re really saying is they’ve never seen how the top of the market operates.
The dilution of headhunting by inexperienced recruiters
In markets like Thailand and others across Asia, the term “executive search” has been stretched beyond recognition. Every recruiter with a LinkedIn Recruiter license suddenly runs an “executive search firm.”
In reality, many of these firms are contingency recruiters. They advertise public jobs, compete with five others, and race to send the same candidates.
Their process is volume-based, not value-based. Their “executive” roles often stop at mid-management.
A non-exclusive assignment advertised on three job boards and WhatsApp groups is not executive search. It’s open-market headhunting.
Advertising is not evil but it’s not search
Advertising has a place in recruitment. For mid-level roles or high-volume hiring, it works. It fills pipelines and saves time. But pretending that job ads define “executive search” is absurd.
Executive search is an advisory service. It happens behind closed doors, not in comment sections.
When you see someone post “confidential CEO search” online, the confidentiality is already gone, and the credibility went with it.
The louder someone shouts about their “executive” mandates, the more you should doubt they have any. The best firms don’t need to post. They already have the boardroom’s number.
The cost of confusion
Repeat a wrong idea long enough, and it becomes accepted truth. Clients start asking why you haven’t posted the job. Candidates think “executive search” means a recruiter forwarding their CV without consent.
The discipline erodes. And the market forgets what real looks like.
What was once a respected advisory practice turns into a noisy race for visibility. Confidentiality becomes a joke.
And if you ever wonder who’s still doing it properly, call someone at Tom Sorensen Recruitment | NPAworldwide. You know. One of the “fake” ones. Ha ha…
