Every few weeks a managing director tells me the same thing: “We put the Sales Director role out with three agencies on contingency, got a pile of CVs, interviewed a few, and hired nobody we were excited about.” Then, six months later, they are doing it all again. For a junior or mid-level sales hire, contingency is fine. For the person who will run your whole commercial function, it is usually the wrong tool — and it is why so many senior sales searches drag on and disappoint.
I have placed sales people for over 20 years — 500+ personally and 2,000+ across my teams — and the pattern with senior hires is clear. This is a plain-English guide to what retained executive search actually is, when it is worth paying for, how the process runs, and how to pick a firm that earns its fee.
What “retained” actually means
Retained search is a committed, exclusive engagement. You appoint one firm to find the person, and you pay in stages across the search rather than only on success. In return you get a proper piece of work: the whole market mapped, the right people approached directly (including the ones who are not looking), a structured assessment, and a manageable shortlist of genuinely qualified candidates — not a race to see which agency can forward CVs fastest.
Contingency is the opposite model: several agencies work the same role, nobody is paid until someone places, so everyone rushes the easy candidates and no one invests in the hard, quiet approaches that senior hires actually require. For a £30k SDR, that is fine. For a Sales Director, the incentives are wrong.
When retained search is worth it — and when it isn't
Retained is the right call when the hire is genuinely business-critical and hard to fill. In practice that means:
- Seniority: a VP of Sales, Sales Director, Head of Sales or Commercial Director — someone who owns the number and the team.
- Confidentiality: you are replacing someone who is still in the seat, or the search is sensitive.
- A thin market: the right person is in a job, not on a job board, and has to be approached directly.
- Cost of getting it wrong: a mis-hired sales leader does not just cost their salary — they cost a lost year of pipeline, the reps who leave under them, and the deals that never happened.
If the role is a more junior sales seat, or genuinely easy to fill from the active market, contingency is the sensible, cheaper option. A good firm will tell you which one your role needs rather than pushing the higher fee — if you want a second opinion on that, our free Hiring Check is a good place to start.
How a retained search actually runs
Done properly, it is a defined process, not “we’ll be in touch”:
- The brief. Half a day, properly. What does this leader need to do in year one — build a team, fix a broken patch, open a new sector, professionalise a founder-led sale? The brief for each of those is a different person.
- The map. The firm identifies every credible candidate in your market — competitors, adjacent sectors, the people one rung down who are ready to step up — not just whoever is currently applying.
- The approach. They contact those people directly and discreetly, and sell your opportunity. This is the work contingency never does, because it is slow and there is no guaranteed payout.
- Assessment. Structured interviews and reference-backed evidence against the brief, so the shortlist is a handful of people who can genuinely do the job — not a longlist for you to wade through.
- Close and onboard. Managing offer, counter-offer and notice, then staying involved through the first months so the hire actually sticks.
What you are really paying for
The fee buys three things contingency cannot: access to people who are not looking, rigour in the assessment, and commitment — one firm accountable for the outcome, not five hedging their bets. You are paying for a shortlist you can trust, and for the search to actually finish.
One thing worth knowing about senior candidates: beware the easy counter-offer save. Across our desk, 7 in 10 people who accept a counter-offer to stay have left within a year anyway. A good search manages that risk before the offer goes out, rather than being surprised by it.
How to choose a search firm
Ask any firm four things before you appoint them:
- Do you actually know my market? Ask who they have placed in similar roles and sectors. Generalists struggle with specialist commercial hires.
- What does your process look like, week by week? You want a timeline and named stages, not vague reassurance.
- How do you assess, beyond the CV? Look for structured scoring and real references, not gut feel.
- What happens if it does not work out? A serious firm stands behind the placement with a clear guarantee.
And a simple tell: a firm that pushes back on your brief, and occasionally tells you what you do not want to hear, is worth more than one that agrees with everything. You are hiring judgement, not a CV pipe.
FAQ
What is retained executive search?
An exclusive, committed engagement where you appoint one firm to find a senior hire and pay in stages across the search — you get the whole market mapped and approached, structured assessment, and a qualified shortlist.
Retained or contingency for a Sales Director?
For a business-critical senior leader in a thin or confidential market, retained. For a junior or easy-to-fill sales seat, contingency is fine and cheaper.
How long does a retained sales search take?
Typically a few weeks to a first shortlist when it is run properly, with the whole process managed to a timeline rather than left open-ended.
Is retained search only for tech companies?
No. It suits any business making a senior commercial hire — manufacturing, logistics, professional services, B2B services — wherever the right leader has to be approached rather than advertised to.
The rule of thumb: match the model to the stakes. Advertise the junior roles; search for the leaders. The hire that owns your number is the one worth doing properly.
Written by Ian Harwood. Sales Recruitment Agency is a trading brand of H2 International Ltd (11968625).
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