Recruiting & Staffing Agency

Recruiting and staffing agencies connect job seekers with employers, earning fees for successful placements.

Models include contingent recruiting (fee only when candidate is hired, typically 15-25% of first-year salary), retained search (upfront fees for executive positions), contract staffing (placing temps/contractors), or niche specialization (tech, healthcare, accounting, creative).

Success requires industry knowledge, sourcing abilities, candidate assessment skills, and relationship building with both candidates and hiring managers.

Starting as solo recruiter requires minimal capital - ATS software, job boards subscriptions, LinkedIn Recruiter, and CRM under $5,000.

Revenue from single placement can range $5,000-30,000+ depending on role salary.

Placing 1-2 candidates monthly generates substantial income.

Building pipeline involves networking, cold outreach to companies, LinkedIn sourcing, referrals, and job board presence.

Operating costs include software subscriptions ($200-500/month), LinkedIn Recruiter ($120/month), and potentially office if meeting candidates.

Challenges include long sales cycles for new clients, candidate and client ghosting, offers falling through, and competition from internal recruiters and other agencies.

Success requires niche specialization, deep network in industry, persistence through rejection, and strong candidate experience.

Many recruiters scale by hiring additional recruiters or building full staffing agency.