Hiring a good recruiter takes more than finding someone with the right number of years on a resume.
I have recruited since 1998, and I have hired recruiters for my own team. Experience matters, but it does not tell you everything you need to know.
A recruiter can have ten years of experience and rely on the same playbook they used five years ago. Another recruiter may have fewer years on the desk but learn fast, ask better questions, and adapt when a search gets difficult.
Experience sets the floor. Curiosity sets the ceiling.
The right balance depends on the role you need to fill.
What Does Experience Tell You About a Recruiter?
Experience tells you where a recruiter has worked, what types of searches they have handled, and what responsibilities they have earned.
That’s where I start with a resume.
I look at how the recruiter has progressed from one role to the next. Did they take on more complex searches? Work with more demanding clients? Move into a new industry? Take ownership of larger accounts or teams?
Those changes tell me more than the number of years someone has been recruiting.
A recruiter who has repeated the same work for ten years has shown me something.
A recruiter who has taken on harder problems over those ten years has shown me something different.
Years of experience are useful. They should not be the sole measure.
What Does Curiosity Look Like in a Recruiter?
I do not judge curiosity from a personality test or a resume.
I look for behaviors.
A curious recruiter asks questions during an intake call. They want to understand the business, the hiring manager, the role, the market, and what the team tried before.
They research unfamiliar industries. They learn from candidate conversations. They look at searches that did not work and ask what needs to change.
The first 90 days reveal this.
A resume does not tell me how hard someone will work when a search gets difficult. Their behavior does.
I watch their candidate outreach, their follow-up, the questions they ask, how they respond to feedback, and whether they take ownership when something is not working.
Results take time.
Initiative, persistence, and curiosity show up before the results do.
One recruiting firm screens for curiosity and accountability before skills when it hires recruiters for its own team.
How Do You Test for Curiosity in an Interview?
Do not ask a recruiter whether they are a fast learner.
Most candidates will say yes.
Ask them to prove it.
One question I use is:
“Tell me about a time you had to recruit for a role or industry you knew nothing about. How did you get up to speed, and what did you change when your initial approach wasn’t working?”
Listen for specifics.
Did they ask the hiring manager good questions?
Did they research the market?
Did they learn from candidates?
Did they change their approach when the first strategy failed?
Can they explain what they learned and how they applied it?
“I’m a quick learner” is not an answer.
Then give the candidate a work sample.
Hand them an unfamiliar job description and ask:
“What would you need to learn before starting this search, and how would you find that information?”
Then change one of the requirements.
Ask:
“Now the client has changed this requirement. How does your plan change?”
This tells you more than another hour of interview questions.
Strong recruiters ask thoughtful questions, explain their thinking, and adjust their plan.
Weak recruiters defend their first plan.
How Do You Tell a Recruiter Who Can Sell From One Who Sources?
Finding candidates is one part of recruiting.
A recruiter can build a list of qualified people and struggle to fill the position.
Sourcing builds the list.
Selling moves the candidate to say yes and helps a hiring manager see when their expectations are unrealistic.
Curiosity helps with both.
A recruiter who asks better questions can understand what matters to a candidate. That creates a better conversation and a stronger pitch.
When I interview a recruiter, I look for confidence and the ability to connect with people. I want someone who can tell me about a difficult situation and explain how they worked through it.
I want to understand their work ethic and drive.
Recruiting comes with rejection. Searches fall apart. Candidates change their minds. Clients change requirements.
The best recruiters do not lose momentum every time something goes wrong.
They stay positive, take ownership, adjust, and keep going.
When Should Experience Win?
There are times when I would choose experience over curiosity.
Complex searches are one example.
Senior leadership searches are another.
If a search involves demanding stakeholders, multiple decision-makers, a specialized position, or a complicated hiring process, the recruiter needs judgment.
Consider a VP search with several decision-makers.
The recruiter needs to evaluate leadership experience, manage competing opinions, challenge unrealistic expectations, and keep the process moving.
A fast learner can develop those skills with time.
An experienced recruiter may bring them on day one.
The same applies to regulated or specialized searches when there is little room for training.
If your team does not have the time or ability to develop a newer recruiter, hire the experience.
When Should Curiosity Win?
Curiosity becomes valuable when the role will change as the business grows.
You may not need someone who has seen every possible recruiting situation.
You may need someone who can figure out the next one.
That can make a curious, driven recruiter a better long-term hire than someone with more years but less willingness to learn.
The key is knowing what your team can support.
A less experienced recruiter needs strong management, clear expectations, and time to develop.
If you can provide those things, curiosity can be a major advantage.
How Should You Weigh Experience and Curiosity?
Before you hire a recruiter, ask yourself three questions:
If the role requires judgment on day one, give experience more weight.
If no one has the time to train the person, give experience more weight.
If you have room to develop someone and their answer to the third question shows initiative, curiosity may be the better choice.
The goal is not to find the recruiter with the longest resume.
It is to find the recruiter who can do what your business needs today and continue getting better tomorrow.
Experience tells you what someone has learned.
Curiosity tells you whether they will keep learning.
Be the first to comment