Headhunting or recruitment in the building materials sector: what is the difference?

Recruitment focuses primarily on professionals who are actively or passively looking for a new position. They view vacancies, maintain contact with recruiters, or are open to relevant opportunities via LinkedIn and their professional network.

A broad target audience is reached through job postings, databases, online campaigns, LinkedIn, and existing contacts. This approach works particularly well when there are sufficient candidates available and the position appears regularly on the market.

Headhunting does not wait to see which candidates respond to a vacancy. The market is actively researched, and relevant professionals are personally approached.

These candidates are usually successful in their current position and are not actively looking for other work. However, they may become interested if a new position aligns with their ambitions in terms of content, strategy, and personal aspects.

Executive search is frequently used for management, executive, and other strategically important positions. The process requires a targeted market approach, careful communication, and confidentiality.

The main difference lies in the way candidates are found. In recruitment, the vacancy is made visible to a broad target group. In headhunting, it is first determined which professionals might be suitable, and they are then approached personally.

The building materials sector consists of specialized product groups, distribution channels, and customer segments. Experienced professionals have often built up years of knowledge of wholesalers, contractors, specifiers, architects, installers, and other parties within the construction supply chain.

When a manufacturer or supplier is looking for a commercial director, sales manager, or specialist product manager, the ideal candidate is usually not actively applying.

A general recruitment campaign may therefore yield insufficient reach. With a targeted search, professionals can be identified who possess the right product knowledge, commercial experience, and relationships within the market.

Not every vacancy requires the same approach. The choice depends on market scarcity, the position level, the desired experience, and the degree of confidentiality.

In some processes, both methods are combined. A recruitment campaign then ensures broad visibility, while simultaneously targeting professionals from the market.

Voltys Recruitment & Executive Search has been supporting manufacturers, suppliers, technical wholesalers, and other organizations within the building materials sector for over eighteen years.

For each assignment, the approach required to reach the relevant target group is determined. This involves considering the position, the available candidate potential, competing organizations, the desired experience level, and the client's culture.

The combination of market knowledge, a specialized network, and a targeted approach helps clients find commercial, technical, marketing, product management, and leadership professionals.

Recruitment and headhunting are not competing methods. Both can be valuable, but are suitable for different positions and labor market situations.

Recruitment offers a broad reach among professionals who are available or open to a new position. Headhunting makes it possible to establish targeted contact with experienced candidates who do not actively seek jobs themselves.

Especially within the specialized building materials sector, a combination of both methods may be necessary to reach the best professionals in the market.