Retained search is an exclusive, researched search that you pay for in stages whether or not you hire, while contingency recruitment is usually non-exclusive and paid only when a candidate the recruiter introduced is appointed. For FMCG leadership hires, retained search suits confidential, scarce or business-critical roles such as a commercial director, managing director or site director, and contingency suits roles where a visible pool of active candidates already exists. This article explains how each model works, where each fits, and what to agree before you start.
How retained search works
In a retained search, the firm commits a dedicated team to one assignment. The work starts with a detailed brief: the business context, the outcomes the leader must deliver, the must-have experience and the compensation range. The firm then maps the market, identifying every plausible candidate in competitor brands, adjacent categories and relevant retailers, and approaches them directly. Most of the people who end up on a retained shortlist were not looking for a job.
Payment is normally split into instalments tied to milestones, such as engagement, presentation of a shortlist and appointment. Fee levels and structures are a commercial matter between the client and the firm, so compare proposals on scope as well as price. The executive search industry's own trade body, the AESC, argues in its guide to choosing a firm that retained search is the best approach for executive hires; that is an industry view, and it is worth testing against your own role.
How contingency recruitment works
In contingency recruitment, the client pays only on a successful hire. Because there is no fee for effort, clients often brief several agencies at once, and agencies typically prioritise speed: they put forward suitable candidates from their networks and from active job seekers as quickly as they can. That works well when the role is well defined, the candidate market is reasonably large, and plenty of good people are open to a move.
The trade-off is depth. A contingency recruiter competing with other agencies has a limited incentive to spend weeks mapping a market for a role it may not fill. For a national account manager, a category manager or a process engineer in a busy region, that is often fine. For a sole-incumbent leadership role, it can leave the best candidates unapproached.
| Retained search | Contingency recruitment | |
|---|---|---|
| Exclusivity | One firm, exclusive | Usually several agencies |
| When fees are paid | In stages, linked to milestones | Only when a candidate is hired |
| Candidate source | Full market mapping and direct approach, mostly passive candidates | Existing networks and active candidates, plus some direct approach |
| Confidentiality | High; suitable for unannounced replacements | Lower; the role is more likely to be visible |
| Best suited to | Commercial directors, MDs, site and engineering leaders, scarce specialists | Mid-level and specialist roles with an active candidate pool |
| Client commitment | Time from senior stakeholders throughout | Lighter at the outset, more screening of CVs later |
| Fee terms (UK) | Must be agreed with the hirer before services start, including refunds or rebates | Same legal requirement |
When retained search makes sense in FMCG
- Confidential replacements: If the incumbent is still in post, or the role has not been announced to the business, a discreet retained process protects everyone.
- Business-critical leadership: A commercial director who owns relationships with the largest grocers or national accounts carries too much of the P&L to rely on whoever happens to be looking.
- New capabilities: Building a function the business has not had before, such as revenue growth management or e-commerce leadership, means defining the role as well as finding the person.
- Scarce technical leaders: Senior engineering managers, site directors and heads of technical in food manufacturing are a small, mostly passive pool, and often need relocation.
- Cross-border hires: Recruiting a UK leader for a US business, or the reverse, needs market mapping in both countries and careful handling of relocation and visas.
When contingency is the better choice
Contingency recruitment is often the right answer below leadership level, and sometimes at it. If you are hiring a key account manager, brand manager or maintenance engineer, the market is reasonably liquid, and the role is not confidential, a specialist working on contingency can produce a strong shortlist quickly at no cost unless you hire. It also suits businesses that want to see a few candidates before committing to a full search, or that have a good internal talent team and need help only on harder roles.
Many firms also offer a middle option: an exclusive or engaged search, in which the client gives one firm exclusivity for a set period, sometimes with a modest upfront payment deducted from the final fee. That buys more commitment than open contingency without the full structure of a retained search.
What to agree before you start
Whichever model you choose, put the terms in writing. In the UK, regulation 17 of the Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 2003 requires an agency to agree terms with a hirer before first providing services, including details of any fee and the method of calculating it, and the circumstances in which refunds or rebates are payable, or a statement that none are. In the US, rules on employment agencies vary by state and search terms are largely set by contract, so the same discipline is worth applying there.
A checklist for briefing an FMCG leadership search:
- Define success. Write down what the leader must deliver in the first 12 to 24 months, not just a list of past job titles.
- Agree the model and fee. Retained, engaged or contingency, with fee, payment stages and any replacement or rebate terms in writing.
- Set off-limits rules. Agree which companies, including your customers and the firm's other clients, will not be approached.
- Confirm confidentiality. Decide how the role is described to candidates and who inside your business knows about the search.
- Fix the process. Agree interview stages, assessment tasks, decision-makers and target dates before the first candidate is presented.
- Hold regular reviews. Ask for weekly or fortnightly updates on market feedback, candidate numbers and any change needed to the brief.
Professional standards matter too. The AESC's Code of Professional Practice commits member firms to principles including confidentiality and avoiding conflicts of interest, with any potential conflict disclosed and resolved. Whichever firm you use, ask how it handles both before you sign.
Retained and contingency search: common questions
Retained search is exclusive and paid in stages for a full, researched search. Contingency recruitment is usually non-exclusive and paid only when a candidate introduced by the agency is hired.
For confidential, scarce or business-critical leadership roles, it usually is, because the best candidates are rarely looking and need to be found and approached. For roles with a large, active candidate pool, contingency is often enough.
It depends on the role, the size of the candidate pool and how quickly the client makes decisions. Senior hires also often involve long notice periods, which add time between offer and start date.
It is an agreement about which companies the search firm will not approach candidates from, usually including the client itself and sometimes the client's customers or the firm's other clients. Agree it in writing at the outset.
Yes, and many senior hires are made that way, especially when the role is not confidential. The risk is that the shortlist reflects who is actively looking rather than the whole market.
TRG FMCG recruits commercial, product and engineering leaders in the UK and US, and can advise which search model suits your role. See how we work with employers, or contact us to talk through a leadership hire.