How to choose a recruitment agency in Latin America: 10 questions to ask
The right recruitment agency in Latin America shows you evidence, not promises. Before you sign, ask how they find people who are not looking and how they assess them. Then ask what the fee includes and what happens if the hire leaves. These ten questions separate a real partner from a CV forwarding service.
Why does the choice of agency matter so much?
A senior hire shapes a team for years. In Latin America, it is also a bet on a market you may not know well. The agency you choose decides which candidates you see, how well they are assessed and how the search represents your company to the market.
Many agencies look similar on their websites. The differences appear in how they work: where they find people, how deep the assessment goes and what they commit to in writing. The questions below are designed to bring those differences out in a first call.
If you are looking for a LATAM recruitment agency, use these questions with us too.
Which ten questions should you ask?
- 1. Where will you find candidates who are not looking? Senior people who perform well rarely apply to posts. Ask for the sources: referrals, networks, communities, direct approach. Job boards alone are a warning sign.
- 2. How do you assess candidates before I meet them? Ask to see a sample candidate report. You want written evidence about results and behavior, not adjectives.
- 3. How do you test English and other languages? A self-reported level is not enough. Look for tests on real tasks, such as a written update or a live conversation.
- 4. Who will actually run my search? Many agencies sell with senior people and deliver with juniors. Ask who makes the calls and writes the assessments.
- 5. How many candidates will I see, and when? Three to five strong candidates beat twenty weak ones. Ask for a date for the first shortlist.
- 6. What exactly does the fee include? Sourcing, assessment, references, offer support and a guarantee should be in. Ask what is extra.
- 7. What happens if the hire does not work out? Ask for the replacement guarantee in writing, with its length and conditions.
- 8. Do you share the salary band with candidates? Transparency saves time on both sides and attracts better candidates.
- 9. How will you represent my company to candidates? The agency is your voice in the market. Ask how they describe the role and handle confidential searches.
- 10. Can I speak with candidates you placed or clients you served? Not every agency can share names, but a serious one will offer some form of reference.
What should the fee include, and what does it usually cost?
Most agencies charge a percentage of the hire's first year salary. Indeed reports an average headhunter fee of 20% to 25%, with a range from 15% to over 40%. Retained executive searches usually sit at the higher end.
Compare what the fee includes, not only the percentage. A low fee with no guarantee and many CVs can cost more time than a higher fee with a short shortlist. At Tessera Partners, the fee is 10% of first year base salary. A 750 EUR start fee is deducted from the final invoice, and every placement has a 90 day guarantee.
What are the red flags?
- The agency sends CVs before you have agreed a brief.
- Every candidate is described as excellent, with no evidence.
- Nobody can explain how the shortlist was assessed.
- The salary band is a secret from candidates.
- The guarantee is vague or not written down.
- The agency pushes for a fast decision before references are checked.
How do you compare two proposals?
| Criterion | Strong answer | Weak answer |
|---|---|---|
| Sourcing | Referrals, networks and direct approach, with job boards only as support | Job boards and an internal database |
| Assessment | Written evidence on results, communication and culture fit | A CV and a short summary |
| Seniority of the team | A senior recruiter runs and assesses the search | A junior coordinator sends profiles |
| Guarantee | Written, with clear length and conditions | Verbal or absent |
| Transparency | Salary band shared, regular written updates | No band, updates only when asked |
Should you work with one agency or several?
For junior or high volume roles, several agencies on contingency can work. For a senior or confidential role, it usually backfires. Several agencies approach the same small group of people, often with different descriptions of your company and different salary numbers. Good candidates notice and lose interest.
One agency with clear accountability is usually better for senior hires. Agree on a timeline, the number of candidates and how progress is reported. If the agency does not deliver, you can change course with a clear record of what happened.
What should the first call cover?
Use the first call to test the agency, not only to brief it. A good recruiter asks more questions than you do. They want to know why the role exists and what success looks like after a year. They also ask who the person reports to and why the last hire did or did not work. If the call is only about the CV profile and the fee, keep looking.
Notice how the recruiter talks about candidates. A good one describes people by what they achieved and how they work, not by the logos on their CV. Ask how they would sell your role to someone who is happy in their current job. The answer shows whether they understand your company, and how they will represent it in the market.
How do you get the most from the agency you choose?
Even the best agency depends on your input. Give a clear brief, a realistic salary band and fast feedback after each interview. Agree who decides and how many interview rounds there will be.
Treat the agency as a partner, not a vendor. Share the real reasons a previous hire failed and what the team is like. The more context the agency has, the better it represents you and the better the candidates it brings.
What we see in real searches
In our conversations with companies that worked with other agencies before, the same story comes up. They received many CVs and few people worth meeting. The problem was rarely effort. It was the method: searching where active candidates are, instead of where the best people are.
We also see that the best clients ask hard questions in the first call. They want to see how we assess, who will run the search and what we commit to in writing. That is the right instinct, and it is why we publish our method and our Code of Hire.
Finally, we see that clear briefs and fast feedback matter as much as the agency. A strong agency with a slow client loses candidates to faster offers.
About the author
Federico is Co-Founder of Tessera Partners. He spent nearly 10 years in international corporate banking, including J.P. Morgan and Barclays. He leads searches for clients in EMEA, the US and Spanish-speaking markets.