FAQ

Active sourcing refers to the targeted search and direct approach of candidates who are not actively looking for a job. Instead of placing job advertisements and waiting for applications, recruiters proactively approach suitable profiles. Typical channels are LinkedIn, XING and specialized databases. Success depends on two skills: targeted research with knowledge of all relevant platforms and the communicative ability to inspire passive candidates for a position.

In our projects, we achieve response rates of up to 60 % through open, personalized direct contact. The industry average is 10 to 20 %. It is not the quantity of approaches that makes the difference, but the quality: a clear message-market fit and individual cover letters.

→ Detailed guide: Active sourcing: importance, examples and best practices

→ Our service: Active Sourcing Agency

→ Free download: The Active Sourcing Masterclass

An Applicant Tracking System (ATS) is software for managing applicant data and recruiting processes. It is the central system in which all information on candidates, vacancies and process steps converge. Typical functions include applicant management, communication history, pipeline overview and reporting.

There are numerous solutions on the market, such as Recruitee, Workable, Greenhouse, softgarden or Lever. The choice depends on the individual requirements: Company size, number of vacancies, required integrations and budget all play a role. Some companies still work with Excel, but quickly reach their limits with parallel staffing and data protection requirements.

In our projects, we work with our clients' ATS systems or bring our own solutions to the table. A well-maintained ATS is the basis for data-driven recruiting and meaningful KPIs.

→ Learn more: Applicant management | Recruiting KPIs

A requirements profile is a structured description of all the criteria that candidates must fulfill for an open position. A good requirements profile distinguishes between mandatory criteria, optional criteria and exclusion criteria. In practice, we recommend concentrating on three to five core criteria and defining three exclusion criteria as a cross-check.

The requirements profile is created in the detailed briefing between the recruiter and hiring manager. The more specific the target profile is defined, the more efficient the search will be. A common mistake: the requirements from the briefing are adopted one-to-one instead of translating them into verifiable criteria.

→ Detailed guide: The Active Sourcing Masterclass (free download)

Applicant management covers all processes relating to the administration of candidates in recruiting: from the initial application to communication and scheduling to the final decision. In practice, this means status tracking, documentation and coordination between the specialist department and candidates. Most companies use an Applicant Tracking System (ATS) such as softgarden, Greenhouse or Recruitee for this purpose.

In our projects, we often take on the complete applicant management for our clients. Especially in the case of parallel vacancies or a lack of an internal HR team, this relieves the burden enormously and ensures a consistent candidate experience.

→ Free download: The Active Sourcing Masterclass

→ Our service: Recruiting on demand

Boolean Search is a search method that uses logical operators to precisely formulate search queries. It is used in recruiting to search for suitable candidate profiles in career networks such as LinkedIn or XING. The technique originally comes from computer science and is named after the mathematician George Boole.

The most important operators are AND (both terms must occur), OR (at least one of the terms) and NOT (exclude term). Quotation marks can be used to search for exact phrases, brackets group conditions and the asterisk as a wildcard finds word variants. A typical search string could look like this: (Java OR Python) AND Developer NOT Junior.

The trick is to build search strings in such a way that they deliver neither too many irrelevant results nor too few. In our projects, we continuously refine search strings and combine Boolean Search with the native filters of the platforms.

→ Free download: Active Sourcing Masterclass

→ Our service: Active Sourcing

Candidate experience describes the entirety of all experiences that a candidate has with a company during the application process. This begins with the first contact, such as a job advertisement or direct approach, and only ends after recruitment or rejection. The candidate journey encompasses the individual phases of this path. Factors such as speed of response, transparency in the process, respectful communication and a structured procedure are crucial.

A poor candidate experience is not only detrimental to recruitment, but also to employer branding. Candidates share negative experiences, rate companies on Kununu and are lost as potential customers or future applicants.

The candidate experience is a key success factor in our projects. We achieve measurably better results through close coordination with specialist departments, rapid feedback and a functioning applicant management system.

→ Detailed article on the candidate experience: Candidate journey: definition, phases and valuable tips

A candidate persona is a fictitious profile that describes the ideal candidate for a specific position. Unlike a classic requirements profile with must and can criteria, the persona paints a vivid picture: career path, motivations, reasons for change, preferred communication channels and typical objections.

Working with personas originates from marketing and has proven its worth in recruiting. It helps to formulate job advertisements to suit the target group, select the right sourcing channels and write cover letters that are well received. The disadvantage is that it is more time-consuming to create than a simple checklist. This is why it often makes sense to create several personas for different types of candidates.

In our projects, we develop a candidate persona based on the joint briefing and use it for channel selection and targeting. The result: greater relevance for the target group and better response rates.

Cost-per-hire refers to the total costs incurred to successfully fill a position. The key figure includes all direct and indirect expenses: from job advertisements and recruiting tools to agency costs and internal time expenditure. It is calculated by dividing all recruiting costs by the number of hires.

The cost-per-hire varies greatly depending on the position, industry and channels used. Traditional headhunters often charge 20 to 30 percent of the annual salary. For a position with an annual salary of 60,000 euros, this can quickly add up to 15,000 euros or more.

Our model relies on transparent hourly billing instead of high commissions. As a result, our clients are on average 60 percent below the costs of traditional recruitment agencies, while at the same time enjoying measurable quality.

→ Learn more: Recruiting KPIs | Time-to-hire

Direct approach refers to targeted contact with potential candidates who are not actively looking for a job. Unlike traditional job advertisements, companies do not wait for applications but proactively approach suitable profiles. The approach is usually made via career networks such as LinkedIn or XING.

Success depends heavily on the quality of the message. A good direct approach is individual, relates to the candidate's profile and clearly communicates why the position could be interesting. Mass messages without personalization lead to low response rates and damage employer branding.

In our projects, we achieve response rates of up to 60 percent by approaching target groups openly. The direct approach is part of our active sourcing strategy and is individually tailored to each position.

→ Our service: Active Sourcing

→ Learn more: Active sourcing methods: 7 strategies that really work

Employer branding refers to the strategic development and maintenance of an employer brand. The aim is to position the company as an attractive employer and to differentiate itself in the competition for talent. This is not about marketing platitudes, but about the authentic communication of what makes a company an employer: culture, values, development opportunities and working environment.

Employer branding works in two directions: outwardly on potential applicants and inwardly on existing employees. Every point of contact counts, whether job advertisement, career page, Kununu reviews or the candidate experience in the application process. A strong employer brand reduces recruiting costs in the long term and increases the quality of applications.

In our projects, we regularly see that weaknesses in employer branding have a direct impact on recruiting success. With clients such as Thalia, we were able to significantly increase the candidate fit through targeted improvements to the company's external image and target group communication.

Executive search, also known as headhunting, refers to the targeted search and approach of managers for key strategic positions. The focus is on roles at director to C-level, where a failure to fill the position would have a significant impact on the company. The process is discreet, network-based and much more intensive than traditional recruiting.

Typically, executive search firms work on a success-based basis with commissions of between 25 and 33 percent of the annual salary. The search often includes candidates who are not actively looking to move but would be open to the right opportunity.

With Kooku X, we offer executive search that combines traditional headhunting with data-driven methods. We combine industry experience and a network with smart algorithms and agile processes to fill strategic positions quickly and accurately.

→ Our service: Kooku X Executive Search

Interim recruiting refers to the temporary reinforcement of a company by external recruiting experts. Unlike project-based recruitment, interim recruiters work directly in or for the company and take on operational recruiting tasks. Typical deployment scenarios are capacity bottlenecks, parental leave replacements or growth phases with many parallel vacancies.

The advantage: companies receive ready-to-use expertise without any long-term commitment. Interim recruiters not only bring capacity, but also best practices and fresh perspectives on existing processes.

Our interim recruiters work remotely or on site, take over processes end-to-end or supplement existing teams. They can access the resources and expertise of our entire team at any time. This makes your recruiting flexible and scalable.

→ Our service: Interim Recruiting

Passive candidates are professionals who are not actively looking for a job but would be open to the right offer. They differ from active candidates who search job advertisements and send applications themselves. Passive candidates generally do not respond to traditional job advertisements, but can be contacted directly.

The labor market can be roughly divided into three groups: active seekers, latent seekers and non-seekers. Latent seekers are the largest and often most interesting group. They are satisfied enough not to actively search, but open enough to listen to a convincing offer.

Approaching passive candidates requires more effort than placing job advertisements, but often delivers better results. Especially for specialized positions, the best candidates are rarely actively on the market. Active sourcing is the method to reach this target group.

→ Learn more: Active sourcing | Direct approach

Recruitment refers to the filling of vacancies by external service providers in return for commission. The classic model: the recruiter receives a percentage of the annual salary upon successful recruitment, typically 20 to 30 percent. For a position with an annual salary of 60,000 euros, this is 12,000 to 18,000 euros.

The commission model has advantages and disadvantages. On the one hand, costs are only incurred if you are successful. On the other hand, there is often a lack of transparency: what effort was actually put in? And with several parallel projects, the agent naturally prioritizes the most lucrative positions.

At Kooku, we work differently: instead of commission, we charge transparently by the hour. This makes recruiting predictable and creates incentives for real consulting instead of quick deals. As a rule, we are 60 percent cheaper than traditional recruitment agencies.

Quality of Hire measures the quality of a recruitment beyond the mere placement. While time-to-hire and cost-per-hire evaluate the process, quality of hire evaluates the result: How well does the person hired perform? Do they pass the probationary period? How long will they stay with the company?

This indicator is more difficult to measure than other recruiting KPIs because it only becomes visible with a time lag and depends on many factors: onboarding, leadership, team dynamics. Typical indicators are probationary period takeover, performance evaluations after 6 or 12 months and the retention rate.

Quality of hire is crucial for sustainable recruiting. A quick hire is of little use if the person leaves after three months. That's why we don't just focus on speed in our projects, but also on the fit between candidate, role and corporate culture.

Recruiting KPIs are key figures that make the success and efficiency of recruiting activities measurable. They help to identify weak points in the process, compare channels and make data-based decisions. The most important KPIs are time-to-hire (time to fill), cost-per-hire (cost per hire), response rate (responses to direct approaches) and conversion rates between the individual process steps.

The prerequisite for meaningful KPIs is a clean database, ideally through an applicant tracking system. Only then can projects be compared, benchmarks created and optimization potential identified.

At Kooku, KPI-based work is part of our DNA. Our own dashboard compares each position with similar, already filled positions and shows early on where adjustments need to be made. This enables us to achieve a 28% shorter time-to-hire than the industry average.

→ Learn more: Recruiting KPI 's🎯 You should know these 7 key figures

The recruiting funnel describes the stages that candidates go through from initial contact to recruitment. Typical stages are: Approach, feedback, initial interview, specialist interview, contract offer and recruitment. The number of candidates decreases with each stage, hence the funnel shape.

The funnel makes the recruiting process measurable. The conversion rates between the stages show where things are going wrong: Do many people drop out after the first interview? Then perhaps the expectations are not right. Are there few responses? Then it's down to the approach or employer branding. Without funnel data, the search for causes remains speculation.

We track all funnel stages in our projects and report on a weekly basis. This allows us to identify bottlenecks early on and take countermeasures. For companies that want to analyze their own processes, we offer the Recruiting Health Check.

RPO stands for Recruitment Process Outsourcing and refers to the partial or complete outsourcing of recruitment processes to an external service provider. Unlike traditional recruitment agencies, the RPO provider not only takes on the search for candidates, but also process responsibility: from needs analysis, active sourcing and applicant management to coordination with specialist departments.

RPO is particularly suitable for companies with continuous recruitment needs that want to relieve their internal HR teams without sacrificing quality and candidate experience. Billing is usually based on monthly flat rates or hourly rates instead of performance-based commissions.

Our recruiting on demand service works according to the RPO principle: we integrate ourselves into your processes, work on a KPI basis and deliver weekly reports. With transparent hourly billing, we are up to 60 percent cheaper than traditional headhunters.

→ Our service: Recruiting on demand

The response rate indicates how many of the candidates contacted respond to a direct approach. It is one of the most important key figures in active sourcing and shows how well the approach, target group selection and employer brand work together.

Typical response rates in active sourcing are between 10 and 30 percent. Mass approaches without personalization often end up in the single-digit range. The decisive factors for a high response rate are the quality of the message, the relevance of the position for the candidate and the timing of the approach.

In our projects, we achieve response rates of up to 60 percent by addressing our target groups openly. The difference lies in the details: individual messages instead of templates, genuine interest in the candidate's profile and clear communication of what makes the position interesting.

→ Learn more: Recruiting KPIs - important recruiting key figures

Social media recruiting refers to the use of social networks such as Facebook, Instagram or LinkedIn to recruit personnel. Unlike active sourcing, which relies on direct contact with individual profiles, paid campaigns are used here to reach a defined target group. Candidates are approached where they are on a daily basis.

The approach is particularly suitable for positions with a high volume or when traditional job boards do not deliver the desired results. Typical areas of application are blue-collar positions, local service providers or sectors such as retail and healthcare. Billing is based on a setup fee plus ongoing support and an advertising budget.

In our social media recruiting projects, we develop target group-specific campaigns with optimized applicant funnels. The first campaigns are live within two weeks and deliver applications. Incoming applications can be pre-screened by our recruiting experts on request.

→ Our service: social media recruiting

→ Learn more: Social recruiting: definition, benefits, challenges and examples of successful social media recruitment marketing

A job advertisement is the public announcement of an open position. It is used to address actively seeking candidates and is usually the first point of contact between companies and applicants. A good job advertisement provides clear information about tasks, requirements and benefits and motivates suitable candidates to apply.

A concise job title with relevant keywords, a direct approach to the target group and concrete rather than vague formulations are crucial. The benefits should be real differentiators, not interchangeable phrases such as "flat hierarchies". Application hurdles should be minimized: A simple form or a one-click application significantly increases conversion.

In our projects, we optimize job advertisements for specific target groups and place them on the appropriate channels. The following applies: job advertisements are an important addition to active sourcing, but do not replace it. Passive waiting for applications is not enough, especially for hard-to-fill positions.

→ Learn more: Writing job ads: Example, checklist and pro tips

Download for free: Tech job ad template

A talent market analysis (also known as recruitment market mapping) systematically examines the candidate market for a specific position or target group. It answers questions such as: How many suitable profiles are there? Which companies do they work for? What salaries are customary on the market? How high is the willingness to change jobs?

The analysis provides a realistic assessment before recruiting begins. It helps to calibrate expectations: Is the salary range in line with the market? Are the requirements realistic or do they limit the pool too much? Without this database, jobs are often advertised for months without success.

As part of our consulting services, we offer talent market analyses with Salary Benchmark. The results flow directly into the recruiting strategy and help to use time and budget in a targeted manner instead of fishing in the dark.

A target company list is a strategic compilation of companies from which candidates are to be targeted. It is a central tool in active sourcing and helps to focus the search efficiently. It typically contains direct competitors, companies with similar technologies or business models and companies in restructuring phases.

The advantage: candidates from target companies often bring relevant industry knowledge with them and can become productive more quickly. In addition to the obvious competitors, it is worth identifying other suitable companies during the search, such as those that use the same tools or technologies.

In our projects, the search for target companies is an integral part of the sourcing strategy. It is developed together with the client in the briefing and continuously expanded over the course of the project.