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How to Navigate HR Policies Without Losing Your Best Clients
By Michael Gionta | Tuesday May 13, 2025
QUESTION: I have a client who I have worked with for 17 years, and I have been their exclusive recruiter during this time. Typically, I bill around $100,000 with them annually. I have placed many candidates with them who are now VPs and even higher up. I have always had relationships with the hiring manager, who I call directly after I have been assigned a search. We’ll go over the search and I’ll ask them questions about the type of candidate, territory, etc. I do this throughout the entire process. I submit resumes to them directly and copy HR on all submittals.
This morning I met with their new HR team, and they do not want me to interact with the hiring manager moving forward. Everything has to go through HR, which I am not accustomed to. I told them I would play by their rules on a limited basis and see how this works. I wanted to tell them to go pound sand. My question is, what would you do? Do I play their game, or do I ditch them? I am open to any suggestions. I appreciate your help.
Understanding the Impact of New HR Policies on Recruiting Relationships
Every time I read something like this, I get so ticked off for you. In my experience, my gut feeling, and this did happen to me a few times in my career, especially with clients where I made multiple placements. Typically, what happens is – I can’t have 100% certainty, but I can probably say it with 70.6% certainty – a new HR team comes in, and they have promised the CFO or the COO, whoever, they are going to save money on fees, among other things. Their job has been to tighten all the fees they pay to good people like you.
Potential Miscommunication Between HR and Hiring Managers
My gut feeling is your hiring managers have yet to learn of this new policy. What I have done is, I called all my hiring manager contacts.
“Hey Jim, I can use your help because I’m unsure what to do. Worst-case scenario, I am going to have to resign.”
In the worst-case scenario, I am going to have to resign—I throw out a threat. Because it is the worst-case scenario. You told me, or you said in this note, I want to tell them to go pound sand.