Recruitment outreach vs executive search for public agencies

Executive search finds and presents finalists for one leadership role. Recruitment outreach fills your applicant pool and leaves selection to your own process. For roles below the executive level in a civil service system, outreach is usually the one an agency can use, because the agency has to hire from its own eligible list.

By Tyson Franco, founder and president of MakoHire. Published 2 November 2026.

Two different jobs

Executive search

What it's for: one senior role, such as a general manager, director of public works or chief engineer, often one that sits outside the competitive exam system.
What the firm does: defines the role with the board or appointing authority, recruits candidates, screens and interviews them, and presents a slate of finalists.
How it's usually priced: a fee tied to the search or the hire.

Recruitment outreach

What it's for: classes filled through civil service exams, especially hard-to-fill licensed and technical roles.
What the firm does: maps the market, contacts qualified people, screens them against the class specification, and directs them to apply during the filing period. Public agency RFPs often call this recruitment outreach, candidate sourcing or partial recruitment.
What the agency keeps: the exam, the scoring, the eligible list and the appointment.
How it's usually priced: a fixed fee for a defined scope and term. A placement fee would give the firm a stake in who is selected, which a civil service process is designed to avoid.

Which one your agency can use

Start with how the role is filled. If it's appointed directly, outside the exam system, executive search can work. If it's filled from an eligible list, a slate of finalists can't be hired as presented. What the agency needs instead is more qualified people sitting the exam, and that is outreach.

Many agencies need both at different times: a search for the department head, and outreach for the engineers that department hires through the exam.

Questions to ask before you buy

Is the role filled from an eligible list, or appointed directly?
What exactly will the firm do, and what does the agency keep? Get it in writing.
Does the fee depend on who is hired?
Will you see a report on everyone contacted, including the people who declined and why?
Can the firm work within your procurement process and vendor registration?

The MakoHire Talent Pipeline is recruitment outreach for public agencies: a fixed monthly fee, no placement fee, and no part in the exam or the list. MakoHire also runs executive search for technology leadership roles. For the process itself, see how civil service hiring works.

Outreach and search questions

What's the difference between executive search and recruitment outreach?

Executive search runs a search for one leadership role and presents a slate of finalists, usually with a fee tied to the hire. Recruitment outreach fills your applicant pool and leaves selection to your exam. For roles below the executive level in a civil service system, outreach is usually the one you can use.

What is partial recruitment?

A term some public agencies use for buying part of the recruiting work, usually outreach, sourcing and screening, while the agency runs its own selection. It's another name for recruitment outreach.

What does recruitment outreach cost for a government agency?

It's usually a fixed fee for a defined scope and term. The MakoHire Talent Pipeline is a fixed monthly fee with no placement fee. Terms are set per engagement; we don't publish prices.

Civil service recruitingHow the MakoHire Talent Pipeline works for public agencies.
How civil service hiring worksThe four steps, and where an outside recruiter fits.
Why licensed engineers skip civil service examsAnd how to reach them before the window closes.

Not sure which one you need?

Book a 30-minute hiring call with Tyson Franco. Tell us the role and how your agency hires, and we'll tell you whether outreach or a search fits.

Book a hiring call Send a hiring inquiry

Or call (561) 567-8381 or email tfranco@makohire.ai