Please describe the headhunting profession

[Kurofune]

What is the headhunting scene like in Japan? What working conditions does the average headhunter have? Income, hours, security, etc. Thanks.

[amdg]

From Wikipedia

Around the 1930s, headhunting was suppressed among the Taiwanese aborigines during the Japanese occupation of Taiwan and among the Ilongot in the Philippines by the US authorities.

Today it is a universally prohibited practice, and appears to have died out as of the mid-20th century.

As a practice, headhunting has been the subject of intense discussion within the anthropological community as to its possible social roles, functions and motivations. Contemporary scholars generally agree that its primary function was ceremonial, and that it was part of the process of structuring, reinforcing and defending hierarchical relationships between communities and individuals. The debate is about the finer detail. Some believe that it was practiced because of a belief that the head contained "soul matter" or life force that could be harnessed through its capture. Themes that arise in anthropological writings about headhunting include mortification of the rival, ritual violence, cosmological balance, the display of manhood, cannibalism and prestige.

[Kurofune]

amdg, you card!

I just found a couple of sites that answered my questions:

http://metropolis.co.jp/tokyobusiness/371/tokyobusinessinc.htm

http://www.japantoday.com/jp/executive/198

[Mulboyne]

It depends on what kind of firm you work for. Most people disparage the industry in Tokyo but it plays a valuable role. There are certainly companies out there who employ their staff on a commission basis who are not very discrete. They don't usually have any mandates so they flood a potential employer with CVs in the hope that something will stick. These are the kind of guys who will phone company switchboards hoping to get telephone lists for employees. If you work for one of them then it's a high-pressure environment not unlike a number of other sales jobs.

While there are global players with offices in Japan, a good part of the market is made up of local players. Headhunting has not been a typical way for Japanese companies to find employees so most of them are foreigner-owned and-foreigner run.

There are a number of other firms who work exclusively on mandates and have close relationships with their clients. They have a better reputation. You still need a thick skin, though. Candidates and clients don't always feel the need to treat a headhunter with much respect. It's not a job for a shrinking violet.

Firms tend to specialize in certain industries: primarily finance and IT (those two overlap quite a bit). Other larger areas are media, consumer goods and pharmaceuticals. Some headhunters position themselves as specialists in a certain type of senior company function: usually CEO, Chief Financial Officer, or Chief Technology Officer. They will generally be part of a global firm such as Korn Ferry.

[GomiGirl]

The problem I have is that when I am looking for staff (which is now BTW) the charges are cost prohibative for a small business. I am sure CSTaylor will agree. I tend to find people by word of mouth or using the on-line places but I have been bombarded with people who are hopeful but wasting my time as they have not read the requirements. I do feel bad when rejecting them but I do reply rather than just ignoring the mails.

I have had some success with smaller headhunters who are willing to negotiate on the terms a bit. ie just pay a set fee for placement rather than the 3 months salary.

I haven't yet tried the "Recruit" magazines but thinking that I may have to. Anyone tried these?

[Ol Dirty Gaijin]

The company I used to work for tried Recruit. Applicant's did not seem to be or be any worse than the offers from agencies that I've seen.
Trouble was, if you offer peanuts you might get monkeys.

Word of mouth is still the way to go. I think that it even applies with headhunters. The cold-callers can go to hell.