Every search firm offers a guarantee. Few clients read it until they need it, which is the wrong moment to discover what it excludes.
The period
Ours is three months from the start date. Some firms offer six or twelve; some offer four weeks. The longer the period, the more conditions it usually carries. A twelve-month guarantee with six exclusions is worth less than a three-month one with two.
What triggers it
The candidate does not start, or leaves, or is dismissed for reasons other than redundancy, restructuring or a material change to the role. That last clause matters: if the client changes the job and the person leaves, the firm did not get the search wrong.
What it provides
One replacement search at no further professional fee, against the original brief. Not a refund. Not a search for a different role. Not unlimited replacements. Third-party costs such as psychometrics or advertising are usually charged again.
The conditions worth reading
All invoices paid in full. Written notice to the firm within a stated period of the departure, ours is seven days. A reasonable time to run the replacement. Exclusions for fixed-term engagements and for departures caused by the client's breach of terms.
What no guarantee covers
The person who stays and is wrong. The most expensive failure in executive search is not the one who leaves at month two; it is the one who stays for three years. No guarantee helps with that. What does is the assessment before the appointment, and the first-ninety-days support after it. Ask your search firm about those before you ask about the guarantee.