Refery blog
Recruiting partners
For independent recruiters, operator scouts, and TA partners working startup roles.
What a Useful Startup Talent Referral Includes (and What Gets Ignored)
The difference between an introduction a founder acts on and one that dies in an inbox, written from the referrals Refery screens: the work the person owned, the reason they would move, the constraints, and the consent.
How Much Does a Startup Recruiter Cost in 2026? Published Fees from 8 Providers
What startup recruiters and recruiting platforms publish about their fees: success percentages, flat fees, hourly and monthly models, and guarantees, in one table with worked examples. Competitor pages checked September 19, 2026; Refery pricing updated September 24.
Recruiting Networks and Marketplaces for Independent Recruiters in 2026: Who Pays What
Seven places an independent recruiter can find startup roles and how each one pays, from split-placement networks to recruiter marketplaces and referral networks, using each provider's published terms. Checked September 19, 2026.
More in recruiting partners
23 guidesHow to calibrate a recruiter after the first candidate slate
How Refery uses example profiles, explicit interest status, fit rationales and open questions to align a startup hiring team before candidate introductions.
How to handle duplicate candidate introductions
Create a clear operational process for overlapping recruiter introductions while protecting candidate experience and checking the applicable agreement.
How to Brief a Recruiter Without Sharing Confidential Company Information
A practical guide for startup founders and heads of talent: explain the role, set sharing boundaries, and prepare a recruiter brief that protects company context.
How to Work With Multiple Recruiters Without Overloading Your Hiring Team
How Refery coordinates recruiter judgment and founder decisions, with a real brief-change example, candidate-evidence format and shared feedback responsibilities.
Coordinating internal talent and external recruiters
Coordinate internal talent teams and external recruiters with one search owner, a current brief, clear candidate communication, and an escalation path.
Budgeting for external recruiting support
Plan external recruiting costs by separating service fees, internal effort, candidate assessment costs, and approval responsibilities.
Clarifying prior relationships before a recruiting engagement
Clarify existing candidate and recruiting relationships before work begins, with factual records and appropriate commercial review.
Running a recruiting-partner pilot on one search
Structure a recruiting-partner pilot around one defined search, shared responsibilities, evidence quality, communication, and a continuation decision.
A quality scorecard for an active recruiting partnership
A Refery partner scorecard grounded in a real feedback loop: a recruiter spotted an over-constrained brief, the founder agreed to a change, and the answer returned to sourcing.
Questions about recruiter payment and replacement terms
Clarify fee triggers, payment timing, replacement support, exclusions, and ownership before signing a recruiting agreement.
How to restart a paused hiring search
Reconfirm the mandate, budget, decision owners, and candidate context before restarting recruiting activity after a hiring pause.
Setting a useful recruiter submission limit
Set recruiter submission limits around review capacity and evidence quality, with clear feedback and exceptions.
Specialist or generalist recruiter: how to choose for a startup search
Choose recruiting support by the role's assessment needs, candidate context, search breadth, and the partner's demonstrated work.
How to plan interview capacity before opening more searches
Estimate profile review, interview, and decision capacity so startup hiring plans fit the people who must do the work.
Updating referral sources without disclosing private candidate information
Keep candidate referral sources informed using agreed status updates while protecting interview feedback and personal information.
A weekly recruiting update template for hiring managers
A concise search update that shows decisions, candidate movement, blockers, role changes, and the next action for each owner.
What makes a warm candidate referral useful to a hiring manager?
A consent-first referral structure that separates direct observations, candidate interests, role relevance, and unanswered questions.
How to Choose a Recruiting Marketplace as an Independent Recruiter
Choose a recruiter marketplace on role fit, 70% collected-fee share at Refery, written terms and real search support, including how recruiter feedback reaches founders.
How Much Do Independent Tech Recruiters Make? Model the Collected Fees
A practical recruiter revenue model using placement volume, first-year base salary, client fees, and your share. Labeled examples, payment timing, and costs to check.
How to Become a Startup Scout: Introductions, Consent, and Fee Share
What a startup scout contributes, how Refery’s 70% collected-fee share works, and what to confirm before introducing someone from your network.