Careers in recruitment
Two ways in. One ladder.
Whether you have billed for years or never recruited a day in your life, the levels are the same and the promotion tests are written down. Pick your way in.
If you have recruited before
Straight answers to the questions you will ask.
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What do I keep?
Our consultants earn commission on what they bill, and we built the scheme to reward the people who deliver. We will not put a number on a web page, so ask us and we will take you through it.
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How fast do I move up?
Your pace is set by your results, not by how long you have sat in a chair. We are setting out two written tests for promotion, and you can see both before you join.
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How much room will I have?
You run your own desk and your own specialism. Clients are shared across the team by specialism, so you handle the roles you know best, alongside colleagues who know theirs. You decide how you work on the days you are not with clients, as long as the results come in.
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Can I build something new?
You have a regional mandate, not just Malaysia and the Philippines. We want people who are after autonomy and complexity, and who want to build the market they know best.
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What will I stop doing?
We are building AI agents to take research and first-round sourcing off your desk, so more of your day goes on clients and candidates.
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Who will I work with?
PositiveLinks Asia was founded in 2010 on one idea: put clients and candidates first, and the fees follow. Our consultants have worked in commercial roles themselves, and we hold each other to integrity and a spirit of excellence.
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What does my work add up to?
A part of our revenue goes to impact work, guided by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The fees you bring in help fund work on schooling, decent work for young people, and the care of land and sea.
If you are new to recruitment
Never recruited? That is fine.
We can teach you the craft of recruitment. We cannot teach you to want it. So before the job, a quick check on the part we cannot teach. Tap every line that sounds like you.
What the job is
Three things, done well, every week.
Win the client
A company needs someone good and does not have the time to find them. You talk to the hiring manager, understand the role better than the job advert does, and agree the terms.
Find the person
You search, call and meet people who are not looking, work out who is right, and tell them honestly why this job is worth a move.
Close the match
You handle the interviews, the offer and the nerves on both sides, until the person starts. That is when you are paid commission on the fee.
You will start on the first rungs of our ladder and learn the same six competencies that count at every level. People who have sold, competed, served customers or run something of their own tend to find it familiar.
How you move up
Seven levels. Two tests. No guesswork.
- Researcher
- Associate Consultant
- Consultant
- Senior Consultant
- Associate Manager
- Manager
- Associate Director
These are the seven positions we recognise. We plan to promote on two things at once. You bill at the next level's standard for two quarters in a row, and your manager shows evidence that you already meet every competency for that level. A high biller who cannot develop anyone is not yet a manager, and we say so up front.
The same six competencies count at every level: business development, sourcing and assessment, commercial judgement, communication and influence, process and data discipline, and developing others. Only the standard rises as you go up.
The ladder ends at Associate Director, and the people who get there can talk to us about a share of what they build.
What we will not do
Two things we will not do.
- We will not promote anyone on billing alone, or on charm alone. Both tests will apply to everyone.
- We will not sell you a commission number on a web page. You will hear the detail from us, in a conversation.
Talk to us
Curious? Have a quiet word with us.
The conversation stays confidential, and you do not need a CV to start it.
Thank you. We will be in touch with you personally.
New to recruitment, or early in your career? Send us your CV.
Tell us in a line or two what you have sold, won or built so far. It does not have to be in recruitment.
Thank you. We have your CV and will come back to you.