Frequently Asked Questions

Answers to the questions companies ask most before hiring MJL Recruiting & Consulting.

What's the difference between retained and contingent search? 

Retained search means MJL Recruiting & Consulting is your exclusive, dedicated partner from day one, with full focus, market data, priority and a shortlist of 3-5 vetted candidates. Contingent search means no hire, no fee: you only pay if MJL places a candidate who stays past the guarantee period, with lower priority and no market analysis.  Check out our comparison page here.

What's the hourly-plus-success-fee model? 

The hourly rate covers the time we invest finding you the candidates you're looking for.  The success fee is paid upon offer acceptance and is determined by subtracting the hourly fee total from the total cap amount on the search. It's built for companies that want more commitment than contingent offers without the full retained investment.

How long does a typical search take? 

A typical search takes 2 weeks to put pre-screened, qualified candidates on your desk. MJL's goal is to wrap every search, regardless of vertical, industry or role, in 60 days or less, meaning your chosen candidate has accepted the offer.

What's your guarantee period? 

For contingent search, our standard guarantee is 90 days — if your hire leaves in that window, we find a replacement at no additional fee.

For retained search, we have a two-pronged guarantee.  If they leave in the first 90 days for something that there was no way to screen for (illness, family member needing care, spouse needing to relocate, etc.), we will find a replacement at no additional fee.  If they leave in the first 90 days and after conducting an exit interview with the now former employee we find it was something they needed from you and didn't get (training, support, mis-represented culture, etc.), we will replace them for an additional fee, with the client agreeing to talk to someone who specializes in the area of neglect for which the employee left.

What industries do you work in? 

MJL Recruiting & Consulting recruits for IT and engineering, legal and professional services (paralegals, attorneys, office managers and support staff), and growing small businesses.

Do you work with companies outside Washington State?

Yes. MJL Recruiting & Consulting is based in Snohomish, WA and works with companies in every U.S. state and in predominantly English-speaking countries.

How do you set up an interview rubric for candidates?

MJL Recruiting & Consulting builds a candidate evaluation rubric by first identifying the core competencies the role requires, then assigning weighted scoring criteria to each. Interviewers rate every candidate on the same scale, which removes guesswork and makes side-by-side comparison straightforward and defensible.

How do you train interviewers to conduct better interviews?

MJL Recruiting & Consulting's interviewer training covers structured questioning techniques, sound interview practices, and how to use a candidate rubric consistently. Hiring managers leave with a repeatable method for evaluating candidates fairly, which reduces bias and improves hiring decisions across the team.

What should be included in a job description?

A strong job description states the role's responsibilities, required qualifications, preferred experience, reporting structure and team context. MJL Recruiting & Consulting's Job Descriptions service builds each one to attract qualified candidates and align internal stakeholders before the search begins.

Does MJL Recruiting & Consulting handle legal recruiting?

Yes. MJL Recruiting & Consulting recruits paralegals, attorneys, office managers and support staff for legal and professional services firms, from its base in Snohomish, WA. Legal searches run on the same retained or contingent models as every other search.

What is Hiring Clarity and why does it matter?

Hiring Clarity is an MJL Recruiting & Consulting offering that aligns everyone involved on exactly what a role requires before the search begins. When teams disagree on the ideal candidate, searches stall and offers fall through. Hiring Clarity settles that before a single resume is reviewed.

Can you help with our interview process if we recruit internally?

Yes. MJL Recruiting & Consulting offers Interview Process Setup, Interviewer Training, Rubric Setup and Job Descriptions as standalone consulting services. Employers who source their own candidates can still use MJL to build a structured, consistent evaluation process.