At KurotoPartner, Our Retained Search service is for executive-level and specialized roles, where the right hire is critical to your Japan business.

OUR TRACK RECORD
KurotoPartner currently has a 100% success rate on every Retained Search assignment we have taken on. We stand behind that with a placement guarantee: if we haven’t placed the right person within the engagement period, we continue the search at no additional fee until we do.

HOW IT WORKS
Retained Search is an exclusive partnership. An upfront commitment fee secures our time for a 3-month engagement focused on your role. Each search is led personally by a partner from start to finish, and we take on only a limited number of searches at a time.

HOW IT DIFFERS FROM CONTINGENCY SEARCH

1. Focus: Your search is led personally by a partner, not passed between consultants.

2. Full Japan Market Coverage: We map the full market, including passive candidates who aren’t looking and won’t see job ads.

3. Commitment: We commit to filling your role, backed by our placement guarantee.

4. Partnership: We work as an extension of your team, with a clear understanding of your business goals.

IDEAL FOR
This service is valuable for:

• Executive Leadership positions, where discretion and precision is a must

• Senior Specialist roles, requiring niche expertise that has proven difficult to find

• Strategic hires, where the right person will significantly impact your business outcomes

• Time-Sensitive hiring needs, where speed and quality both count

ENGAGEMENT STRUCTURE
Our Retained Search service operates on a structured fee model, which includes: 1/3 upon initiation, 1/3 upon presentation of a shortlist (typically 5 qualified candidates), and the final 1/3 upon successful placement.

*We can provide flexibility on the payment model upon discussion.

At KurotoPartner, we offer an Exclusive Contingency Search service that gives you the focus of a single, committed search partner, with fees paid only on successful placement. KurotoPartner currently has a 100% success rate on every Exclusive Search assignment we have taken on.

HOW IT WORKS
KurotoPartner becomes your only recruitment partner, either for one specific role or for all your hiring in Japan. We search the full market to find people who closely match your needs. There’s no upfront fee; a standard contingency agreement is all that’s needed to get started.

WHY EXCLUSIVE?
When several agencies work on the same role, candidates often hear different stories about your company and the position. Working with 1 partner fixes that:

1. One clear message: Every candidate hears the same accurate picture of your company, culture and role.

2. Deeper understanding: We get to know your business goals and culture well, which shows in the people we bring you.

3. Better-matched candidates: We screen carefully, so you see fewer profiles that fit better. Our average success ratio is 5 CVs = 1 placement.

4. Simpler process: You manage 1 relationship, instead of several vendors.

IN PRACTICE
Canva works with KurotoPartner as an exclusive search partner in Japan for key searches.

SF-based DevOps company, Senior Lead role: This client had been trying to fill the role in Japan for nearly 12 months. After moving to an exclusive partnership with KurotoPartner, we worked with the hiring manager to refine the target profile and placed the successful hire within 2 months.

IDEAL FOR

• Senior roles that matter, but can’t get approval for a Retained Search

• Companies building out a team in Japan over time, but hiring key members

• Hiring teams who’ve worked with several agencies without seeing the right profiles, and can’t afford to fail

FEES
Our fee is 35–50% of the placed candidate’s first-year on-target earnings (OTE), payable only on successful placement.

IS THIS RIGHT FOR YOU?
If you’re working with several agencies and still not seeing the right profiles, it may be time to try a different approach.

Working with KurotoPartner exclusively means a expert search partner, full market coverage, and no multi-agency confusion.

Good hiring in Japan often depends on more than finding candidates:

• How the role is written

• How the process runs, and

• How the company tells its story to Japanese professionals.

We advise on all of this as part of every Retained and Exclusive Search, and we can also help on its own.

WHAT WE ADVISE ON

1. Role definition and Job Descriptions: Shaping the role and the JD so they make sense to, and attract, the right people in Japan.

2. Hiring process: Spotting where strong candidates drop out, and simplifying the steps that slow things down.

3. Hiring manager support: Helping your interviewers understand how senior Japanese candidates weigh an opportunity, and how to present the role well.

4. Japan hiring approach: Advising global teams on what works differently here, from candidate expectations to offer timing.

IN PRACTICE
We have advised clients including Canva on their hiring approach in Japan alongside our searches.

For one US-based software company, refining the target profile together with the hiring manager helped fill a role that had been open for around a year.

HOW TO WORK WITH US

• As part of a search: Advisory comes with every Retained and Exclusive Search, at no extra cost.

• On its own: For companies that want help with their hiring approach outside a search, standalone advisory projects start from ¥500,000. We’re happy to discuss what would be most useful.