Kontrast Personalberatung GmbH, with offices in Hamburg and Berlin, has been supporting companies, administrations and institutions in filling specialist and management positions since 1993. Our permanent personnel consultants work at the interface between the job market, organization and people.
This page has two perspectives:
For clients, it shows how we work with clear service packages. For HR professionals, it makes it clear why the job of a personnel consultant is demanding - and how to become fit for it.
1. personnel consultants as partners to SMEs and the public sector
For clients from SMEs, the public sector, healthcare and the digital economy, we are not an "on-call" recruiter, but a project partner. HR consultants understand business models, administrative logics and team structures and translate these into a resilient requirements profile.
They provide support where internal HR and specialist departments reach their limits: with hard-to-fill positions, succession planning, confidential new appointments or tight candidate markets. The added value lies in structure, speed and market expertise - plus legally compliant implementation in accordance with GDPR, AGG and, in the public sector, Art. 33 II GG.
2. business areas and service packages - clearly structured
Kontrast works with four business areas: Headhunting, personnel consulting, personnel marketing and selection procedures. These are based on combinable service packages.
In headhunting, personnel consultants are responsible for executive search, direct search and active sourcing. Together with the client, they sharpen tasks, responsibilities and success criteria, define target persons and target companies, approach candidates directly, conduct interviews and only present profiles that fit professionally and personally.
HR consulting is all about clarifying roles, structural and process organization and realistic requirement profiles. Committee structures, participation rights and professional law are included, particularly in the public sector and healthcare.
In the selection area, we moderate structured interviews, management assessments and commission rounds, work with competency models and document decisions in a comprehensible and legally compliant manner.
3. how a project runs - from the mandate to the start in the team
A typical project begins with a precise clarification of the assignment: what tasks should the new person take on, how will they be involved, how will success be measured? On this basis, we select the appropriate service packages and set milestones.
During the search phase, recruitment consultants organize target company research, direct contact, sourcing activities and applicant management. They keep clients up to date with regular status reports, market feedback and shortlists.
During the selection phase, they moderate interviews, structure committee meetings, prepare decision papers and ensure transparency for all parties involved - management, specialist departments, HR, the staff council and other committees. In the contract and onboarding phase, they stay on the ball until the change has been completed and the start in the team has been successful.
4th job as an HR consultant - much more than just a click job
For HR professionals and career changers with an interest in consulting, a job as a personnel consultant is both exciting and challenging. It has little to do with simply "placing advertisements and sorting applications".
Recruitment consultants think organization and job together, plan search strategies, actively recruit candidates, advise management and HR on the market, profile and remuneration and moderate the selection process. They constantly move between the employer and candidate perspective and ensure that both sides can make a viable decision.
5. skills and career paths
Anyone working as a recruitment consultant needs a solid professional foundation and a desire for responsibility. Knowledge of recruiting, interview techniques, selection methods and the job market are important - plus the ability to understand complex situations in a structured way and to communicate clearly.
Added to this are consulting and project skills: planning, prioritizing and following up on projects; building and maintaining client relationships; remaining structured even under time pressure. A basic understanding of psychology helps to realistically assess motives, skills and fit and not just follow your gut feeling.
Typical entry routes are HR experience as a recruiter or personnel officer, line management with a strong personnel component or specialist roles in the public sector, healthcare, engineering, IT or similar industries - combined with an interest in people and organizations.
You will become fit in practice through structured induction, on-the-job training, supervision by experienced colleagues and continuous further training in diagnostics, interview techniques and law.
6 Who the job is suitable for - and what sets Kontrast apart
The job is particularly suitable for people who like to think analytically, take responsibility and feel comfortable with both numbers and people. Anyone who likes diversity, enjoys getting to know industries and organizations and enjoys supporting recruitment projects from start to finish will find a suitable field in the recruitment consultant profession.
At Kontrast, management and psychological expertise come together in the team and an ISO 9001-certified quality management system provides clear guidelines. This creates a working environment in which demanding personnel decisions are prepared and supported in a well-founded manner - for the benefit of clients, candidates and the personnel consultants themselves.
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