How Niching Down from Entry-Level to C-Suite Doubled My Placements (And Built a Thriving Global Practice)

By Brian Itumo Published: November 24, 2025

For 13 years as an executive recruiter and talent strategist at Recruitment Room, I was the ultimate full-stack talent partner.

I handled everything: Entry-level hires for startups building their first teams. Junior roles in sales and ops to fuel early growth. Mid-management placements to stabilize scaling companies. And yes, C-Suite mandates for high-stakes leadership. Across Africa, EMEA, and North America—in industries from FinTech to CleanTech—I said yes to contingency gigs, retained searches, and RPO partnerships. Fees ranged from 10-15% on quick wins to 12-18% on confidential executive hunts. Result? Over 300 successful placements in 25+ countries. A solid 75% offer acceptance rate. But also: Constant context-switching, burnout from low-margin entry-level volume, and missed opportunities to command premium fees on what I did best.

Then, in early 2025, I made the bold pivot that redefined everything: I niched down—from broad-spectrum recruitment to C-Suite specialists for high-growth companies in FinTech, CleanTech, EdTech, HealthTech, SaaS and few select verticals.

No more juggling entry-level tech support roles alongside COO searches for IPO-bound unicorns. I doubled down on VPs, Directors, CFOs, CTOs, and COOs who drive 3x revenue growth and secure $85M raises.

The outcome? Placements surged to 45+ annually, revenue doubled in 90 days, and my offer acceptance rate hit 92%—30% faster than industry averages. All while reclaiming time for strategic RPO ($2,800–$5,000/mo) and high-touch retained searches (45–60 days).

If you’re a recruiter wearing all the hats—from entry-level to executive—and wondering, “Should I niche down in recruitment?“—this is your roadmap.

Why Recruiters Cling to Full-Spectrum Work (And Why It’s Holding You Back)

I’ve mentored dozens of talent pros at Recruitment Room. The common roadblocks?

1. “I’ve built my rep on entry-to-C-Suite versatility—niching down feels like starting over.”
2. “What if I niche too narrow and miss junior/mid-level volume?”
3. “My pipeline thrives on variety—why specialize now?”

I lived this. Early on, entry-level contingents (25-day closes) kept cash flowing, mid-management stabilized clients, and C-Suite wins built credibility. But it diluted my edge: Clients viewed me as a “jack-of-all-trades,” not the irreplaceable expert for transformative leadership.

Truth bomb: Broad recruitment fills calendars. Niching down fills bank accounts and builds authority. In a talent market where 70% of executive searches fail on fit, specialization turns you into the go-to for stakes that matter.

The Turning Point: Auditing My Full Range to Find My True Niche

Mid-2024, I crunched the numbers on my 300+ placements. Revelation: While entry/junior roles (e.g., sales reps in E-Commerce) and mid-management (e.g., ops managers in Logistics) made up 60% of volume, they drove just 20% of revenue. The real gold? C-Suite in high-growth tech—COOs scaling CleanTech ops 3x for $12M funding, CFOs prepping FinTech IPOs with $85M raises, CTOs hitting 99.9% uptime in SaaS.

So I streamlined:

• Shifted 80% of focus to retained Executive Search for C-Suite/VP roles (12-18% fees, 6-month guarantees).
• Kept select Contingency for aligned growth roles (10-15% fees, 25-day speed).
• Scaled RPO for ongoing TA infrastructure in my niche industries.
• Politely referred entry/mid-level misfits to partners—freeing bandwidth for $35k+ mandates.

Inquiries dipped briefly, but premium clients flooded in: A HealthTech innovator for their Chief Medical Officer (16-day close, regulatory approval in 8 months). An EdTech scale-up for VP Product (19 days, +150% user base).

Proof in the Numbers: Before and After Niching Down

These are straight from my Recruitment Room ledger—real wins that prove niching amplifies your full experience without erasing it.

Your 5-Step Guide to Niching Down in Recruitment (From Full-Spectrum to Focused Powerhouse)

Leveraging my journey across all levels, here’s how to evolve without losing momentum:

1. Audit Your Placement Spectrum Track 12–24 months: Which levels (entry/junior/mid/C-Suite) yield highest fees, easiest closes, and most joy? For me, C-Suite in tech edged out.
2. Match Expertise to Energy What lights you up? I thrive on strategic fits for visionary leaders—global networks from Africa to North America make it seamless.
3. Craft Your Niche Declaration Template: “I place [roles] for [companies] to [outcome] without [pain].” Mine: “I place C-Suite leaders for high-growth FinTech and CleanTech to scale 3x revenue without talent voids.”
4. Rebrand Across the Board Refresh your site, LinkedIn, and pitches with niche testimonials—like my SaaS VP Engineering who 2x’d the team in 21 days.
5. Master the Art of Referral For off-niche requests (e.g., entry-level), partner up. This built my network while I dominated exec searches.

Pro Tip: Blend AI talent mapping with your human edge for 30% faster sourcing—game-changer for any level, but essential at C-Suite.

Embrace the Niche: Turn Your Versatility into Unmatched Leverage

Handling entry to C-Suite gave me the foundation—but niching down unlocked the freedom. No more feast-or-famine cycles. Just high-impact mandates, 92% wins, and a practice that scales globally.

Your broad experience? It’s your superpower. Use it to niche smarter, not smaller.