The Art of the Approach — How Level Up Engages Passive Talent

It’s Not a Cold Call — It’s a Warm Conversation

Reaching passive candidates is a lot like dating.
You don’t ask someone to marry you five minutes after meeting them.
You build connection. Establish trust. Offer value. Show them why you’re worth considering.

Unfortunately, many recruitment agencies still use outdated methods like bulk emails, cookie-cutter LinkedIn messages, and job specs that look like they were written in 2006. These don’t work on passive talent. In fact, they erode trust.

At Level Up, we do things differently.
Here’s how we build relationships with high-performing passive candidates:

🔍 Research Comes First
We learn about the candidate. Their company. Their current role. Their career trajectory. We find patterns — not just in skills, but in motivation. What are they likely to want next?

💬 We Start a Real Conversation
We never lead with a job spec. Instead, we open a value-driven dialogue:

• “I came across your profile and was genuinely impressed with your work on X…”

• “I’m speaking with leaders in your space about upcoming strategic roles, and I’d love to include you in that conversation.”

• “You may not be looking — but would it be worth a short, confidential chat to hear about an opportunity that aligns with where you're going?”

🎯 Tailored Opportunity Design
We don’t force-fit candidates into roles. We shape opportunities around who they are — and work with our clients to highlight what will truly attract the person in front of us.

That’s not just recruitment. That’s curation.

The outcome?
We’ve built long-term relationships with some of the most in-demand professionals in the market — many of whom were “passive” at first contact, but became loyal advocates and placements.

Tomorrow, we’ll dive into a real-world example of how this approach led to a game-changing hire for a client who had nearly given up.