The Resilient Recruiter How to Build a 10-Year Retained Practice with a 94% Retention Rate, with Carol Ann Wentworth
In 2008, Carol Ann Wentworth lost her business, her home, and nearly everything she owned. Within 10 days of clarifying her next step, three recruiting firms reached out. She had a job offer in two weeks.
That same clarity is what built Wentworth Executive Recruiting into a ten-year retained practice with a 94% retention rate.
Carol Ann has 35 years of experience in executive search. She sends three candidates per search, not thirty. Her interviews run an hour, sometimes two. She made 48 placements with one Silicon Valley client and supported their growth through to IPO. She works with five core clients. Two keep her consistently busy.
This is a different kind of episode. Not about scaling fast or billing millions in year one. It's about what it actually takes to build a recruiting practice that lasts, clients who stay, placements who stay, and a business that works for your life.
Carol Ann breaks down the process behind her retention rate, the mindset framework she used to rebuild after the 2008 crash, and why going deeper with fewer clients has been more powerful than chasing volume.
In this episode, you'll discover:
Why Carol Ann sends three candidates instead of thirty — and what that demands upfront
The two-hour candidate interview: what she asks and what she's really listening for
How she uses social media screening to assess candidates beyond the CV
The clarity, commitment, and consistency framework she used to rebuild after losing everything
The difference between ego and confidence — and why it matters in a crisis
What a sustainable retained practice looks like after ten years
Why scaling isn't the only model for a successful recruiting business
Episode highlights:
[3:54] From an international modeling agency founder at 26 to an executive search
[14:40] The mindful recruiting methodology and what real listening looks like
[15:39] A 94% retention rate and the process that produces it
[17:00] The two-hour candidate interview: what she asks and what she's listening for
[21:01] Social media screening: what Carol Ann looks for and why
[35:14] Losing a business, a home, and nearly everything, and landing a job in two weeks
[38:50] Ego vs. confidence: why the distinction matters in a crisis
[41:04] Clarity, commitment, and consistency: the framework she used to rebuild
[55:36] A Mindful Career: how the book came about
Guest Bio: Carol Ann Wentworth is the founder and CEO of Wentworth Executive Recruiting, based in the San Francisco Bay Area. She has 35 years of experience in executive search, specializing in retained search across commercial construction, renewable energy, and technology. She has achieved a 94% retention rate across her placements and made 48 placements with one Silicon Valley client through to IPO. She is co-author of A Mindful Career, written with her husband Eric Wentworth.
Connect with Carol Ann: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolannwentworth Website: https://wentworthexecutiverecruiting.co
Connect with Mark:
Free 30-minute strategy session: https://recruitmentcoach.com/strategy-session/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mwhitby/
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