Recruitment Jargon Decoder
50+ recruitment industry terms, acronyms, and jargon explained in plain language. Built for Australian staffing agencies and recruitment consultants.
Whether you are new to recruitment or just need a quick refresher, this glossary covers every term you will hear on the desk -- from ATS and BD through to temp margins and terms of business. Each definition is written for the Australian market with local context where it matters.
A
ABN
Australian Business Number. An 11-digit identifier issued by the Australian Business Register to every business entity in Australia. Required for invoicing, tax, and verifying that a company is legitimate before engaging them as a client.
Learn more about ABN verificationABR
Australian Business Register. The government database where all ABNs are registered. Recruiters use it to verify a prospective client's business status, registered name, and GST registration before entering into a commercial relationship.
ANZSIC
Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification. A standardised coding system used to categorise businesses by industry. Useful for segmenting prospect lists and building Ideal Client Profiles by sector.
ATS
Applicant Tracking System. Software used to manage job applications, track candidates through the hiring process, and store recruitment data. Common examples include JobAdder, Bullhorn, and Vincere.
Learn more about ATSB
BD
Business Development. The process of identifying and winning new client accounts. In recruitment, BD typically involves cold outreach, reverse marketing, and relationship building with hiring managers.
Learn more about recruitment BDBoolean Search
A search technique using operators like AND, OR, and NOT to filter candidate or company databases. Widely used on LinkedIn Recruiter and job boards to build precise search strings.
Learn more about Boolean SearchBYOK
Bring Your Own Key. A model where users connect their own third-party API keys or accounts rather than using a platform's built-in integration. Common for dialler and enrichment tools.
C
Candidate Sourcing
The process of proactively finding potential candidates for a role, rather than waiting for applications. Includes searching LinkedIn, databases, referrals, and industry networks.
Learn more about Candidate SourcingCatch-All Email
A mailbox configured to accept emails sent to any address at a domain, even if the specific address does not exist. Makes email verification unreliable because the server always accepts delivery.
Cold Outreach
Contacting a prospective client or candidate who has had no prior interaction with you. Typically done via email, phone, or LinkedIn to open a new business relationship.
Contact Enrichment
The process of adding missing data to a contact record, such as email addresses, phone numbers, job titles, or company details, using external data sources.
Learn more about Contact EnrichmentContingency Fee
A recruitment fee structure where the agency is only paid if they successfully place a candidate. Typically calculated as a percentage of the candidate's first-year salary, ranging from 15% to 25%.
CRM
Customer Relationship Management. Software used to track interactions with clients and candidates. In recruitment, a CRM sits alongside or replaces an ATS and focuses on the business development side of the desk.
Learn more about Recruitment CRMCSV Export
Comma-Separated Values export. A standard file format for extracting data from a platform into a spreadsheet. Used to move contact lists, pipeline data, or reports between systems.
D
Deep Research
AI-powered company discovery that searches the web to find businesses matching specific criteria. Returns company profiles, contact details, and market intelligence for business development targeting.
Learn more about Deep ResearchDirect Dial
A phone number that reaches a specific person directly, bypassing the company switchboard or reception. Highly valued in recruitment BD because it significantly increases connect rates.
DNC (Do Not Contact)
A flag placed on a contact or company indicating they should not be contacted again. Can be set manually or triggered automatically by an unsubscribe or complaint.
Domain Warmup
The process of gradually increasing email sending volume from a new domain or mailbox to build sender reputation with email providers. Prevents emails from being flagged as spam.
Learn more about Domain WarmupE
E-Signature
Electronic signature. A legally binding method of signing documents digitally, used in recruitment for terms of business, contractor agreements, and placement confirmations.
Learn more about E-SignatureEmail Deliverability
The ability of your emails to reach the recipient's inbox rather than being filtered to spam or bouncing. Affected by sender reputation, authentication (SPF/DKIM/DMARC), content, and sending patterns.
Learn more about Email DeliverabilityEnrichment Waterfall
A multi-provider data enrichment strategy that tries several sources in sequence to find the best result. If the first provider returns nothing, it falls through to the next until a match is found or all sources are exhausted.
Exclusive Agreement
A contract where a client agrees to use only one recruitment agency for a specific role or set of roles. Gives the recruiter exclusivity in exchange for a more dedicated search effort.
F
Fill Rate
The percentage of job orders that result in a successful placement. A key performance metric for recruitment agencies, indicating how effectively they convert briefs into revenue.
G
GEO
Generative Engine Optimisation. The practice of structuring content so that AI-powered search engines and chatbots can find, understand, and cite it. The AI equivalent of traditional SEO.
GST
Goods and Services Tax. A 10% tax applied to most goods and services in Australia. Recruitment agencies registered for GST must add it to their placement fees and invoices.
Guarantee Period
The timeframe after a placement during which the recruiter will replace the candidate at no additional cost if they leave or are terminated. Typically 3 to 6 months for permanent placements.
H
Hot List
A curated shortlist of top candidates or prospects kept ready for quick deployment. Recruiters maintain hot lists of high-quality, available talent to respond to client briefs faster.
I
ICP
Ideal Client Profile. A detailed description of the type of company that is the best fit for your recruitment services. Includes industry, size, location, hiring patterns, and pain points.
Learn more about ICPIndeed
A global job board and employment search engine. Recruiters use it to post job ads, source candidates, and scrape job market data to identify companies that are actively hiring.
InMail
LinkedIn's direct messaging feature for reaching people outside your network. Requires a LinkedIn Recruiter or Sales Navigator subscription. Used heavily in candidate sourcing and BD outreach.
K
KPI
Key Performance Indicator. Measurable targets used to track recruiter performance. Common recruitment KPIs include calls made, interviews arranged, placements made, and revenue generated per quarter.
L
Labour Hire
A staffing arrangement where workers are employed by the recruitment agency and assigned to work at client sites. The agency handles payroll, superannuation, and WorkCover. Also known as temp staffing.
LinkedIn Recruiter
LinkedIn's premium hiring product that gives recruiters advanced search filters, InMail credits, and candidate pipeline management. The primary tool for sourcing passive candidates.
M
Mail Merge
A technique for sending personalised bulk emails by inserting contact-specific variables (name, company, role) into a template. Used in recruitment outreach campaigns to scale BD without losing personalisation.
MPC (Most Placeable Candidate)
A high-quality candidate who is immediately available, well-qualified, and easy to place. Agencies use MPCs in reverse marketing to open new client relationships.
N
NDR (Non-Delivery Report)
An automated email notification indicating that a sent message could not be delivered. Also called a bounce notification. High NDR rates damage sender reputation.
NPS
Net Promoter Score. A customer satisfaction metric measuring how likely clients or candidates are to recommend your agency. Scored from -100 to +100 based on a single survey question.
O
OTE (On-Target Earnings)
The total expected compensation for a role when all performance targets are met, including base salary plus commissions or bonuses. Standard way to advertise recruiter salaries.
P
Phone Waterfall
A sequential process for finding a contact's phone number by trying multiple data sources in order of cost and reliability. Starts with cached data and escalates to paid providers only when needed.
Learn more about Phone WaterfallPipeline
The collection of active job orders, leads, or opportunities being worked at any given time. A healthy pipeline has enough volume at each stage to sustain consistent placements.
Placement Fee
The fee charged by a recruitment agency for successfully placing a candidate. Usually a percentage of the candidate's annual salary (15-25%) for permanent roles, or a margin on the hourly rate for contract roles.
Learn more about Placement FeesProspect
A potential client or candidate who has been identified but not yet engaged. In recruitment BD, a prospect is a hiring manager or company that fits your ICP but has not been contacted yet.
R
RCSA
Recruitment, Consulting and Staffing Association. The peak industry body for recruitment agencies in Australia and New Zealand. Provides accreditation, training, legal resources, and industry standards.
Recruiter Seat
A single user licence within a recruitment software platform. Pricing is often per-seat, with each seat representing one recruiter or consultant who can access the system.
Retained Search
A recruitment engagement where the client pays an upfront fee (typically one-third of the total) to secure the agency's exclusive, dedicated effort on a senior or hard-to-fill role.
Reverse Marketing
A BD strategy where a recruiter proactively presents a strong candidate to potential employers, even without a current job order. Used to open new client relationships by leading with talent.
Learn more about Reverse MarketingROI
Return on Investment. The ratio of revenue generated to money spent. In recruitment, ROI is used to evaluate the effectiveness of tools, advertising, and BD activities relative to placement revenue.
RPO
Recruitment Process Outsourcing. An arrangement where an external provider manages all or part of a company's recruitment function. The RPO provider acts as an embedded talent acquisition team.
S
Sales Intelligence
Data and insights used to identify, target, and engage potential clients. Includes company information, hiring signals, financial data, and contact details gathered from multiple sources.
Learn more about Sales IntelligenceSEEK
Australia's largest job board. Recruiters use SEEK to advertise roles, source candidates, and monitor competitor activity. SEEK data also reveals which companies are actively hiring in specific sectors.
Learn more about SEEK dataSOW
Statement of Work. A formal document outlining the scope, deliverables, timeline, and terms for a specific engagement. Used in recruitment for project-based hiring, RPO agreements, and contractor assignments.
SPF/DKIM/DMARC
Email authentication protocols. SPF verifies which servers can send on behalf of your domain, DKIM adds a cryptographic signature to prove the email was not altered, and DMARC tells receiving servers what to do with emails that fail SPF or DKIM checks.
T
Temp Margin
The difference between what a client pays for a temporary worker and what the worker is actually paid. The margin covers the agency's costs (super, WorkCover, payroll tax) and profit. Typically 20-35%.
Terms of Business
The legal agreement between a recruitment agency and a client that sets out fee structures, guarantee periods, payment terms, and liability. Must be signed before any candidate introductions.
Time to Fill
The number of days between a job order being received and a candidate starting in the role. A key efficiency metric for recruitment agencies, with shorter times indicating a stronger candidate pipeline.
V
Vertical
A specific industry or sector that a recruitment agency specialises in. Examples include IT, healthcare, construction, and mining. Vertical specialisation builds deeper networks and higher fill rates.
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