Rick Kloete works in executive search and recruiting, and writes about helping firms clarify hiring goals, use AI with human judgment, and distinguish their services from competing offers.
Rick Kloete works in executive search and recruiting, writing about how clearer goals can improve hiring, business decisions, and the use of AI.
Their posts connect familiar challenges—feeling busy but stuck, blending in with competing offers, or struggling to get useful results from AI—to a practical question: what does success look like, and what needs to change to reach it?
Follow their work for concise reflections on bringing more clarity to recruiting and business.
Rick Kloete makes broad business ideas concrete by tying them to recruiting problems.
In a post about feeling busy but stuck, they argue that action without a clear vision can become noise, then suggest defining what matters and choosing a next step (vision and action).
They use scarcity to prompt firms to explain what makes their services distinctive, applying the idea to their own executive recruiting and compensation work (standing apart from competing offers).
In a post about AI, they point to clear instructions, examples, and a human in the loop as ways to improve results (using AI with human judgment).
Together, these posts show a recurring interest in clarity: defining the goal before choosing the action, message, or tool.
Across the three posts, Rick Kloete makes four connected arguments: effort without a clear goal is wasted; a service business needs to state how it differs rather than blend in; AI tools help recruiters only when a person remains in charge of the judgment; and results begin with asking clients what they actually want.
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The posts take a coaching approach, usually ending with a question or invitation to reply, and use outside authorities—Simon Sinek and Robert Cialdini—for framing.
Action without a clear goal is just noise
Rick Kloete's argument is that stalled executive searches and recruiting pushes usually fail from an unclear vision, not from lack of effort.
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Being busy -- checking boxes, hitting deadlines, staying "productive" -- is motion without meaning; the post calls this "the danger of action without clarity of vision."
The payoff of aligning action to a defined goal is described concretely: progress feels energizing rather than exhausting, motivation returns because the reason for showing up is known, and momentum builds confidence.
The post carries the tag #KlarityMethod, suggesting the framing is a named approach rather than a one-off.
Rick Kloete borrows a line from Simon Sinek -- "Working hard for something we don't care about is called stress" -- and closes by asking readers to name one recent change that moved them forward.
The image of “rearranging the furniture on a sinking ship” captures a recruiting effort that looks active but goes nowhere. The post then lists three effects of alignment and closes with an instruction: get still, set a goal that excites and scares you, and write down one action toward it.
Rick Kloete argues that clients face many similar options, so a service firm must state what sets it apart or compete as an interchangeable provider.
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Drawing on Robert Cialdini's book Influence, the post names three drivers of scarcity: loss aversion (people are moved more by losing something than by gaining something equal), psychological reactance (restricted choice makes the scarce thing more desirable), and the mental shortcut that treats hard-to-get items as better.
Kloete applies the idea to the firm's executive recruiting and compensation work, citing a personalized approach, a step-based recruiting process and a deliberate limit on the number of clients it takes each year.
The post asks readers what makes working with them different from their competitors.
Everyday scarcity examples—“Only 2 left in stock!” and “Sale ends in 2 hours!”—set up the firm's own version: it chooses to work with only a few clients each year to maintain service quality.
AI helps recruiting only with “a Human in the Loop”
Rick Kloete treats AI as useful but awkward in practice, opening on the least favorite parts: too many choices, constant change, and setup demands.
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The analogy is to relationships -- clear communication produces results, and neither a partner nor a model can read your mind.
The suggested fixes are practical: build an "AI Brain," develop your "Voice DNA," and feed the model examples of your earlier work.
The position is that a person still owns the decision: after two decades in executive search and running a recruiting firm, Rick Kloete writes that "there must be a Human in the Loop."
Clarity is tied back to a step-based recruiting process that coaches clients with questions, and a Simon Sinek quote about giving people clear instructions closes the argument, with an invitation to message the word CLEAR.
The three setup steps—AI Brain, Voice DNA and examples of prior work—paired with the rule that recruiter judgment stays in charge, and a direct-message call to action: send the word CLEAR.
Ask clients what success looks like before selling them anything
A recurring priority runs through all three posts: results begin with clear communication, and clear communication begins with asking.
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Rick Kloete describes coaching clients with questions to find out what they want and quotes Simon Sinek on giving people clear instructions to get great results.
Each post ends by asking readers something and inviting a reply, comment or direct message: “What makes working with you unique or different?”, “What's one change you've made recently?” and “DM me the word CLEAR”.
The questioning style is part of the argument: establishing a shared definition of success takes conversation, not a pitch.
The posts describe coaching clients with questions through a step-based recruiting process and end with three invitations to readers, showing the method applied to the audience.
The posts describe the process inconsistently: one calls it a proven four-step recruiting process, another an eight-step process, and a third uses the #KlarityMethod tag. Ask Kloete which description is current and whether the method was renamed or restructured.
See how Rick Kloete frames the problem behind a stalled executive search or recruiting push: plenty of activity, but no shared definition of what the hiring effort is for.
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It is the clearest statement of the belief running through the other posts.
Rick Kloete opens with a familiar recruiting complaint — checking boxes, hitting deadlines, staying "productive" — then names it: "the danger of action without clarity of vision."
The post borrows a Simon Sinek line, "Working hard for something we don't care about is called stress," and lists three things that change once action matches a clear vision: progress feels energizing rather than exhausting, motivation returns, and momentum builds confidence.
It closes by asking readers to name one change they made recently that moved them forward, and carries the tag #KlarityMethod, suggesting this framing is a named method rather than a one-off post.
For brands planning a campaign
A recruiter-focused collaboration could build on one recurring hook: before sourcing candidates, clarify the role and the desired outcome. A short “vision before sourcing” exercise for hiring teams to complete before a search begins gives a content partner a repeatable, ownable angle rather than generic recruiting advice.
This post shows Rick Kloete's commercial thinking, not just advice: how a service business can stand out when clients have plenty of similar options.
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Read it to judge whether the positioning argument can support a recruiting-firm collaboration.
Rick Kloete asks whether a business wants to be "just a \"me too\" offer" and answers plainly: "I don't!"
The post builds on Robert Cialdini's book Influence and its element of scarcity, explaining three drivers — loss aversion, psychological reactance (restricted choice makes people want the scarce thing more), and the mental shortcut that treats hard-to-get items as higher quality.
It gives everyday examples: "Only 2 left in stock," "Sale ends in 2 hours," members-only access.
Kloete then applies it to their own work, pointing to a "personalized approach," a proven 8-step recruiting process, and limiting how many clients the firm takes each year "to maintain a high level of service" — ending by asking readers what makes them different from competitors.
For brands planning a campaign
Useful for a firm that wants to talk about differentiation and premium positioning rather than volume.
A collaboration could pair the scarcity argument with a concrete exercise for recruiting firms: a short self-assessment in which a firm writes down what a client would lose by not working with them.
The result could serve as both a thought-leadership asset and a lead-generation prompt.
This post connects AI tools to recruiting practice.
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With only three posts available, ask for a broader sample to assess whether Rick Kloete treats AI as a replacement for recruiters or as an assistant with a defined role.
Rick Kloete starts from a real friction point — too many AI choices, constant change, and setup effort — and compares it to relationships: clear communication is what produces good results, and a tool cannot read your mind.
The post lists three ways to help a model work better: build an "AI Brain," develop a "Voice DNA," and feed it examples of your former work.
After stating two decades of executive search and running a recruiting firm, Rick Kloete concludes that "there must be a Human in the Loop," and ties clarity back to a proven eight-step recruiting process that coaches clients with questions.
A Simon Sinek quote about giving people clear instructions closes the argument, with an invitation to DM the word CLEAR.
For brands planning a campaign
A natural angle for a B2B recruiting audience: how to brief and train AI tools so they support, rather than replace, a recruiter's judgment.
A collaboration could center on a working artifact — an example AI brief or prompt set for a real recruiting task, with a human review step built in.
That fits a firm selling expertise and reinforces the “human in the loop” position.
Repeatable frameworks, process claims, and direct-response formats3
Scarcity and service differentiation in executive recruiting1
Clarity of vision before action in executive search1
AI in recruiting with a human in the loop1
Scarcity and service differentiation in executive recruiting
One post asks whether the reader wants to be a “me too” offer and applies Robert Cialdini’s scarcity principle from Influence to executive recruiting and compensation services.
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Rick Kloete lists loss aversion, psychological reactance, and mental shortcuts, then says the firm’s difference is a personalized approach, a proven step-based recruiting process, and direct work with them and the team. The post also says the firm chooses only a few clients each year.
Uses a well-known influence framework, names its drivers, gives familiar examples such as limited quantities and deadlines, then turns the question back to the reader.
For brands planning a campaign
A recruiting firm could partner with Rick Kloete on content that helps hiring leaders see the cost of a commodity search and the value of a selective, process-led relationship.
Clarity of vision before action in executive search
Another post describes being busy but not going anywhere as “rearranging the furniture on a sinking ship.”
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Rick Kloete quotes Simon Sinek on working hard for something you love, argues that action without clarity is noise, and recommends getting still, defining what matters, setting a goal that excites and scares, and writing one action to move toward it.
Metaphor, authority quote, numbered reasoning, and a prompt asking readers to share a recent change.
For brands planning a campaign
This supports a collaboration on search kickoff, role definition, or hiring-manager alignment, with a promise of clarity before sourcing volume.
A third post acknowledges that AI can be useful while asking about its least favorite parts: many choices, constant change, and setup demands.
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Rick Kloete compares clear communication with AI to clear communication in relationships, then recommends building an “AI Brain,” developing a “Voice DNA,” and giving the model examples of former work. They say two decades in executive search and running a recruiting firm taught them to look for an edge, but there must be a human in the loop, and tie clear instructions to a proven 8-step recruiting process.
Analogy, numbered setup steps, a quoted authority, and a direct-message call to action for the word CLEAR.
For brands planning a campaign
A recruiting firm could commission a practical series from Rick Kloete on using AI for sourcing, intake, or candidate communication while keeping recruiter judgment and clear success criteria in charge.
Across the posts, Rick Kloete returns to clear communication as a condition for results: asking clients questions to find what they want, knowing what success looks like, and giving clear instructions.
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The posts end with reader questions or invitations to reply or send a direct message, showing a coaching and conversation-led approach rather than a broadcast-only style.
Question-led posts that ask the reader to reflect and respond.
For brands planning a campaign
A content partnership could center on a repeatable discovery or intake interview that helps hiring teams state success criteria before a search begins.
Repeatable frameworks, process claims, and direct-response formats
The posts use named or step-based structures—a step-based recruiting process, an 8-step process in one post, and a “Klarity Method” hashtag in another—alongside heavy emphasis, numbered lists, quotes, and calls to comment or message.
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One post describes the recruiting process as 4-step, while another says 8-step.
Direct-response LinkedIn format with Unicode emphasis, lists, quotes, and a DM lead path.
Process naming varies across the posts, and no dates are available to explain the change.
For brands planning a campaign
Before a campaign, a recruiting firm should confirm which framework name and step count Rick Kloete wants to use so the collaboration presents one consistent process.
The posts name no sponsor, affiliate, client, or investor.
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Kloete cites Robert Cialdini's book Influence and Simon Sinek as influences on how they frame their recruiting work.
They also describe running a recruiting firm and offering executive recruiting and compensation services, including an eight-step recruiting process.
The posts don't name the business, so ask Kloete which firm they represent.
Robert Cialdini (Influence)
Mention
In a post arguing against being a "me too" offer, Kloete cites Cialdini's book Influence and its "Scarcity" element to explain how they position their executive recruiting and compensation services and limit how many clients they take on each year.
Kloete quotes Simon Sinek in two posts: the line about working hard for something you love versus something you don't care about, to argue that action without a clear vision is just noise; and the line about giving people a good job to do and clear instructions on what success looks like, to explain why clarifying recruiting needs matters in recruiting and when working with AI.
Rick Kloete's posts concentrate on three connected subjects: running executive searches around a clear definition of success, presenting a recruiting and compensation service as something other than an interchangeable option, and using AI while keeping recruiter judgment with a person.
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The format is short, question-led LinkedIn writing that borrows framing from Simon Sinek and Robert Cialdini, lists steps or drivers, and closes by asking the reader to reply or message. Readers can start with the "me too" offer post for the service-differentiation argument, the sinking-ship post for the clarity argument, and the AI post for the human-in-the-loop position; the same questioning style runs through all three.
Both write from long recruiting and talent-acquisition careers and reflect on how hiring practice is changing.
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Davis traces a path from executive search to leading talent-acquisition teams to consulting and building a product; Kloete applies influence and clarity ideas to executive search and compensation. Both use short, reflective LinkedIn posts to argue that employers should change how they hire.
Davis's recent posts center on a pre-hire assessment product and the founder's move from buyer to vendor, leaning toward product development and career transition. Kloete writes about positioning a search service, process steps, and using AI while keeping recruiter judgment with a person, focusing on service differentiation and persuasion.
Both publish LinkedIn posts about hiring quality and the candidate experience and coach employers on running a better recruiting process.
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DiPlacido's point that top candidates choose experiences and Kloete's questions about defining success before a search starts both treat process clarity as the differentiator.
DiPlacido's work covers small-business and fractional HR consulting, with practical hiring-process guidance and open-role postings. Kloete focuses on executive recruiting and compensation, using influence principles and a named step process to address executive-level search rather than general small-business HR needs.
Both apply persuasion research to business communication and teach through numbered, example-led LinkedIn posts.
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Andrews uses loss aversion and conversion-neuroscience examples; Kloete uses Cialdini's scarcity drivers to explain why a service firm needs a stated difference.
Andrews writes about website copy and conversion for service and eCommerce businesses, using marketing-neuroscience framing. Kloete applies persuasion to executive recruiting and compensation services and to AI-supported recruiting, focusing on hiring and client selection rather than copy and conversion.
The only measured audience figure is a LinkedIn follower count of 23,348, observed 8 October 2026.
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It shows the size of one channel, but not who follows it.
No age, geography, gender, employer, job function or engagement data are stated here, so the count alone should not guide a placement decision for an executive recruiting firm.
Three available LinkedIn posts, published 29 September to 3 October 2026, speak to hiring executives and recruiting leaders.
One walks through persuading clients to stop treating a recruiting offer as interchangeable; another pairs AI-assisted work with a human in the loop across two decades of executive search; the third argues that recruiting activity without a clear hiring goal is motion without meaning.
The topics and framing are aimed at people who buy or run executive searches, but reach and relevance are different questions: only reach is documented.
For a recruiting-and-sales-influence collaboration, the key gap is professional composition.
LinkedIn audience data can speak to geography, age and gender, but does not verify employer, occupation or seniority.
Before committing to a thought-leadership or content partnership, ask Rick Kloete for audience survey results or another source covering seniority, function and industry mix, along with recent post or campaign results on comparable recruiting and influence topics and formats.
A LinkedIn follower count near 23,000 is worth having, but does not show whether readers are decision-makers in executive hiring.
Rick Kloete's posts do not describe partnership, sponsorship, or paid-collaboration formats.
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They cover executive search and recruiting services, a recruiting process, and the use of AI in that work; none announces a sponsor, names a partner, or sets out terms a brand could buy.
A buyer will need to negotiate directly.
The practical starting point is the service relationship Kloete advertises: help with executive searches, recruiting process clarity, and positioning a firm's offer.
In the scarcity post, Kloete says the firm chooses to work with only a few clients each year to maintain a high level of service, suggesting limited capacity rather than open publishing inventory.
The AI post frames the offering around coaching clients through a structured recruiting process and keeping a human in the loop, so expect Kloete's involvement to be advisory or service-led rather than purely promotional.
Accept this need: an executive search firm selling to hiring executives on the strength of its process, seeking a named content partner for a series on getting a search right before sourcing begins.
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The posts give the partnership a repeatable spine, not generic recruiting talk.
In one, Rick Kloete argues that recruiting activity without a shared definition of success is motion without meaning, then asks readers to name one change that moved them forward.
A second applies scarcity thinking to a service business, describing the firm's difference as a personalized approach, a proven step-based process, and direct work with Rick and the team.
A third tackles AI in recruiting and makes the case for a human in the loop.
Together, these positions align with what a selective search firm sells: clarity before volume, differentiation from commodity recruiting, and recruiter judgment that tools do not replace.
The audience read supports this, with one caveat.
The only published audience figure is 23,348 LinkedIn followers, observed 8 October 2026.
That establishes reach on one channel, but not who follows the account.
Treat the collaboration as a credibility and content play, not a paid-reach buy.
Before committing distribution budget, ask for an audience survey or another documented breakdown by seniority, function, and industry.
Capacity also needs planning.
In the scarcity post, Kloete says the firm chooses only a few clients a year to maintain service levels.
Expect a limited number of posts or sessions, negotiated directly, rather than open publishing inventory.
No rate card, format menu, or media kit appears in the posts, so agree scope, cadence, and fees directly.
Fit for this need: strong on topic, audience, and point of view; reach and format remain unproven.
Ask for audience data and proposed formats before committing.
When to choose a specialist
Reject this need: a high-volume staffing or AI sourcing-automation vendor buying a fixed number of sponsored posts each month, written to the vendor's script, promoting automated candidate screening and large applicant funnels, with payment per placement.
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The posts reveal three problems.
First, the message contradicts Kloete's position.
The AI post says a human must stay in the loop and keeps recruiter judgment in charge.
A scripted endorsement of screening that removes that step would have Kloete argue against their own published work.
Second, the posts show no sponsorship offer.
They describe search services, a recruiting process, and views on AI in that work; none names a sponsor, sets terms, or gives a route to buy placement.
A buyer cannot price or schedule a program from them.
The scarcity post's stated capacity — a few clients a year — also points away from monthly volume work.
Third, the available numbers cannot justify placement spend.
A follower count is not an engagement figure, and the posts provide no reaction, comment, or click data to predict how sponsored copy would perform.
If the vendor's actual goal is credibility with hiring leaders rather than volume reach, that is a different need: advisory content with recruiter review built in.
As submitted, this one fails on message, format details, and measurement.
A worked campaign example
Angle: “Clarity before sourcing” — a two-month collaboration between the search firm and Rick Kloete, turning the three posts into working assets for hiring managers rather than a run of motivational posts.
1. Opening essay, posted from Rick Kloete's account in the voice the posts already use. Hook: motion without meaning — checking boxes, hitting deadlines, staying productive while a search drifts. Draw on the “rearranging the furniture on a sinking ship” framing and the idea that action without clarity is noise. End with the kind of question Kloete already asks: what one change did you make recently that moved a search forward? Expected effect: name a problem the firm's clients feel, without pitching yet.
2. The working artifact: a one-page “pre-search brief” the firm owns and distributes. Include roughly eight questions for a hiring manager to answer before sourcing starts — what success looks like twelve months in, what would make the hire a failure, which trade-offs are acceptable, who signs off, and who can veto. This draws on the coaching and question-led approach described in the posts. It gives readers something useful and the firm a lead magnet that outlasts the series.
3. Mid-series post on AI in the search process. Follow the existing AI post's structure — too many choices, constant change, setup effort; build an “AI Brain,” develop a “Voice DNA,” and feed the model examples of past work — then show one anonymised screening brief and exactly what the recruiter changed before it went out. That makes the human-in-the-loop claim more than a slogan.
4. Closing post on selectivity: why the firm caps the number of searches it takes each year. Build on the scarcity argument in the “me too” post — loss aversion, restricted choice, the mental shortcut that treats hard-to-get as better — and apply it honestly to real capacity, not as a manufactured countdown. The post should also state the firm's answer to the question Kloete puts to readers: what makes you different from your competitors?
Settle three things before the first post goes out. Choose which process name and step count to use: the posts refer to a step-based process, an eight-step process, and a “Klarity Method” tag, without explaining the variation. Pick one and stay consistent. Decide who drafts and who approves, since the posts read as Kloete's own voice. Set measures: worksheet downloads, replies and direct messages, hiring-manager conversations started, and search enquiries the firm can trace to the series. The posts provide no engagement benchmark, so use the first two as an internal baseline rather than promising reach. No published format, rate card, or inquiry route is available, so agree scope, cadence, and fee directly with Rick Kloete.
Choose Steven Davis when the firm wants a partner who can speak as a buyer turned builder and connect hiring decisions to manager and team fit.
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Davis's posts trace a career from executive search to leading talent acquisition teams to consulting, and now to building and selling a product that provides data on how a candidate is likely to work with a specific manager and team.
That experience suits a collaboration about the hiring process itself, especially if the firm wants to reach talent acquisition leaders rather than search buyers.
Their framing of the current market—fewer hires, each one mattering more, and no time for a manager and new hire to figure each other out—gives the recruiting firm a timely argument backed by an assessment product.
Rick Kloete's posts cover sales influence, scarcity and keeping a human in the loop on AI, with a service-firm perspective on winning and keeping clients.
Davis's recent posts focus on building and selling a product, so a series would shift toward assessment messaging and a founder's narrative rather than a search firm's differentiators.
The sample is narrow—two posts from late September and early October 2026—so ask for more examples before committing to a multi-post series.
Choose Gill Andrews when the goal is content that converts and the firm is willing to trade recruiting-outcome proof for evidence that its writing changes buyer behavior.
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Andrews teaches through named examples and numbers: an AI-generated image test showing that a vague tagline gives readers nothing concrete, and a popup test on a real retailer where pointing out a potential loss raised conversion by 24.5 percent.
She explains the neuroscience in plain steps—concrete language, loss aversion, genuine scarcity and risk reversal—and offers before-and-after copy readers can apply directly.
For a firm whose weak point is content that gets responses from hiring executives rather than approvals from colleagues, her instruction and testing discipline are the closer match.
Andrews is not a recruiting practitioner.
Her examples come from websites and ecommerce, so a collaboration would bring strong writing and conversion craft but no firsthand account of running a search or specific commentary on recruiting decisions.
The firm would need to supply the recruiting expertise and credibility found in Rick Kloete's posts.
Posts here date from February and June 2026; ask for recent work to assess her priorities in the second half of 2026.
Choose Reilly DiPlacido when the firm wants a working HR consultancy voice rather than an executive search voice, and its target reader is a small or mid-sized business handling its own hiring.
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The posts cover the candidate experience directly—communication, interview structure, timelines, transparency and follow-through—and argue that companies hiring well right now are intentional about the process, with recruiting as candidates' first impression of the organization.
The second post puts that practice on display, advertising a full-time HR consultant role with salary range, location and a clear application route.
For content aimed at employers who need hands-on people-process support and fractional HR, that operational detail is more useful than commentary on search strategy.
Rick Kloete's posts address search and compensation services, with questions about vision, differentiation and process.
DiPlacido's posts focus on general HR and employer branding, so a series would move away from search craft and the influence and selectivity themes.
These posts also offer little on sales or client acquisition, the other half of the stated need.
This profile draws on three LinkedIn posts attributed to Rick Kloete, read in full, and the accepted overview, ideas, relationships, discovery and campaign-fit sections based on those posts.
The posts have no publication dates.
They discuss executive recruiting and compensation services, but do not name the business; the posts does not establish the full range of Kloete’s work.
