Recruiter cold call script: calling hiring managers who have never heard of you

A recruiter cold call script has four parts: a short opener that says who you are and why you are calling this person today, one specific reason (a candidate, a role they are trying to fill, or a change in their team), one or two questions that get the hiring manager talking, and a small, clear ask. The ask on a first call is a second conversation, a job order or permission to send a profile, never a signed fee agreement.

This page is the spoken version. For written outreach, use the business development email templates, and for the wider plan of where new clients come from, read how to get new recruiting clients. What follows is the call itself: what to prepare, what to say, and what to do when the manager pushes back.

Before you dial: three things on one line

Write these three things in your CRM before every call. If you cannot fill all three, you are not ready to call that person yet.

WHO:     [Name], [title], [company] — manages [team / function]
WHY NOW: [the candidate / the open role / the change in their team]
ASK:     [15-minute call this week / send one profile / take the job order]

• Who. Call the person who owns the hire: the manager whose team the role sits in, or their manager. HR and talent acquisition are worth a call too, but they are a different conversation, usually about supplier lists and terms.
• Why now. A real, checkable reason. A role posted on their careers page, a candidate you represent whose background matches their team, a new leader who has just joined, a product launch that will need people. "I'd love to learn about your hiring plans" is not a reason.
• Ask. Decide before you dial what a good outcome is. Most first calls end with a second conversation booked. That is a good call.

The core script

This is the shape every version follows. Read it aloud a few times until it sounds like you, then stop reading it.

OPENER (under 30 seconds)
"Hi [Name], it's [Your name] from [Agency]. We recruit [specialism]
in [region / market]. I'm calling about [reason, in one line].
Have I caught you at a bad moment?"

[If yes: "When's better, later today or tomorrow morning?" Book it. Hang up.]
[If no: go on.]

REASON (one or two sentences)
"[Specific detail about the candidate / role / change]."

QUESTION
"[One open question about their team or the hire]."

[Listen. Ask one follow-up about what they just said.]

ASK
"Would it be worth 15 minutes on [day] to go through it properly?"
  or "Can I send you a two-paragraph profile today?"
  or "Would you like me to work on it?"

CLOSE
"Great. I'll send a calendar invite for [day, time] and a short note
with what we discussed. Thanks, [Name]."

Asking "have I caught you at a bad moment?" sounds odd to some recruiters, but it does two things: it gives the manager control, and a "no" is permission to continue. If they say they are busy, take the callback slot and hang up. A rushed pitch to someone walking into a meeting wastes the one first impression you get.

Three openers, depending on your reason

1. The candidate call

You represent someone strong whose background fits this manager's team. Get the candidate's agreement first, keep them anonymous, and see the MPC marketing email template for which candidates are worth marketing at all.

"I'm representing a [job title] who's [one fact: built X / led Y / moved
from your competitor's team]. They're looking for [what they want], and
your team came up because [specific reason]. I don't know whether you're
hiring. Is a person like that someone you'd make room for, or is the
timing wrong?"

2. The open role call

"I saw you're hiring a [role]. It's been up on your site since [month],
which usually means the right people aren't applying, or they're
dropping out. Which is it for you?"

Only use "it's been up since" if it has. If you do not know how long it has been posted, ask: "How is the search going?"

3. The change call

"Congratulations on [the new role / the launch / the new office]. When
teams [take on X], they usually end up hiring [type of role]. Is that
on your list for the next few months, or already covered?"

Questions that earn the second call

If the manager starts talking, your job changes from pitching to finding out whether there is work you can actually do. Pick from these and do not ask them all.

• "What's the hardest role on your team to fill right now?"
• "When you last hired for that, where did the person come from?"
• "What happens if it stays open another two months?"
• "Who else is involved when you decide to bring in a recruiter?"
• "What went wrong the last time you used an agency?"

The last question looks risky, but the answer tells you exactly what to promise and what to avoid. If the conversation turns into a real role, switch to a proper intake rather than taking a job order on a five-minute call; the client intake call agenda covers how to run that.

Objection replies

Treat an objection as information, not something to argue down. Acknowledge it, ask one question, and accept a real no.

Gatekeepers and switchboards

Be honest with whoever answers. Do not claim the manager is expecting you, do not imply you are a candidate, and do not invent a reason. Assistants and receptionists remember recruiters who lied to them.

"Hi, this is [Your name] from [Agency]. I'm a recruiter, and I'm
calling [Name] about [the open role / a candidate for their team].
Is there a good time to reach them, or would you rather I email?"

If they ask what it is about, tell them. If they say the manager does not take recruiter calls, ask who handles agency relationships and write that name down. If you reach voicemail, leave a short message with your reason and number; the recruiter voicemail scripts have versions for each situation.

A candidate cold call, briefly

"Cold call" in a recruiting team sometimes means calling a passive candidate instead. The same structure works: who you are, why them, one question, a small ask.

"Hi [Name], it's [Your name], a recruiter at [Agency]. I'm working on a
[role] at a [type of company] and your work on [specific thing] is why
I'm calling. Is now a bad moment?

[No] I'm not assuming you're looking. What would a move have to offer
for you to take a call about it?"

If they are open, book a proper screen rather than running it there and then. Use your normal phone screen for that call.

After the call: the follow-up email and the note

Send the follow-up within the hour, while the manager still remembers your voice.

Subject: [Role / candidate], as discussed

Hi [Name],

Thanks for the time just now. As promised:

- [What you agreed: the profile, the call on Thursday, the terms]
- [One thing they told you, in their words, so they know you listened]

[Calendar invite / profile / terms attached as agreed.]

[Your name]
[Phone]

Then log the call in your CRM the same day: the reason you called, what they said in their own words, the outcome, and the next date. A note that says "spoke, not hiring" is useless in three months. A note that says "backfill for Q1 likely, manager said current team is 'stretched on the data side', call week of 6 January" is a reason to call again.

Calling rules to check (as of October 2026)

What to track

Count conversations and outcomes, not dials. A useful weekly view for a business development desk:

• Conversations with hiring managers (not voicemails, not gatekeepers).
• Second conversations booked.
• Job orders taken, and how many of those you filled.
• Which reason for calling led to each job order: candidate, open role or change.

After a month, the last line tells you which opener works for your market. Put your effort there. The numbers belong on your KPI dashboard next to your delivery figures, because a desk that wins job orders it cannot fill has not gained anything.