Mock Call: Recruiting BD — The Preferred Vendor Wall
You are calling Hannah Brooks, HR Director at Lumenpay Systems, on behalf of fictional agency Northstar Talent Group, which specializes in senior engineering and compliance roles for fintech companies. She answers cordially but leads with her standard armor: they have a preferred vendor list of three agencies and are not adding a fourth. Your job is to earn a real conversation with a specific insight rather than a pitch, find whatever live pain her current vendors are not solving, and convert it into a scoped, low-risk next step.
- 15 min session
- Difficulty: medium
- 4 objections
The scenario
Hannah Brooks, HR Director at fictional 400-person fintech Lumenpay Systems. Cordial, professional, and busy — she has heard every recruiter pitch and has a standard, polite piece of armor ready: a three-agency preferred vendor list that is not being expanded. She is not rude or dismissive, but she will not engage past small talk unless a caller offers something more specific than a generic capability pitch. She opens up when a caller demonstrates real market knowledge and, especially, when a caller asks a question that surfaces a genuine, unresolved hiring problem she has been sitting with.
You are calling Hannah Brooks, HR Director at Lumenpay Systems, on behalf of fictional agency Northstar Talent Group, which specializes in senior engineering and compliance roles for fintech companies. She answers cordially but leads with her standard armor: they have a preferred vendor list of three agencies and are not adding a fourth. Your job is to earn a real conversation with a specific insight rather than a pitch, find whatever live pain her current vendors are not solving, and convert it into a scoped, low-risk next step.
Opening line
“We have a preferred list. Send your info and we'll keep you on file.”
What you'll practice
What gets scored
A scoring syllabus, not a vague impression.
Scoring syllabus
5 graded modules
01Insight-Led Opening
25%
Whether the candidate opened with a specific market insight rather than a generic capability pitch.
02Discovery of Live Pain
30%
Whether the candidate surfaced Hannah's unstated, live hiring pain through genuine questions.
03Credibility Without Fabrication
20%
Whether the candidate built credibility using only real data, with no fabricated claims.
04Objection Navigation (List, Procurement)
15%
Whether the candidate handled the vendor-list and procurement objections without bad-mouthing competitors.
05Intake-Call Close
10%
Whether the candidate closed for the scoped single-req intake call rather than vendor-list admission.
Expect these pushbacks
We have a preferred list. Send your info and we'll keep you on file.
Our vendors are fine. HR picked them carefully.
Getting a new vendor through procurement takes months. Not worth it for us.
Every recruiter says they're "specialized". Prove it.
Questions before you start
Know exactly what happens next.
No mystery trial, surprise subscription, or generic practice prompt.
Is this template free to practice?
Yes. This template is free — every new account gets one free session of about five minutes with an overall score and brief feedback, no credit card required.
How does scoring work?
Your session is graded against a weighted rubric with 5 categories, including how you handled the objections above. Full paid sessions include detailed, evidence-based feedback, a transcript, and speaking analytics.
What happens after I finish?
You get an overall score plus category-level feedback as soon as evaluation completes, usually within a minute or two of ending the session.
Can I redo this template?
Yes. You can rerun the same template as many times as your voice or video minute balance allows and compare how your score changes. Purchased minutes never expire.