Your Clients in 2010: Be ‘In It for Them’

Things, as you may have noticed, have changed for executive recruiters. This year has been a rather tumultuous one for many in the industry, so much so that quite a few have closed their doors and left the profession. Unfortunately, this trend could very well continue throughout the rest of 2009 and into 2010, rumors of an economic recovery notwithstanding.

Speaking of next year, what will it hold for recruiters? What will the landscape look like? Regardless of the rate of the economy’s growth, one thing is certain—recruiters will need to make a renewed effort to focus on the needs of their clients with laser-like intensity and make meeting those needs their number-one priority. In other words, hiring managers will need to feel as though you’re “in it for them” through the experiences they have with you. Those are the recruiters they’ll choose to work with. Those are the recruiters they’ll want to work with.

What follows are the thoughts of Mark Demaree of Top Echelon Network and Debbie Fledderjohann of Top Echelon Contracting regarding what you can do in 2010 to convince clients that you’re “in it for them.”

Mark Demaree President, Top Echelon Network 'Half the Fee, All the Loyalty'

Let’s be honest about something. Hiring officials don’t really care if you receive a full fee for placing a candidate at their company. In fact, they don’t care if you receive a fee at all (and I’m willing to bet they might have expressed that on one occasion or another). They primarily care about two things: 1. Whether or not you can provide the types of candidates that are proven performers, that can meet their exact needs and even exceed them, and can transform their organization; and 2. If you can provide these candidates, how quickly you can provide them. Because the longer it takes to fill an open position, the greater the potential is for profit loss due to decreased productivity.

Sure, company officials are prone to extended bouts of feet-dragging, but they still want viable candidates in a short amount of time so they can begin to interview and evaluate them. One of the best ways in which to uncover, qualify, and present top-notch candidates in a short amount of time is through networking. There are a number of networking avenues you can pursue, but one is to interact and communicate with other recruiters by sharing and exchanging job order and candidate information. This, of course, can lead to a split placement with another recruiter (a situation in which you have the job order and they have the candidate, or vice-versa).

Once again, remember that the hiring officials ultimately don’t care how or where you find your candidates, just as long as they meet their needs and are a great asset to the organization. And there are a number of reasons why presenting only the best candidates—and presenting them as quickly as possible—is important right now:

1. Yes, the market is flooded with candidates, but the majority of them are unemployed candidates. Companies aren’t necessarily interested in these candidates, and managers often find it burdensome to sift through the masses.
2. Money is tight. That means for companies that are actually looking to hire in this environment, the margin for error is small. As a result, hiring officials won’t even consider pulling the trigger on a candidate unless they believe beyond a shadow of a doubt that the person is absolutely, positively, 100% right for the position. (Many times, it may feel as though they’re waiting until they’re 150% sure.)
3. Companies can go from dragging their feet to having cold feet almost instantly. Time kills all deals. If you don’t get high-quality candidates in front of decision makers in a timely fashion, they could change their minds about hiring and decide they can live without an additional employee, as least until the economy improves. (And when, exactly, will that be?)

Undoubtedly, the temptation exists for recruiters to keep searching for candidates on their own in an effort to secure a full fee. There’s nothing wrong with earning a full fee, unless that fee is earned at the expense of satisfying the client’s needs in the most expedient way possible. Thinking such as that reflects a “what’s in it for me” mindset rather than a “what’s in it for them” mindset. True, it’s your mortgage and your bills that need to be paid, but once again—and it might be rather harsh to consider this—but hiring officials don’t care about your mortgage or your bills. They care about whether or not you have their best interests in mind and about whether you’ve made meeting their needs your top priority . . . because that’s what they’re ultimately willing to cut a check for.

The key is to not sacrifice long-term loyalty for the prospect of short-term financial gain. Meeting the needs of your clients quickly can result in much more business in the future. The way in which to ensure success in recruiting over the long haul, through good times and bad, is through the building of relationships with companies and hiring officials. These relationships are built upon trust and result in loyalty. Customer loyalty is without a doubt critical to the success of any business, and that includes the recruiting business.

When you place a candidate in a split placement situation, you might only receive half the fee, but you’ll reap the benefits of all the loyalty placing that candidate will provide for you in the future. (Not only that, but other recruiters will seek you out for other split placement opportunities, thereby potentially increasing your volume of business even more.) By focusing on the needs of your clients and giving them what they need when they need it, you’ll position yourself as a valuable resource and a trusted consultant instead of “just another recruiter.” During these unpredictable economic times, and with uncertainty still on the horizon, you can’t afford to be looked at as “just another recruiter.”

Consider making split placements a part of your business model. Networking with other recruiters can be rewarding in more ways than one, and making multiple placements and building long-term relationships with clients are just two of those ways.

Debbie Fledderjohann President, Top Echelon Contracting ‘A Little Flexibility Goes a LONG Way’

What do companies need right now, more than anything else (besides extra cash and perhaps an extended line of credit)? They need flexibility to get the things done that need to be done without adding extra overhead, mainly in the form of more employees.

As all of you are more than well aware, the number of direct-hire job orders being issued by companies during the past 18 months has dropped dramatically. However, that doesn’t mean that the amount of work at these companies has dropped, too. In fact, the workload per-employee has probably increased, as fewer employees are called upon to do the work of those who were laid off. Faced with circumstances such as these, many hiring managers are at their wits’ end as they attempt to meet important deadlines. They might feel as though their hands are tied behind their back. Nobody needs flexibility more than they do, and they are most likely willing to pay for it.

That’s where you come in. Maybe you’ve thought about contracting in the past. Perhaps you placed a few contractors a long time ago, but you haven’t done anything since. Maybe you’ve always been a direct-hire recruiter and you’ve never even considered offering contracting to your client companies. Whatever your situation, you CAN offer contracting to your clients.

Below are some of the ways in which hiring on a contract basis helps companies increase their flexibility and stay as productive as possible while keeping costs to a minimum:

• Staffing flexibility—The company can match its staffing level to the current workload or project goals.
• Immediate availability—Unlike direct-hire candidates, contract candidates are typically available on short notice, usually within days. Most interviews take place over the phone, as well.
• Budget flexibility—Contractors are typically paid from the operating budget as opposed to the capital budget. Consequently, companies are still able to hire contractors even when they’re experiencing budgetary constraints.
• “Try-before-they-buy”—If hiring officials are leery about hiring a candidate on a full-time basis—for whatever reason—they can always start them on contract and then eventually transition them over (temp-to-perm). This has become an increasingly popular option recently, as the economy appears to be finally poised for a recovery.

Does the idea of contracting take some recruiters out of their “comfort zone”? Absolutely, but 2009 hasn’t exactly been a comfortable year for direct-hire recruiters overall. Is there a certain “fear factor” involved with contract placements? Yes, but it’s completely unfounded. First and foremost, the recruiting aspect of contract placements is the same as it is for direct-hire placements: you have to find the candidate, screen the candidate, prep the candidate, and place the candidate. Second, the back-office aspect of the process (i.e., the legal, financial, and administrative paperwork) can be handled by a back-office service provider, taking it off your plate and allowing you to focus your energies on other things.

But here’s the number-one reason you should think about offering contracting to your client companies—statistics show that 70% to 80% of companies are using contractors! And if they’re not getting these services from you, they’ll go to other recruiters until they get what they need. Do you really want your clients soliciting the services of other recruiters? When it comes to recruiting, a little flexibility goes a LONG way. It goes a long way in terms of building business relationships; creating and cultivating loyalty; and ensuring that you’ll not only survive this recession, but you’ll thrive once it’s over.