There are a lot of reasons why we believe a split fee model makes sense for recruitment firms across the globe. NPAworldwide Chair-Elect Jason Elias of Elias Recruitment in Sydney was a recent guest on The Resilient Recruiter podcast to discuss this topic. We often discuss splits as an option to even out cyclical fluctuations in cash flow, or as an economical means of business expansion. Jason sees value in split fee placements that allow him to serve his clients more effectively.
When a client calls with an opportunity outside of Jason’s legal niche, he is quick to share those opportunities with his NPAworldwide partners. It saves the client from having to vet new recruitment firms for one-off roles. More importantly to Jason, it avoids a scenario in which his client finds a “multipurpose” recruitment firm to fill ALL of their openings, eliminating the need to use Jason for ANY future roles. Recruiters work too hard to find and develop client relationships to let them walk away because of a perceived inability to fill a particular role. A good split fee trading relationship can improve your scope of service, leading to happier clients … and more repeat business.
The entire interview is about 45 minutes long and well worth the time. As you’ll see from the outline provided below, Jason and Mark also discussed topics like building a time, successfully wearing multiple hats and some of the tools Jason uses to save time and money.
Podcast Timeline (shared with permission from Mark Whitby)
[2:11] Jason Elias’ journey from lawyer to recruiter[5:16] How did his first split fee come about?
[7:20] How he started collaborating with other recruiters
[12:14] Why a split fee model is worth adopting
[15:30] Learning lessons from building a team
[19:45] Jason’s plans for the future of his firm
[25:24] What do you do when clients are your competition?
[32:41] How does Jason juggle all of his roles?
[35:35] Why Jason believes managing is worth the reward
[38:00] Jason shares his favorite tech tools