Split Placements

In a network, independent and boutique agencies look to add value to their clients and candidates by positioning themselves as global recruiters covering all specialties without losing their culture or personal service. When you are electing to involve another recruiter on a search, the efficiency you both show will always close deals. Here is a story of a brand new Sydney based member reaching out to another member.  They are both generalist recruiters, both looking to service their client and candidate as best possible.

The firm with the position joined NPAworldwide near the end of December of this past year. The owner and one of her recruiters had attended an open lunch meeting as a way to meet some of the members prior to joining. Right after Christmas break, this owner was already working the system to find a recruiter to match up to her client’s needs. Sparing no time, it was a matter of calling the other firm, and they proved to be very welcoming and friendly. The client required a Client Services Officer for their Financial Planning business in Western Sydney. They had advertised the position themselves but hadn’t had much success. After briefing the other recruiter on the role and giving all pertinent details that they would need to properly source a candidate, the search was on. As this was a first split experience, it was unknown how important this search would be to the other recruiter or what kind of results would be returned.

The very next day the recruiter already sent over an excellent candidate along with her reference check! The firm was amazed at this efficiency and extra step that was taken. The candidate met with the client on January 14th. They loved her. She subsequently had another interview and psychometric testing and the client offered her the role on January 22nd with an immediate start date. Both were so excited.  The firm would have never found this passive candidate with out the split partner’s help. The efficiency of delivering a strong candidate that was ready to make a career move made all the difference in this split.

In March, the client had already paid their invoice and the split fee sent to the other recruiter and the network; all in the space of two and a half weeks. What really seemed to click was the collaborative nature of working together to help place a great candidate. With both trading partners putting the focus on efficiency instead of letting time lag, everyone was on board from the start to end. The turnaround time was very quick and the mutual respect had been extremely refreshing.

If you have been wondering what the return on investment could be when joining a network or splitting with another firm, this is an excellent example of how a firm’s revenue grew in just over two weeks.

We have all seen an award winner accept a prestigious honor from their peers, whether in our work industry, a committee or organization we are a part of, or just on television. Whenever I see that moment of honor, I aspire to one day become someone who is looked up to and respected enough to receive such recognition. In a split placement network of close to 500 firms and over 1,300 recruiters, it is easy to feel as though your efforts are going unnoticed; however helping others when there is no financial gain for yourself is one of the true signs of a leader. The following split story highlights not only a great international split, but also a member going out their way to see others achieve success.

At a Global Conference meeting held in Denver, CO, a member, Jim, from Georgia, connected with several strong members in the network, one being the regional director for the Canadian membership, James. Jim’s firm planned to work several international roles and he has been hoping to find some solid candidate providers they could reach out to at this meeting.

As a follow-up to the meeting, Jim emailed James with a General Manager position in Canada that he was going to be discussing with his client that very afternoon, asking James for advice on how difficult the role looked to source, who could help source for this role, and any other help James could provide.

Many times, when something like this crosses your desk, you immediately get selfish and consider whether the job is in your industry, if you could take on the recruitment for it, and what is in it for you and your business. If it is not a match, which in this case it was not as James does nothing with regards to pumps/fluids, it would be really simple to not respond to the email and carry on with your day. However, that lack of response is doing nothing to build up respect for your name or brand, and also not helping the organization you belong to.

Instead, James racked his brain for fellow members he knew of that worked that particular space and took the time to introduce Jim to fellow Canadian member, Henry. He worded it exactly like this, “I don’t know anything about pumps/fluids but if I had that order the first guy I would call would be Henry.” How reassuring to hear such confidence in someone able to assist you, likely hours or minutes before you take a client call.

Well, James was completely correct in his introduction, and not only was Jim able to secure the role from his client, a 100,000+ job at nearly a 30% fee, but Henry successfully sourced it, and the two ended up splitting a $33,000 fee, with the added benefit of a happy client now knowing that the firm can handle those international positions well.

While James did not get a portion of that fee, he now has two very happy members that appreciate and respect him for connecting them, and I am sure that the next time he needs a favor or job filled, they will return the favor of responding to him with any help they are able to. I encourage you to stop the next time your mouse hovers over the “delete” button on your email to first consider what other options or reply you could provide the partner on the other end.

NPAworldwide turns 60 this year. Our members have made a LOT of split placements during that time. We think we’ve learned a few things about how to succeed at splits. While it’s true there are a lot of different ways to be successful, there is some split placement etiquette to follow that can make it a smoother process. Below are a few tips whether you are supplying the job or the candidate:

If you have the job…

1. Be committed to a successful split placement outcome. This means you want help, you need help now, and you want to close a deal. It may mean asking for help selectively as opposed to blasting out a generic post. Good recruiters will not get excited about your job if they are one of 10 recruiters on a list. Be willing to share important details with your partner about the client and the job location – this will help your partner hone their sourcing efforts.
2. Make sure it’s a good, fillable job. Even if it’s for a purple squirrel, the job should offer an appropriate salary and fee. Ideally it’s with a client you’ve worked with before, where you have a good relationship and a successful track record of placements. It helps if the job is with a desirable employer in a desirable location, but that is not a requirement.
3. Provide timely feedback to your trading partner. When you receive candidates, acknowledge that you received them and let your partner know if they are a good fit. If not, tell your partner why and how they can be more on-target.

If you have the candidate:

1. Call your trading partner BEFORE beginning any search activities. Make sure the job is still open, find out what has already been done, and if there are any candidates already interviewing. This also gives you the chance to find out if anything has changed from the posting, or if there are any other details that can help you source more effectively.
2. Find out how your partner likes to work. Generally, the person with the job will be the “lead” on split placement activity, since they are working directly for the client. Some recruiters want a lot of involvement from their trading partners; others want hardly any. Don’t infringe on your partner’s client relationship.
3. Make sure your candidate is appropriately qualified. If you have a candidate that *you* think is great but doesn’t match up with what the client is looking for, it’s probably best not to submit that candidate. Make sure the candidate’s contact information and resume are current. The salary expectation should be in line with what the job offers. Ideally, you can share insight about the candidate beyond what is included in the resume.

It goes without saying that clear communication, in advance (preferably in writing), is required from both partners in order to manage the process. I would venture to say that more than 90% of the difficulties that can arise on a given split placement can be attributed to unclear communication or mismanaged expectations. Remembering the importance of good communication plus following good split placement etiquette is sure to increase your chances for success.

Today’s post is courtesy of guest blogger Elsa Duty. Elsa owns executive search firm Recruiting Services International (founded in 1970)  that specializes in technical search globally (R&D/engineering, manufacturing, science). Elsa has been an active member of NPAworldwide for more than 10 years and is currently serving on the Board of Directors.

A lot of small business owners I know often struggle with the decision, “Should I grow my business (hire more employees) or stay small?” Many owners I know never had ideas of grandeur to grow their businesses to be the next Robert Half or Korn Ferry. They simply wanted the lifestyle that recruiting affords; the ability to be at the helm of their own success, the work-life balance, and of course, big commission checks. The struggle often comes from a too-heavy workload in a strong economy (and the inability to say no to a job order that lands on your desk, if you’re like me!)

Finding good recruiters/employees is becoming harder to do. The Millennial workforce is producing a slew of “renters;” employees who come and go three times as fast as they would have 20 years ago. According to EREMedia.com, over 30% of new hires are quitting their jobs after six months! This is especially detrimental to small businesses that are not prepared for this attrition. Losing a new recruiter can tally up quickly if you consider these potential costs:

• Hiring/Onboarding – draw/salary of 3-6 mo, averaging $9,000-12,000+, plus healthcare, office/computer expenses
• Training Costs – 6 months-1 year+, quantifying management time into dollars at roughly $10,000-$15,000+ “lost production hours” of a full-desk recruiting manager
• Employer Taxes – In the US, FICA match, SS/Medicare: 7.65% of every dollar earned (a $60,000 employee costs an employer ~$4,590/year)
• Customer Relationships / Business Reputation – This is the biggest one; hardest to quantify but most critical. New clients developed may not have a bond strong enough to survive account manager attrition. This could mean $20,000-80,000+ in “lost” clients/placements.

Should the economy take another dive, these new hires will bail faster than you can say “cold-call.” You could be $30,000 invested into a new recruiter who is gone in less than 6 months (with minimal production dollars). Hiring “renters” is detrimental to our business. We know recruiting success comes with longevity, dedication, and deep passion for the business. We are “owners” in every sense of the word. We hold ourselves accountable and will do everything it takes to succeed. So when we need extra bandwidth, how do we get help without getting sucked into this cyclical model?

I was thinking of this as I looked around a large ballroom of smiling, welcoming faces at the annual NPAworldwide Global Conference in Washington D.C. a few weeks ago. Who has better ownership of their work, than OWNERS themselves? We eat, sleep, and breathe recruiting. We are warriors who have survived the battles of job-short, candidate-short, or money-short markets. My fellow NPAworldwide partners were all there to help, support, and partner together for the better good of our businesses succeeding. Utilizing a great split-placement partner can be an excellent solution to the urge to hire.

I recognize there is significant value in hiring good recruiters that produce. But that model is not for everyone. Not every owner wants the financial gamble, especially given the mentality of the workforce these days. Instead, if we are able to build sincere, tight relationships with other owners, entrusting ourselves to them, we can build powerful recruiting teams WITHOUT ever saying, “You’re hired.” Our recruiting partners are ready to go Day 1 of being given a new job order: no training, no financial investment, no overhead. If we change our mentality from “my firm” and “your firm” to “we’re a team,” we can support any influx of jobs in good season and bridge any recession when things are slow. That is what a split-placement network is all about.

NPAworldwide is celebrating our 60th anniversary of helping members make split placements this year. We think splits are a terrific option for recruiters, allowing more effective client service and broader geographical, industrial, or occupational coverage. There are a few myths about split placements, though, and I’d like to dispel those for you today.

Split placements are easier than regular placements. There are more than a few recruiters who think that split placements are easy. And while they certainly *can* be, that’s definitely not true in all instances. On top of all the regular things that make placements difficult, you’re also dealing with another recruiter and the communication and trust issues that can crop up. Recruiters who are successful at split placements tend to over-communicate, have very clear expectations, and a clearly-defined process. You can certainly do some things to make split placements work more smoothly, but that’s not necessarily the same thing as easy.

Clients don’t like split placements. I’m not sure where this myth ever originated, but I hear it a few times every year. I don’t actually have any empirical evidence stating whether clients like or dislike split placements, but I think most honestly don’t (or wouldn’t) care. In fact, I’m not even sure it’s necessary to discuss split placements with your clients. After all, do you tell them how much you pay for your LinkedIn package? Or specifically where you advertise? A sales pitch that includes a message about working with carefully-selected recruitment partners might make sense. As long as you’re providing the best talent for your client, it shouldn’t matter to them whether you’re sharing the fee with another recruiter.

You can do “half the work” since you are getting half the fee. Boy, this one can be troublesome. On the surface, this seems to make some mathematical sense – you’re either working the client “half” of the equation or the candidate “half,” right? After all, you’re dividing the work and sharing the fee. But this can be a sloppy mindset to adopt. Even though you may only be responsible for providing candidates, you still have to do ALL of the work that requires. On the client side, you still have to follow ALL of your process. If each side actually did “half a job,” you’d probably never make a placement. Much better to think of split placements as a partnership where each side is willing to put in 100% of the effort.

Have you encountered any other myths about split placements? Share below, or comment on the myths above!

I hope the New Year so far finds your business doing sound with a plethora of additional positions and/or candidates that have you thinking of making more split placements or adding them to your business model. In a split network, firms work position openings cooperatively in order to speed the job fill. Once complete, they share the fee collected. Over time, the network sees many success stories, and some firms really stand out as stellar trading partners that are constantly making deals. One firm that has exported candidates for over 60 roles in the network caught another firm’s eye as they prepared information for a regional meeting, so they asked their top trading partner what it was that caused this firm to split so well? Here is what they were told:

First and foremost, this trading partner is available and focused. Not only is he always answering his phone or getting back quickly, but each position is an assignment that once agreed to, he takes on fully. Smart and equipped, this trading partner will dig deep for answers as well as working hard to find the best candidates. This is more than just searching through a database and forwarding potential fits both old and new, this is really researching candidates to present only quality options to your trading partners, just as if you were working your own independent search for a top client.

The reason the above is true is because the trading partner with the position is giving their trading partners QUALITY work, and not wasting their time with only the near impossible search, or a vague client relationship. Most, if not all of the searches, have direct access to a hiring manager and human resources. Both trading partners are included on calls to both of these, especially in the beginning of the search. This direct access leaves little room for requirements to be lost in translation, and allows the exporter to be fully invested in finding the best candidates.

Another reason this exporter comes so recommended is his ability to think outside the box. He will produce a variety of candidates, something even a little different from the original job order’s description which challenges the hiring manager’s thought process. While this does not always work out, when it does, additional placements usually result. This is able to happen based on the above, but also because these trading partners try to work on as many exclusive jobs as possible. When the job order is exclusive, there is more room to try a couple of options the recruiter may see as more viable than the one top candidate you try to submit to match the order perfectly. If the job order is less exclusive, then the trading partner is aware of that, and can gage their own activity.

Finally, it is important that the trading partners are in contact daily or close to it. The trading partner with the client relationship works to stay on top of the client activity, and regularly communicates it to the exporter. This way they know the exact temperature of each search, and can prioritize accordingly.

If this was an eye opener for you if you are already in a split network, align yourself with these practices to start seeing a better return and gain more trading partners, so that you may be asked eventually, “How do you split so well?”

Today’s guest blogger is James Seidel with James Seidel & Associates located in Kelowna, BC, Canada. JSA is an owner-operated firm with clients across western Canada. The firm primarily places candidates in I/T, engineering, and sales. James is a former leader of our IT Trading Group and is currently serving on the NPAworldwide Board of Directors.

In our business, that prize is a placement and a customer who walks away with a product they feel good about for a price they feel was worth it. If you are good at this business, as in any business, you charge more for your services than someone who is average. Your customers expect more from you for that price, and you deliver. That’s how business works. Read the rest of this entry »