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NPA Is a Global Recruiting Cooperative

by Dave Nerz

I am frequently in a position where I need to describe what NPA, The Worldwide Recruiting Network is all about and how it works. One of the greatest challenges is describing the structure of NPA as a recruiting cooperative, and explaining member-ownership. So I started to doing some research on cooperatives, including a chain of independent recruiters and other  recruiting cooperatives and here is some of what I learned…

  • 2012 is the International Year of the Cooperative. No that does not mean you will find it right after the Year of the Rat or the Year of the Boar on a menu at a restaurant. It does mean that the United Nations believes that “Cooperative Enterprises Build a Better World.” That is the slogan for this year long campaign.
  • There are tens of thousands of co-ops around the world, no others focused on split fee recruiting.
  • Co-ops are owned and democratically controlled by their members. NPA is a member-owned recruiting cooperative.
  • Service to members is prioritized over profit.
  • Shared services co-ops provide services to meet the needs of their members. This sometimes includes joint advertising and marketing, offering training and educational activities, and negotiating prices with vendors.
  • Some examples of cooperatives include:
    • Ace, True Value and Do it Best hardware chains. These chains are owned by more than 13,000 independent hardware stores.
    • Best Western is the world’s largest hotel chain with more than 4,000 independently operators in 80 countries.
    • NPA, The Worldwide Recruiting Network…which is really a global recruiting cooperative.

5 Ways Split Placements Can Benefit Your Recruiting Firm

by Veronica Blatt

NPA has been in the business of fostering split placement opportunities since 1956. Obviously we are big believers in splits, since that’s the very reason for our existence. If you haven’t considered integrating split placements into your business model, here are some reasons you should:

 

 

 

Read the rest of this entry »

International Recruiting News Round-Up

by Veronica Blatt

A Split Fee Network Organizes the Playing Field

by Dave Nerz

I’ve been reading some interesting blogs lately on how recruiting compares to sports. Barb Bruno had an interesting one just a few days ago comparing recruiting to golf.

It got me thinking about where a split fee network might fit into the comparison of recruiting and sport. My conclusion is that networks function much like sporting leagues. They group like-minded recruiters together and organize the playing field for participants with various levels of tools and rules. Read the rest of this entry »

Membership in a Global Recruiting Network Is One Way to Reduce Cost

by Veronica Blatt

I recently saw a “pin” on Pinterest about everyday ways to save money. The list included things like hang your laundry to dry, use coupons, re-evaluate your car insurance, try DIY projects, make your coffee at home each morning and bike and walk more and drive less. The article got me thinking about ways recruiting firms can reduce their costs. I did an Internet search about ways to reduce or save on recruiting costs and came across a post by SilkRoad. I’ve included a few tips below that are both practical and relatively easy to implement.

 

  • Improve retention – You don’t have to spend money hiring new people if your existing good employees stick around. Study retention, track it, and continuously work to improve it.
  • Stay on top of new sourcing technology – Let’s face it, sourcing is your mainstay. A continual investment and investigation of the latest tools and techniques will pay off.
  • Use social recruiting – Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn are all free ways of building a brand and seeking candidates.
  • Assess value, not cost – One of the biggest recruiting costs is hiring poor performers. Assess the quality of the hire and go the extra step of asking managers to put a dollar amount on the difference between top, average and poor performers.
  • Join a global recruiting network – This tip wasn’t included on SilkRoad’s list but I think it’s a good one. Instead of hiring additional employees with no guarantee of performance, consider joining a global recruiting network. Recruiting networks, like NPA, allow you to make money without the overhead of managing and monitoring your employees. Plus, you only pay those who perform. Can’t beat that model!

See the remaining 6 tips to reduce recruiting costs at SilkRoad’s website. In what ways does your recruiting firm cut back on cost?

Whatsapp Can Be a Useful Tool for Global Recruiting

by Veronica Blatt

Are you doing any global recruiting? Have you ever wished for a quick and inexpensive way to reach out to clients, candidates, or other recruiters? Recently I was made aware of a mobile phone application, Whatsapp, which is basically an IM service for your cell phone. It’s available for iPhone, Android, Blackberry, and Nokia phones. Whatsapp uses your phone’s Internet connection and even supports audio and video transfer. Oh, and did I mention you won’t pay international text fees?

That’s right. Free international texting.

I realize there are lots of other communication tools, but they tend to have limitations in terms of platform support, accessibility, cost, and speed. Whatsapp avoids these issues by making use of the same data plan you already have on your phone. Here are some ways you can use Whatsapp in your global recruiting efforts:

  • Confirm interviews with candidates (or clients) without having to rely on email, which may not be received on time
  • Reach out to global recruiting partners for communication updates such as, “Thanks for forwarding that resume. I got it.”
  • Connect with clients for issues that are time-sensitive and/or happen outside normal working hours.

People are relying more and more on their mobile devices, and are connected to them from very early in the morning until very late at night, including weekends. In our global recruiting network, we are continually frustrated with delayed responses due to the huge time zone differences. It’s especially frustrating when the weekend has already started in other countries and by the time a response is seen, it’s already someone else’s Tuesday.  Using a tool like Whatsapp can help get faster answers to time-sensitive questions.

For Android users (including me) Whatsapp is a free download. iPhone users pay US$.99 to download the app. After a free one-year trial, the service costs a whopping US$1.99 annually. Oh, and Whatsapp doesn’t sell ads.

What’s your favorite app to assist with your global recruiting activities?

8 Critical Mistakes of Independent Recruiting Firm Owners

by Terri Piersma

In the September 2012 issue of EMinfo, Industry Trainer and Recruiting Firm Owner, Barb Bruno, CPC, CTS, submitted an article directed towards recruiting firm owners. I believe it is a recruiting resource that should not be ignored. The article lists 8 critical mistakes Barb believes recruiting firm owners make and offers solutions.

I’ve listed the mistakes below. Go to page five of EMInfo to read the solutions!

MISTAKE #1 – Expectations are not written down

MISTAKE #2 – Planning is not mandatory

MISTAKE #3 – You are expecting not inspecting or implementing

MISTAKE #4 – You don’t monitor daily send-outs

MISTAKE #5 – Your open door policy

MISTAKE #6 – Lack of systems

MISTAKE #7 – Holding on to ducks

MISTAKE  #8 – You are your company

When Barb discusses Mistake #4, she suggests you request a copy of a sample Send-out Hot Sheet. If you are a recruiter or a recruiting firm owner, monitoring daily send-outs as well as placements, revenue, and the send-out to placement ratio are building blocks that result in success.

If you are a recruiting firm owner, are there any other critical mistakes you believe are more important than the ones listed above?

 

Image:   FreeDigitalPhotos.net

 

5 Ways Independent Recruiters Can Improve Their Use of Social Media

by Veronica Blatt

If you’re an independent recruiter struggling to make sense of social media, you’re not alone. Approaching social media efforts in a random, haphazard way won’t generate the results you want and will result in a lot of wasted time and effort. Here are five things you can do immediately to improve your use of social media: Read the rest of this entry »

Contingent Recruiters or Retained Headhunters…Which is Best?

by Dave Nerz

I just read a blog post on ere.net by Fraser Hill.  The premise is about RPO, but the stereotyping of recruiters is what was most fascinating to me.  It seems that Mr. Hill believes the “Headhunter” (retained) recruiter to be more capable than the “RPO” or “Contingent” recruiter.

In my opinion, it’s all about how the client wants to pay, not the result they are looking to achieve.  Each model provides ample opportunity for the client to specify what they want and expect.  If the client is willing to pay a reasonable fee to gain the result, I think any of the many recruitment models and recruiters available can do the work to find top talent.

It is particularly interesting to see that “contingent recruiters” are evolving to more complex payment models as they engage multiple times with the same client.  I see “containers” (a mixed contingent and retained fee), small retainers, recruiter engagement fees, pay for hours worked, pay per candidate, and increased total fee payouts all be effective to motivate and incentivize a contingent recruiter to work a complex and longer-term search.  Again, it is just a payment issue not a capability issue that drives recruitment models.  It is interesting to see that not everyone views it that way.

Do you feel one recruitment model is more capable or effective than the other?

Have You Earned Your Recruiter Certification Yet? Why Not?

by Dave Nerz

Let ‘s start one step back from recruiter certification. I view recruiter certification as the culmination of a commitment to your profession as a recruiter. So maybe we should start at the beginning.

Where does the commitment to the profession begin? To me, it is connecting with and getting connected to others that are working in the same profession as you, a recruiting industry trade association or group. To me, there are many professions that are legitimized by a governing body or an association that ensures professionalism and standards. I want my lawyer to pass the bar exam, I want my doctor to be a member of the appropriate medical association and I want my pilot to be a member of the trade association or governing body that pilots belong to. I expect professionals to be connected to other professionals so that I don’t get bad medical advice or a pilot who doesn’t understand the dangers of wind shear.

So for me…

  • STEP 1. Join a recruiting industry trade association or recruiter association like the National Association of Personnel Services (NAPS) in the US. There are other groups in Canada like ACCESS or in Australia like RCSA. As a point of reference only, our organization so believes in this that we have corporately joined NAPS and make NAPS membership available to our members for just $100 annually. We are committed and walking the talk.
  • STEP 2. Study the manuals necessary to become an expert on issues and legal requirements of performing to the highest and most ethical standards of your profession. Look for a certification class and take it. Finally once you are confident, take the recruiting association’s exam to become a certified recruiter.

If you expect to be treated like a professional and want your clients to view you as committed to the profession, do these two things. Join your industry’s trade association and get your professional certification. It doesn’t cost much or require much time, and it will set you apart from the crowd.

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