In this episode, Top Echelon Network President Mark Demaree and Internet Strategies Manager Todd Bossler review some of the details of the upcoming release of Job Javelin, Top Echelon’s new job posting service that will soon replace the current contingency job posting model.

Click on the embedded YouTube link below to watch the latest episode of ”Top Echelon TV.”

(By Mark Demaree)

A little over six months ago, we announced in The Pinnacle newsletter that the current contingency model for job order posting would soon be replaced by another model (“The Future of Job Order Posting,” issue of October 14, 2009).  That model, a pay up-front model called “Job Javelin,” is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, June 1.

Under the current contingency model, we post your jobs to many popular job boards and posting sites around the Internet for no money up front, and we only receive compensation when you make a placement from our efforts.  The job boards and sites that we post your jobs to have also operated under this contingency model, meaning that they, too, only made money when you reported a placement.

As I stated in my October 14 article, these job boards are no longer interested in working with us if we continue to use the contingency model, and without these boards, the model is simply not viable.  However, we decided that we needed to create another model, one that would still help recruiters make placements.  The result is Job Javelin, which is a “pay as you play” model. Read More

When you login to the Top Echelon or Big Biller software systems on Monday, May 3, you might notice something different.  That’s because we have a new Web site!  However, don’t be alarmed.  Once you login, Big Biller and/or the Members’ Area will look exactly the same—and operate the same—as it has.

One of the primary reasons we’re releasing a new Web site is to more easily provide tools, resources, services, and information to recruiters.  Instead of having separate Web sites for the products that we offer, we’ve combining them all on one site to more easily accomplish that goal.  When you visit the main page of the site, you’ll notice that the tools and services we currently offer are broken down into three main categories:

• Top Echelon Network—The Network you know and love.

• Big Biller—The leader in online recruiting software.

• Hiring Hook—This is the new name for Top Echelon’s recruiting Web sites.  It takes the place of the current names for our sites, which are Silver, Gold, and Platinum.

This new Web site is also more friendly in terms of search engine optimization (SEO) and will allow us to attract more recruiters and provide information to them in a more efficient and effective fashion.  As you’ve noticed in recent months, we’ve increased our blogging efforts (for example, The Pinnacle newsletter is transitioning to a blog), and the new site will allow us to expand those efforts further.

So remember . . . new site, but once you login, the software is the same.  If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact us at (330) 455-1433.

(By Matt Deutsch)

You’re looking at the last Pinnacle newsletter that will be published in Adobe PDF format.  As I mentioned in last week’s issue (“The Pinnacle Going to Blog Format on May 5,” issue of April 21), the newsletter is reaching yet another stage of its evolution.  It’s gone from snail mail to electronic delivery, and now it’s making the jump from electronic delivery to entirely online accessibility.

There are a lot of advantages to this change in the newsletter “delivery,” all of which I outlined in last week’s article.  However, below are the most important points regarding the change:

• The way in which you’ll access The Pinnacle is in the Members’ Area.  Once you login, there will be a section titled “Pinnacle Newsletter.”  That’s where the articles will now be located.
• You will still receive an email about The Pinnacle, but there will no longer be a PDF attached to that email.  Instead, the email will contain links to the articles for that week’s issue.
• There will also be an item in the News Section reminding Members about the newsletter.

Going forward, The Pinnacle will still be the main way in which we communicate with the Preferred Members of the Network.  That hasn’t changed.  The only thing that has is the way in Read More

In this episode, Top Echelon Network President Mark Demaree and Membership Development Coordinator Drea Codispoti discuss regularly sharing candidates to the Network and not withholding quality candidates in this episode of Top Echelon TV. They also highlight another Top Echelon Success Story—in this case Marc Tappis of Opportunity Search, Inc.—and remind Members to register for the upcoming Charlotte Placement Conference.

Click on the embedded YouTube link below to watch the latest episode of ”Top Echelon TV.”

(By Mark Demaree)

There are Four Pillars of Top Echelon Network—Quality, Communication, Trust, and Active Participation.  They are extremely important in terms of experiencing success within the Network as a Preferred Member recruiters.  One is not more important than the others; they’re all equally vital for those recruiters wanting to make more split placements in Top Echelon.

However, there is one that we actively reward Preferred Members for embracing, and that’s Active Participation.  The way we do so is through our Frequent Placer Points (FPP) Program.

Okay, the name of the program is a bit misleading.  While we reward Members for making placements, we also reward them for doing other things, as well.  A list of those other things is below:

1. Attending Top Echelon Network conferences
2. Attending Regional Core Group Meetings
3. Attending Virtual Core Group meetings
4. Posting job orders
5. Sharing qualified candidates
6. Scheduling telephone interviews
7. Scheduling face-to-face interviews
8. Making a placement with a new Member of Top Echelon Network

How the program works Read More

So . . . just how can you be successful as a Preferred Member of Top Echelon Network?  What are the keys?  How do you do it?  In this new series in The Pinnacle newsletter, we’re going to interview some of the Top Producers in the Network and ask them what they’ve done to achieve success in Top Echelon.

Recruiter: Marc Tappis

Agency: Opportunity Search, Inc.

Accomplishments within the Network:

Ranked #18 in the Network in 2009 in terms of the top-producing recruiters.  All of that was the result of split placements Tappis made with his Trading Partners.  He is currently ranked #4 in the Network.  (To view a complete list of the top-producing recruiters in Top Echelon, please visit the Members’ Area.)

Marc’s Key to Success: Providing Flexibility

Tappis takes an approach with clients, candidates, and even Trading Partners that allows him to be as productive as possible.  That approach involves, first and foremost, recognizing that success follows from the building of business and personal relationships.

“It’s all about relationships,” said Tappis, “whether they’re with candidates, clients, or Members of the Network.  I take a lot of pride in being nice to people and trying to treat people like I would want to be treated.  I always go the extra mile to be nice.”

In addition, Tappis strives to be extremely flexible when it comes to providing all of the people he works with what they want and ask for.  By doing so, the people he works with are much more likely to want to be aligned with him and work with him in the future. Read More

Regularly share candidates to the network and don’t withhold quality candidates.

Our Logic:

Experience shows that those recruiters who continually contribute quality candidates to the network are more likely to make placements than those recruiters who only share a few dozen candidates and then stop.  The business of recruiting is a “numbers game.”  One way to increase your odds for success is to share more quality candidates with other recruiters.

If you withhold your good candidates from the Network, you are setting yourself up to become a network failure. Remember, like you, other Trading Partners need the very best candidates they can find.  If you are only submitting mediocre candidates to the network, you should expect mediocre results.  If you’ve been holding back your best candidates from the network, you should count the number of these superstars you have not placed over the past few years, resulting in tens of thousands of dollars forfeited.

Immediate Steps You Can Take In Top Echelon Network:

1.) Increase your odds for success. Make sure each recruiter in your office using the network is submitting at least four or five qualified candidates to the network every week.

2.) Adopt a sense of urgency! When you find a network-able candidate, you should obtain their permission and submit their resume to the network immediately!  This way if your own marketing attempts are unsuccessful, you have covered all of the bases by networking the resume with other recruiters that may have a need for this candidate.

3.) Develop a reputation among your peers in the network as being a recruiter that submits “good quality candidates” to the system. Remember, a high percentage of Top Echelon Trading Partners are recruiters and search firms trying to find people for jobs, not jobs for people.  Therefore, don’t waste their time by submitting candidates that clients wouldn’t pay a fee for, or candidates that aren’t in demand.  Concentrate your efforts on educated, employed, and skilled candidates that most clients would love to have working on their staffs and make sure that you include up-to-date contact information (including email) so that your Trading Partners are able to contact them.

4.) Be relentless and don’t give up! Sometimes you will only need to submit one candidate to make a placement, and other times it may take 101 candidates to make a placement.  Continually fill the network “pipeline” with good quality candidates, and success will find you!

Adopt the philosophy that you are going to try to fill as many job orders as you can, as fast as you can, with the best candidates you have available to you. After all, the more assignments you are able to complete with good quality candidates, the happier your clients will be, the more repeat business you will receive, and the more money you will earn!

Our Logic:

‘Time kills all deals’ Statistics show that the longer a job order remains unfilled, the less your chances are of filling it.   This being the case, you want to “strike hard and fast” when presenting candidates.  The longer it takes you to locate that perfect candidate, the more time there is for those “unexpected occurrences” to happen. Read More

Candidate quality and April job statistics are two of the main topics of his episode of Top Echelon TV. In this episode, Top Echelon Network President Mark Demaree and Membership Development Coordinator Drea Codispoti review guidelines for place-able candidates, job statistics for the first half of April, and the latest recruiting firms joining Top Echelon Network.

Click on the embedded YouTube link below to watch the latest episode of ”Top Echelon TV.”