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

Mark Demaree, Top Echelon Network President

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.

A Q&A primer about Job Javelin
Job Javelin is a product of Career Marketplace, Inc. (CMI).  Top Echelon uses Job Javelin as a single-source aggregator for the posting of Network jobs to the Internet.  Although we announced this change back in October, it has been a few months since then, and we realize that you might have some questions.  As a result, I’m going to do my best to address those questions in this article.

When is this going to happen?

The Job Javelin job posting system will officially begin on Tuesday, June 1. That means that the last day you can post a job using the current contingency model for job order posting is Monday, May 31.  (Although that’s Memorial Day, you can still post a job on the holiday.)  This also means that you can begin to use the Job Javelin tool on June 1, if you so choose.  Remember, it’s not mandatory for you to use Job Javelin.  This is an optional service, just like job posting is now.

How will Job Javelin work?

When Job Javelin is released on June 1, there will be a checkbox at the bottom of the job order add form, very similar to how you currently post jobs to the Intenet.  Beside that checkbox will be the words, “Advertise this Job Order on the Internet through Job Javelin.” By clicking that checkbox and saving the job order, you’re indicating that you want to use Job Javelin for that particular job.

You’ll be billed for the Job Javelin service in the same fashion as you are now for your Top Echelon services.  In other words, the appropriate charge will appear on your next invoice.

How much does it cost to use Job Javelin?

Job Javelin is very affordably priced.  The price varies, depending on how many job slots you’re purchasing.  The more you purchase, the lower the overall cost per slot becomes.  For example, the price for one job slot is $17.00 for a 30-day posting.  For three, the price is $35.70 ($11.90 per slot), and the price for five is $51.00 ($10.20 per slot).  The complete price breakdown is located on page 4, along with a more detailed explanation of how the pricing structure works.

Where are my jobs going to go on the Internet via Job Javelin?

Job Javelin currently posts jobs to approximately 250 job boards.  Some are niche-specific, some are industry-specific, and some are geographic-specific.  Job Javelin has forged a relatioship with some of the larger boards like Simply Hired, Indeed, and JuJu, but it’s done the same with specialty niche sites like www.MechanicalEngineer.com and regional sites such as www.HotAustinJobs.com.  To see a list of the sites, click here.

What’s going to happen to my jobs that I submitted under the current job posting model?

Your jobs will continue to be posted under the current job order posting system until Wednesday, June 30.  At that time, the current system will cease to exist, and the jobs that were posted to the Internet under the contingency model will no longer be posted to the Internet.  If you do make a placement on a job that you posted under the current contingency model, you’ll be subject to the brokerage fee associated with that model.

Is there a brokerage fee associated with the Job Javelin model?

No.  With Job Javelin, you pay once for the job posting—up front—and that’s it.

In addition to no brokerage fee, there’s another positive associated with the Job Javelin job posting model: your jobs will appear with your firm name, further serving to brand your firm in a positive fashion on the Internet.  And if for some reason, you don’t want your firm’s name branded, there will be a blinded option in the software.  Right now, your jobs are “branded” through our contingency model as Top Echelon Network jobs.

Keep in mind that we will be publishing future articles regarding Job Javelin, especially as its release grows near.  Please monitor the News Area and the Pinnacle blog in the Members’ Area for updates.  If you have any questions about Job Javelin, please give me a call at (330) 455-1433, Ext. 172 or send an email to MDemaree@TopEchelon.com.

—Mark

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.

Matt Deutsch, Communications Director

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 which we publish the newsletter, and the good news is that The Pinnacle will be more accessible than it’s ever been.

As far as the content of the Pinnacle blog is concerned, it’s going to be very similar to what was published in the PDF newsletter down through the years—and before that, in the hard-copy version that was delivered via snail mail.  Basically, those things that won’t be appearing in the blog, such as Completed Placements and New Members, can already be found in the Members’ Area.  And as I mentioned in last week’s issue, if you have any announcements that you’d like to make regarding your firm (new recruiters, going on vacation, etc.), you can do so in the Discussion Forum.

Below are some of the regular features of the newsletter that we’ll continue to provide:

• “Top Echelon Success Stories”—We’re always going to want to highlight recruiters who are enjoying success within the Network, as well as let the other Members know how and why they’re achieving that success.
• “Comments and Compliments”—This is one of the more popular features in the newsletter.  Recruiters enjoy complimenting one another after making splits together.
• “Results of Our Members’ Area Surveys”—We still post surveys . . . and you still participate in them.  So it only makes sense that we still publish the results.  (However, as a disclaimer, we won’t be publishing the results of all the surveys we conduct.)
• Regional Core Group meeting/face-to-face meeting pictures—At Top Echelon Network, we’re all about face-to-face networking, and we certainly want to continue promoting that.

If you have any questions about the upcoming change in the Pinnacle format, please give me a call at (330) 455-1433, Ext. 125 or send an email to marketing@TopEchelon.com.

—Matt

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

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

We’ve assigned point totals to the different activities, and recruiters earn these points once they complete the activity.  The points earned for the FPP Program accumulate each calendar year from January 1 through December 31.

How do you redeem your points?  This is the best part.  Recruiters who qualify for a FPP reward will receive a check in February of the year following the year that they earned the points.  For example, this past February—just a couple of months ago—Preferred Members were issued checks for the points they earned during 2009.

There are 10 plateaus of achievement in the FPP Program.  The more that you participate, the more plateaus you will achieve and the more money you’ll earn in the form of a “cash-back” rewards check.  Those 10 plateaus are outlined on the following page, along with the specific point totals that we assign for participation activities.

Every Preferred Member is automatically eligible to participate in the program.  You don’t have to fill out an application, but you must be a Member in Good Standing.  In addition, you can view your progress in the program by clicking on the “My FPP Points” button found on your Recruiter Profile.  For complete information about the program, click on the “FPP Program” link under the “Placements” tab in the Members’ Area.  And thank you for your current—and future—participation!

—Mark

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.

“I work with other people based upon their rules and not mine,” said Tappis. “I know there are a lot of recruiters who are very structured.  I take the attitude, ‘You’re the client, so you tell me how you want me to work. Some of my clients want me to extend offers, others want to extend them themselves.  Some want to set up interviews themselves others want me to do it. I am flexible and do what the client wants.  Every client is different.  I basically say you tell me how you want to work.’  I take that approach with every client, and I find this approach to be very successful.

“It’s very important to me that I make a concerted effort to build on relationships that I have with my clients.  Regardless of how many placements I make with them, I want them to keep coming back to me.  I visit all of my clients, I take them to lunch and sporting events, and I do the same thing with my candidates.  I get a lot of referrals and a lot of repeat business.  Going the extra mile is the key.

“Every client is different.  Every candidate is different.  They all don’t want to work the same way.  I have to be willing to work the way they want to work.”

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Maryland Regional Core Group. (Tappis is located in the back row, fourth from the right.) Participation in this Core Group has helped Tappis acheive Top Producer status as a Preferred Member of the Network.

Tappis also utilizes that approach in his dealings with other Top Echelon Preferred Members, thereby adhering to the Network mantra of “Treat your Trading Partners like your clients.”  Doing so has obviously paid dividends for Tappis, since he’s made 51 placements during his time in the Network.

“Some TE Members want a lot of control, and some want me to do more work than what they do,” said Tappis.  “However they want me to work, I work.  I can do as little as they want me to do, or as much.  If that means me doing more work than you, that’s fine.  I ask them if they want me to call the candidate or do they want me to call the candidate, things of that nature.”

Tappis has had two stints in the Network, the most recent of which began in 2003.  Since that time, he has made a number of placements with Bob Small of Carroll Technology Services, Inc.;  Philip Bartfield of Bartfield Search, Inc.;  Ilissa Suss Manes of Contract Placement Associates;  Dan Simmons of Continental Search & Outplacement, Inc.;  and Janet Miller of Computer Management, Inc..

Tappis—along with the recruiters listed above—is also a member of the Maryland Regional Core Group, one of the first such groups to form within Top Echelon Network.  The group consists of Preferred Member firm owners from Maryland, Virginia, and the Washington, D.C.-area.

“The members of this Core Group work a similar market and have candidates in a similar geography,” said Tappis.  “It’s as much of a benefit in terms of relationship building as it is from a business standpoint.  Just getting to know each other has helped us to make more placements.”

Tappis specializes in Information Technology at all levels, including software developers, architects, analysts, and database candidates.  According to Tappis, he’s witnesses an increase in activity and job orders since the first of the year.

“This is my third recession,” said Tappis, who’s been in the recruiting professions since 1984.  “I would say that my business was down last year, but only slightly.  In the last year or two, companies have spent very little on IT.    Companies can only go so long without spending in those areas.  It seems like IT is a little bit ahead of the curve, and the tech sector is improving.  I would definitely say that the worst is behind us.”

According to Tappis, he plans to continue leveraging his Network resources, especially his Trading Partner relationships, in order to make more split placements.  True to his philosophy, he’ll provide whatever his Trading Partners need, depending upon the circumstances involved.

“I’m both an importer and an exporter,” said Tappis.  “When my clients haven’t been hiring, I tend to do more exporting and try to work on the job orders of others.  When my clients are hiring, I have plenty of recruiters I can tap for candidates.  Right now, I’ve seen an uptick in leads from my clients, so I’m doing a combination of both.”

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!

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.

(For example, your client changes his mind and puts the order on hold.  Your client tells you he is going to promote from within. Your near-perfect candidate changes his mind and must give consideration to a better offer.   Your client tells you he is going to hire a candidate provided by another recruiter.   Your client learns to function without the position by doling out the responsibilities to other employees.)

Immediate Steps You Can Take In Top Echelon Network:

1. The first thing you should do when receiving a job assignment from your client is to share it with the TE Network immediately.   When you share to Top Echelon Network, the automated alert system starts working for you by automatically notifying Trading Partners of new job assignments in their niche, and that match one of their candidates.   Also, your Trading Partners have access to your job assignment immediately!  Get it out to the Trading Partners right away because they may have the perfect candidate.   Do not try working the job order first and then sending it to the network as a last resort.   Doing so will only use up whatever “lead time” you have and minimize your chances for filling the order
2. Search candidates in your files, candidates in Big Biller, and candidates in the Split Candidate Database to see if there are some potential matches.   Present all qualified candidates to your client regardless of whether it is your own candidate or a network candidate.  Don’t let the issue of half of a fee versus the full fee cloud your thinking.   Instead, get the assignment filled immediately with a good candidate, and your client will shower you with praise and repeat business.
3. Search “Who Works What” in the recruiter database.   Identify the Trading Partners who have candidates, job assignments, and placements in the discipline and industry of your job assignment.  Tap into their expertise and sourcing resources, which may lead to other candidates that have not been shared.
4. Adopt a sense of urgency, and get your clients to interview your candidate right away.   If your best candidate is slightly less than a 100% fit, you must evaluate all of the potential risks of not presenting that candidate in favor of going out and recruiting another candidate from scratch.   Don’t forget, your client may have intentionally given you a “10-point” wish list, which is almost impossible to accommodate, when in fact they really only need 7 or 8 of those items to be satisfied.  We are not saying that you should use a “shotgun approach” when presenting candidates.  We are merely suggesting you think twice before withholding a good candidate from your client.

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