Gary Thompson is Recruiter of the Week in TE!

Many professional recruiters and search consultants ran into a proverbial “brick wall” when the COVID-19 pandemic first hit in the spring of 2020.

However, Top Echelon Network member Gary Thompson ran into one three years before that.

“I was working in Retail, and it a ‘brick wall’ about three and half or four years ago,” said Gary. “There were a lot more [retail] stories closing than were opening, and we had to diversify. We had to start learning other types of businesses.”

This prompted Gary to apply for Top Echelon Network membership. He went through TE’s four-step screening process and his membership was ultimately approved. This opened up a whole new world of business for Gary and his agency.

“There were only a few of us [in the Network] who worked Retail,” he said. “But by joining the Network, I was able to partner with other recruiters working in areas like Food Production, Engineering, Maintenance, and a ton of other things that I’m now involved with.”

The results speak for themselves. Since becoming a Network member, Gary has made 22 split placements totaling over $150K cash-in. And the vast majority of these placements are NOT in the Retail space.

“[Joining the Network] was the best move I made,” said Gary. “I still do Retail, but just a little bit. Eighty percent (80%) of what I do is in the Food & Beverage industry. I don’t think I would still be in business if I had not joined the Network.”

While that statement all by itself speaks to the value that Top Echelon Network membership has provided for Gary and his agency, below are four other takeaways that have been instrumental in Network success:

#1—It all starts with Communication.

Communication, as you probably know, is one of The Four Pillars of Top Echelon Network, and Gary has leveraged it to his full advantage during his short time as a member.

“I’ve probably spoken to 30 [Network recruiters] over the course of the past 24 months,” he said. “Partnering with other members and collaborating with them is the best way to enjoy more success. I have not come across one single partner that I have not enjoyed working with, and some of them have become my friends. We really are all in this together.”

#2—He’s made placements he would NOT have made.

As mentioned above, Gary joined the Network when the Retail industry hit the proverbial “brick wall.” Since then, many of his placements have been in other industries and disciplines.

“I’ve been able to make placements in the Medical field that I never thought I would make,” said Gary. “I just helped place a Clinical Director of a Rehabilitation Center for a $23K fee. Five years ago, I never would have been involved with something like that. That’s probably been one of the biggest things. You have to diversity the type of jobs that you work.”

#3—The Big Biller and Network software make life easier.

According to Gary, the integration of the Big Biller recruiting software with his Network membership has also contributed to his success.

“The changes that we’ve made in our applicant tracking system has been beneficial to me as a one-person company,” he said. “That was a big deal. I have 40K resumes in the Network from Big Biller. I did my homework and looked at the costs, and the improvements that Big Biller has made in the past two and a half years have been tremendous. It’s been great for me.”

#4—The Network Jobs Feed is a valuable tool.

In addition to the Big Biller and Network split placement software, Gary has also found the Network Jobs Feed to be of tremendous value. He uses the Jobs Feed in conjunction with his website to help source candidates and make more placements.

“We use LinkedIn a lot, but I also want to wean ourselves off LinkedIn a little bit,” said Gary. “We’re always going to need it, but the number of views on my website has gone up significantly. With the Network Jobs Feed, our website looks like we’re a 100-person company. The Jobs Feed, along with my website, has been great tool, as well.”

#5—Camaraderie is ‘icing on the cake.’

Back to the proverbial “brick wall” of the COVID-19 pandemic. Gary, along with many other Network members, had to deal with the economic consequences of the pandemic, which were considerable. However, the good news is that they were able to rely on each other and in more ways than one.

“That was one of the great things about last year,” said Gary. “Even though everybody’s business was tough, it was nice to commiserate with other members. We kind of helped each other through it, and that’s one of the benefits of partnering with other recruiters.”

Speaking of camaraderie, Gary plans to attend the 2022 Top Echelon Network National Convention in Las Vegas. The dates of the convention are Thursday, March 24, and Friday, March 25.

“I’m looking forward to seeing my trading partners and other Network recruiters,” said Gary. “Success in TE is all about networking and communication.”