During the past 27 years, there have been a lot of recruiters who have made a lot of placements in Top Echelon Network.  We’ve labeled some of those recruiters “model Network recruiters” because of their commitment and accomplishments.

However, have we ever called a Network agency “the perfect split placement agency”?

Not until now.  MJ Recruiters, LLC in Tiffin, Ohio, joined Top Echelon Network nearly a decade ago, and since that time, the firm has done absolutely everything possible to make split placements a part of their business model.

Not only that, but the recruiters of MJ Recruiters have also done all of those things very well.  The result has been 113 Network placements during the past 10 years.

MJ Recruiters has two partners—Maria Hemminger and Joanna Spaun.  They form the backbone of the agency and are the catalyst behind the success of MJ Recruiters, both inside and outside of the Network.

Below are five reasons why MJ Recruiters is the “perfect split placement agency”:

1. Its recruiters do whatever it takes to fill their client’s job order with the best candidate as quickly as possible, and if that means a split placement, they’re all for it.  They’re not just “open to making splits.”  They actively look for ways to make them happen (i.e., proactive), even though split placements do NOT comprise the majority of their overall placements.

2. Its recruiters adhere to The Four Pillars of Top Echelon Network—Quality, Communication, Trust, and Active Participation.

3. It has a well-developed and fine-tuned process that includes not just Hemminger and Spaun, but also recruitment coordinator Lisa Reinbolt and two college researchers.

4. Hemminger and Spaun complement one another extremely well, each excelling at different parts of the placement process, regardless of whether it’s a split or a non-split situation.  Their combined talents, abilities, and instincts ensure that if a placement can be made, it will be made.

5. Hemminger and Spaun regularly attend Top Echelon networking events like our annual National Convention and Fall Conference, not to mention Regional Core Group meetings.  In fact, they’ve only missed one National Convention in 10 years.  Now THAT is a commitment.

Are there other “perfect split placement agencies” in Top Echelon Network?  Quite possibly, but MJ Recruiters has done an excellent job of setting the standard against which those firms are measured.

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Maria Hemminger

Jim Strickland

“Jim does a GREAT job of marketing our positions on his website.  Thank you for promoting our jobs, Jim.  Joanna Spaun and I appreciate your efforts!”

Submitted by Maria Hemminger of MJ Recruiters, LLC regarding her Network split placement with Jim Strickland of BioSource International

Position Title—MANUFACTURING ENGINEER – ASSEMBLY

Fee Percentage—20%

(Editor’s note: This is the ninth Network split placement that Hemminger and Strickland have made together in Top Echelon.)

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Maria Hemminger

Trey Cameron

“Another great engineering candidate from Trey Cameron!  Thank you, Trey, for working our positions so hard.  We appreciate your help!”

Submitted by Maria Hemminger of MJ Recruiters, LLC regarding her Network split placement with Trey Cameron of the Cameron Craig Group

Position Title—QUALITY ENGINEER

Fee Percentage—25%

(Editor’s note: This is the 13th Network split placement that Hemminger and Cameron have made together in Top Echelon.)

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Maria Hemminger

David M. Sgro, CPC

“Dave Sgro is truly an asset to the MJ Recruiters team.  Joanna and I are fortunate to have a strong IT Trading Partner to assist us with ALL of our IT recruiting needs.  We first met Dave at a [Top Echelon] Chicago conference in 2006.  You could say we have been Trading Partners and friends ever since.  Thank you, Dave, for all of the time you have spent on our open positions, including traveling to client sites.  It has PAID off for both of us!”

Submitted by Maria Hemminger of MJ Recruiters, LLC regarding his Network split placement with David M. Sgro, CPC of True North Consultants, Inc.

Position Title—DIRECTOR OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES

Fee Percentage—27%

(Editor’s note: This is the 10th Network split placement that Hemminger and Sgro have made together in Top Echelon.)

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Maria Hemminger

Larry Signorile

“Larry sent us this candidate directly.  Thank you, Larry, for reviewing our job opportunities and sending a well-qualified LOCAL candidate!”

Submitted by Maria Hemminger of MJ Recruiters, LLC regarding her Network split placement with Larry Signorile of the Johnson Resource Group, LLC

Position Title—SIX SIGMA ENGINEER

Fee Percentage—25%

(Editor’s note: This is the first Network split placement that Hemminger and Signorile have made together in Top Echelon.)

If you’re looking for a theme in this week’s installment of “Comments’ and Compliments,” you don’t have to look very far:

1. All three sets of recruiters below recently made their first split placement together in Top Echelon Network.

2. All the recruiters involved (especially the job order recruiters) are excited, not only about their recent deals, but also about the future . . . specifically the chances that they’ll make even more splits with these Trading Partners!

This just underlines the fact that all it takes is one split placement.  Once you make one split placement with another recruiter in the Network and you fill a job you would NOT have filled on your own, you want to make even more splits.

And Membership Development Coordinator Drea Codispoti is here to help you do just that!  (Well, technically, he’s not here, he’s in his office.  But you get the idea.)

I urge you to contact Drea at 330.455.1433, x156.  He’s standing by to take your call.

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David M. Sgro, CPC

Catherine Reynolds

“Thank you for bringing this candidate to my attention, Catherine!  Let’s make this the start of a whole bunch of splits together!”

Submitted by David M. Sgro, CPC of True North Consultants, Inc. regarding his Network split placement with Catherine Reynolds of OnBoard Recruitment Advisers

Position Title—.NET SOFTWARE DEVELOPER

Fee Percentage—25%

(Editor’s note: This is the first Network split placement that Sgro and Reynolds have made together in Top Echelon.)

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Carol Martin, CPC

Pat McCombs, CPC

“This is my first split with Carol.  Her candidate was awesome!  He had FOUR offers!  I hope Carol and I can do many more splits in the future.  Thanks, Carol!”

Submitted by Pat McCombs, CPC of KB Search Team, LLC regarding her Network split placement with Carol Martin, CPC of Martin Management, Inc.

Position Title—MAINTENANCE ENGINEERING MANAGER

Fee Percentage—23%

(Editor’s note: This is the first Network split placement that McCombs and Martin have made together in Top Echelon.)

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Michael Stuck

Steve Copeland

“This is our first placement with Steve, and it came through his Hiring Hook website.  Great candidate, Steve!  I hope there are many more to come.  Thanks again!”

Submitted by Michael Stuck of Gables Search Group regarding his Network split placement with Steve Copeland of fulltimeGiGS/Albert Energy, LLC

Position Title—CUSTOMER SERVICE SUPPORT ASSISTANT

Fee Percentage—25%

(Editor’s note: This is the first Network split placement that Stuck and Copeland have made together in Top Echelon.)

At Top Echelon Network, we recognize recruiters for both monthly and quarterly performance in four categories—Recruiter of the Month, Recruiter of the Quarter, Largest Split Fee of the Month, and Largest Split Fee of the Quarter.

We recognize these recruiters by announcing the Network recruiter awards that they’ve won in the pages of The Pinnacle Newsletter Blog.

And we have a new Recruiter of the Month for January!  Trey Cameron of the Cameron Craig Group has dominated this award for well, for years now, but Steve Kohn of Affinity Executive Search has claimed the top spot.

Cameron and Kohn are currently first and second, respectively, in Top Echelon Network in terms of cash-in over the past 12 months.  While Kohn dethroned Cameron as Recruiter of the Month, overtaking him for Recruiter of the Year will take some doing.

Not only that, but we also have new faces in the category of the Largest Split Fee of the Month!

For more information about the Top Echelon Network recruiter awards listed below, login to the Members’ Area and view the profiles and placement details of the winning recruiters involved.

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Recruiter of the Month:

Steve Kohn

Steve Kohn of Affinity Executive Search

Kohn captured the top spot with four split placements during the month of January, while Bill Kubena of Kubena & Associates claimed second place with three split placements.

Cameron was one of three Network recruiters in third place with two placements each.  The other two recruiters in third place were Rich Harrold of Front Line Solutions, LLC and Joan Harris of Apple & Associates, Inc.

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Largest Split Fee of the Month:

Joan R. Walters, CPC

Catherine Bateman

Joan R. Walters, CPC of JR Walters Resources and Catherine Bateman of Woods & Paolino Recruiting Solutions

The position for this split placement was a Global Marketing Strategies Manager.  Walters was the job order recruiter, and Bateman was the candidate recruiter.

The action that stimulated this split placement was listed as, “Regular communication with another Top Echelon Network Preferred Member recruiter.”

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Top Echelon determines the monthly and quarterly winners of its Network recruiter awards based upon two criteria, which are listed below in order of importance:

1.) The number of split placements made
2.) The amount of “cash-in” dollars earned as a result of those split placements

This explains why, when multiple recruiters are tied with the same number of split placements during a given month or quarter, the recruiter with the largest “cash-in” total for their placements is deemed the winner.