While we were at the National Convention in St. Petersburg at the end of last month, something funny happened: we moved!

For 25 years, we were located in a building in downtown Canton, near the center of the city.  We’re now in a new location, although we’re still in the city of Canton, Ohio.

All things considered, 25 years is a long time.  A move was inevitable, and the inevitable has arrived.

With the move in mind, I’d like to bring attention to the fact that we have a new physical address—one that will, of course, replace the one that many of you have been using for quite some time.

That new address is as follows:

Top Echelon Network
4883 Dressler Road, N.W., Ste. 203
Canton, OH 44718

At our previous location, we had both a physical address and a P.O. Box number.  Neither of those are valid any longer, and we have no plans to secure a new P.O. Box number.

Consequently, use the above address for any and all correspondence that you send to us.  If you have any specific questions, please give us a call at (330) 455-1433.

As always, thanks very much for your commitment as a Network recruiter and loyalty as a Top Echelon customer!

We held another FREE recruiting webinar this week, and it was another big success!  That webinar was by Greg Doersching of the Griffin Group, and it was titled “Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something True.”

Doersching has presented quite a few webinars for Top Echelon before, and he’s also served as the keynote speaker at Top Echelon Network conference, conventions, and regional meetings.  (Like in Florida in 2006.)

In addition, Doersching is one of the most popular speakers and trainers in the recruitment industry today, owing in large part to this wealth of experience, keen insight, and down-to-earth approach to the profession.

Below is the official description of “Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something True”:

Join Greg Doersching as he walks you through four key tactical points necessary for managing an effective and efficient recruiting desk:

Something Old—True headhunting: digging behind Linkedin to get to the people you want.

Something New—Turning interview debriefs into a more dedicated activity.

Something Borrowed—The best bit from a recent webinar Greg attended on LinkedIn techniques that can help you get those “hidden” names faster.

Something True—The world of recruiting will drastically change during the next five years, and Greg will show you what you need to do NOW to capitalize on it.

This is one session you don’t want to miss!

The liver webinar may be over, but we recorded it!  All you have to do is click the link below and follow the instructions.  You’ll be able to watch the webinar as it streams in your Internet browser.  Below is a link to the recorded version of “Something Old, Something New”:

Watch ‘Something Old, Something New’!

Top Echelon offers FREE training webinars for recruitment throughout the year, so be sure to subscribe to the Recruiter Training Blog (and read The Pinnacle) for more information!

Way back in the day, it used to be that only a few Network recruiters made placements with their websites.  They were the “trailblazers,” so to speak, those who recognized the value that a website could bring to their recruiting firm.

Now, everybody’s making website placements!

Okay, not everybody . . . that’s a caffeine-fueled exaggeration.  However, more Network recruiters are making them now with the help of the Hiring Hook Job Board, which allows them to post their jobs to their website (and also to other Network recruiters’ websites).

The result?  More placements and more money, with over half of the placements listed below resulting from one of the Hiring Hook websites for recruiters.

We keep banging this drum, and that’s because recruiters are making more top placements with their website, and they’re making them more frequently.  Sounds like a good reason to bang the drum to us!

Below are the positions that were recently filled by Top Echelon Network recruiters:

• Nurse Manager
• Product Design/Development Engineer
• Physician Assistant
• Director, Distribution Operations
  
• Quality Engineer Mechanical Design
• Turbine Engineer
  
• Account Executive
  
• ERP System Implementation Manager
  

If you work in the above industries and would like to know how you can leverage the Network to make more placements, contact Membership Development Coordinator Drea Codispoti, CPC/CERS at (330) 455-1433, Ext. 156.

THIS WEEK’S COMPLETED SPLIT PLACEMENTS:

Job order recruiter: Joe Papa, CPC/CTS of American Medical Personnel Services, Inc.

Candidate recruiter: Debi Apple of Apple & Assoc. Inc.

Job title: NURSE MANAGER

Fee percentage—15%

Action causing split placement: The job seeker or client was found through my Hiring Hook recruiting website.

— — —

Job order recruiter: Lou Michaels of Lou Michaels Associates, Inc.

Candidate recruiter: Steve Kohn of Affinity Executive Search

Job title: PRODUCT DESIGN/DEVELOPMENT ENGINEER

Fee percentage—15%

Action causing split placement: The job seeker or client was found through my Hiring Hook recruitment website.

— — —

Job order recruiter: Michael Ott, CPC/CERS of Lakeview Staffing Solutions

Candidate recruiter: Carolyn Williams, CPC of Parke Williams, Ltd.

Job title: PHYSICIAN ASSISTANT

Fee percentage—Flat

Action causing split placement: The job seeker or client was found through my Hiring Hook website for recruiters.

— — —

Job order recruiter: John Wharton, CPC of The Garret Group

Candidate recruiter: Trey Cameron of the Cameron Craig Group

Job title: DIRECTOR, DISTRIBUTION OPERATIONS

Fee percentage—23%

Action causing split placement: The job seeker or client was found through my Hiring Hook website for recruiting and staffing firms.

— — —

Job order recruiter: Russell Schutt, CSP of Progressive Executive, Inc.

Candidate recruiter: Jim Strickland of BioSource International

Job title: QUALITY ENGINEER MECHANICAL DESIGN

Fee percentage—Flat

Action causing split placement: The job seeker or client was found through my Hiring Hook recruiter website.

— — —

Job order recruiter: David Wood, CPC of The David Wood Company

Candidate recruiter: Rudy Garcia of Joseph Michaels International

Job title: TURBINE ENGINEER

Fee percentage—25%

Action causing split placement: Regular communication with another Top Echelon Network Preferred Member recruiter

— — —

Job order recruiter: Mike Ehlers of Ehlers Recruiting Partners

Candidate recruiter: Debbie Harper, CPC of Harper Hewes, Inc.

Job title: ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE

Fee percentage—20%

Action causing split placement: Regular communication with another Top Echelon Network Preferred Member recruiter

— — —

Job order recruiter: Joe Noto of Regency Search Group

Candidate recruiter: Anjela Mangrum of Mangrum Career Solutions, LLC

Job title: ERP SYSTEM IMPLEMENTATION MANAGER

Fee percentage—15%

Action causing split placement: Regular communication with another Top Echelon Network Preferred Member recruiter

We’re back with more split network recruiting goodness!  How much?  A “2-pack” of split network recruiting goodness!

But that’s just the tip of the iceberg . . . below is the rest of the iceberg:

• Our first set of recruiters recently made their second split placement together after making their first split just a couple of months ago.
• One of those two recruiters joined Top Echelon Network only seven months ago, and she’s already made three split placements.
• The split fees associated with both of the placements these recruiters have made together are quite substantial.  (Check out their profiles in the Top Echelon recruiting network Members’ Area to see just how substantial.)
• The second set of recruiters made their sixth split placement together, proving that split recruiter relationships continue to reap benefits year after year . . . after year.

So this is no ordinary “2-pack” . . . it’s a “2-pack” bursting with multiple placements, hefty split fees, and every indication that these recruiters will close more deals together in the future.

— — —

“Catherine is a pleasure to work with.  Very professional!”

Submitted by Doug Boyce of J.D. Cotter Search, Inc. regarding his split placement with Catherine Reynolds of OnBoard Recruitment Advisors

Position Title—STATISTICAL ANALYST

Fee Percentage—25%

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

— — —

“Jim, nice job on the help for this one.  Maybe we can do another one in the future.”

Submitted by Russell Schutt, CSP of Progressive Executive, Inc.regarding his split placement with Jim Strickland of BioSource International

Position Title—QUALITY ENGINEER – MECHANICAL MACHINE DESIGN

Fee Percentage—Flat

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

— — —

If you’d like to praise another Network recruiter about a recent split placement, submit your comments with your Completed Placement Form, and they’ll appear in a future issue of The Pinnacle Newsletter Blog.

— — —

330.455.1433, x125
mdeutsch@topechelon.com
Connect with Matt on LinkedIn.
Follow Matt on Twitter.

For many years, The Cornerstone, the newsletter of Top Echelon contract staffing, was sent to the recruiters of Top Echelon Network.  The Cornerstone was eventually discontinued in favor of another newsletter, Contracting Corner, which is now published once a quarter.

However, we at Top Echelon Network still run contracting statistics in select issues of The Pinnacle Newsletter Blog.  These statistics include Non-Split Contract Placements, Split Contract Placements, and Non-Recruited Placements, among others.

And in this week’s issue of The Pinnacle Newsletter Blog, we have a boatload of contract staffing placements to show you!  As you can see, many of these placements come with hefty recruiter shares, such quite a few over $20 per hour.

Remember, that’s money that these recruiters will earn hour after hour after hour . . . while they work making direct-hire placements at the same time.  If you want to be part of this “boatload of placements,” then don’t “miss the bus.” Are you noticing a transportation theme?  That’s because contract staffing can take you where you want to go.

You’ve been a great audience! Thank you and goodnight!

Many of the Top Producers in Top Echelon Network have added contract staffing to their recruiting firm’s business model.  Not only that, but they’ve also taken advantage of the services provided by Top Echelon Contracting, the recruiter’s employer of record services.

For more information about contract staffing and the back-office services that Top Echelon Contracting provides, call (888) 627-3678, Ext. 2.

According to a recent Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) article, I-9 audits are on the rise (SHRM membership may be required to access this article).  In 2004, only three audits were conducted compared with 3,004 in 2012.  Simple paperwork errors can cost employers up to $1,100 per violation.

If you serve as the W-2 employer for your contractors, YOU are responsible for I-9 compliance . . . and any fines assessed in an I-9 audit.  Here are some tips for making sure your I-9s pass muster.

1. The newest version of Form I-9 must be used exclusively starting May 7, 2013.
2. Make sure the employee completes Section 1 on their first day of work.  Inspect it to be sure that all the required information is provided and that Section 1 is signed and dated.  If anything is incomplete, don’t fill in the missing information.  Only the employee can complete or correct Section 1.
3. Be sure that you complete Section 2 within three days of the employee’s start date.  So if a contractor starts an assignment on a Monday, Section 2 must be complete by Thursday.
4. Remember that you must physically view each original document the employee presents in order to complete Section 2.  So what if you are too far from the employee to meet them?  The I-9 does allow for an “authorized representative” to complete Section 2 instead of the employer.  You could ask the client or a Notary Public to serve as the authorized representative.  If you encounter a lot of reluctance, you may want to work with an attorney to draw up a disclaimer that assures them they will not be held liable for I-9 penalties.
5. Conduct annual I-9 audits and make corrections where needed.  But remember, don’t white out mistakes.  Cross them off, initial, and date any changes.  Don’t make changes to Section 1—again only employees can make changes there, so if you find a mistake, ask the employee to make the correction.  And be sure not to back date anything.  While correcting I-9s may not eliminate penalties, they could reduce them.
6. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) normally audits companies that are connected to the nation’s “critical infrastructure,” such as power plants, food-service businesses, airports, etc., according to SHRM.  But complaints to ICE from disgruntled employees can also now initiate an audit, so don’t assume that your firm is flying under the radar.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and should NOT be construed as legal advice.