June is almost here, which means that July is almost here, which means that . . . the 2013 Top Echelon Network Ohio Golf Outing is almost here!

Okay, that’s a stretch, but work with me here.

The 2013 Top Echelon Network Ohio Golf Outing is scheduled for Tuesday, July 23, at Bunker Hill Golf Course.  This outing will be a scramble-style event.  That way, everyone—regardless of skill level—can play and have a great time.

More importantly, though, we want you to create a great Top Echelon networking memory.  If that memory involves sinking a 40-foot putt, so be it.  Below are some additional details about the outing:

• The address for Bunker Hill Golf Course is as follows: 3060 Pearl Road, Medina, OH 44256.
• We’ll meet at 9:30 a.m. for a little recruiter networking beforehand.
• The first tee time is at 10:30 a.m.
• The cost is $35 per person, and that price includes a hot dog, chips, and your choice of soda or a draft beer.
• Bunker’s Grill Restaurant & Bar will be ready for us at the end of the day, in case you’d like to stay for dinner.

To register for the 2013 Top Echelon Network Ohio Golf Outing, email me!  When you do, mention if you are an “A” player or a “B” player.  What’s the difference?

If you’re an “A” player, you’re a good player.  If you’re a “B” player, you want to “B” a good player (which insinuates, of course, that you are not one yet).

However, regardless of your skill level, I encourage you to attend this event.  As always, there will be plenty of food, fun, and networking!

(Oh, and some golf, too . . . can’t forget about that.)

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330.455.1433, x156
drea@topechelon.com
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Don’t say we didn’t warn you!  Actually, this is more of a “friendly reminder” than anything . . . giving you a warning has such a negative connation, and we wouldn’t dream of such a thing.

At least not at this early juncture.  No, right now we just want to remind you that the 2013 Top Echelon Network Fall Conference is scheduled for Thursday, October 3, and Friday, October 4.

So mark your calendars!  Circle the date!  Tell your friends and neighbors!  (Well, maybe not that last part, but the first two, for sure.)

Once again, the location for the Fall Conference will be the Sheraton Chicago O’Hare Airport Hotel.  The Windy City has been kind to us down through the years, and that’s why we’re going back for yet another event.

The preliminary agenda for the 2013 Fall Conference will be available soon (and by soon, we mean as early as a month from now).  Not only that, but we’ll also have the price for Early Bird Registration, so you can sign up early, save some money, and beat the rush.

So have a great Memorial Day holiday and an even better summer . . . but DON’T forget about the Fall Conference in October.

Consider yourself warned.

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“Ashley and I wanted to take a moment to say what a great time we had at the [National Convention] last week. The place was beautiful!  Your staff was great!  The conference itself was fun and educational.

We look forward to seeing everybody in Chicago. Great job!”

Ron Caley of Caley Enterprises

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330.455.1433, x156
drea@topechelon.com
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Last week, we discussed how Hiring Hook recruiting websites are helping Network recruiters make more split placements.

Well, we’re shifting gears this week.  More specifically, our Network recruiters are shifting gears.

That’s because ALL of the Network splits in this issue of The Pinnacle Newsletter Blog can be attributed to “Regular communication with another Top Echelon Network Preferred Member recruiter.”

That pertains to the first split placement on our list, which involved something as simple as a Network recruiter responding to a job they saw in Top Echelon’s Split Databases.  That Network recruiter responded to the job with a great candidate, that candidate was interviewed, that candidate received an offer, that candidate accepted the offer, and the two recruiters involved scored a split fee!

That’s split recruiting at its finest: “Great candidate and a quick placement!”

So let’s all shift gears again and make even MORE placements, shall we?  (After all, Fast & Furious 6 opens in movie theaters nationwide this week.  It only makes sense.)

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

• Production Development Engineer
  
• Software Engineer – Progress
  
• SAP Business Analyst
  
• Statistical Analyst
  
• Systems Developer (.NET Developer)
• Senior Project Engineer
• Manager, Learning & Organization Development Worldwide
  

If you’d like to know how YOU can leverage the resources of Top Echelon 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: Cindy Szajkovics of Bulldog Recruiters, Inc.

Candidate recruiter: Ed Chambers of Search Team One

Job title: PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT ENGINEER

Fee percentage—25%

Action causing split placement: “Ed saw our job posting on the TE Menu and responded right away!  Great candidate and a quick placement!”

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Job order recruiter: Michael Stuck of Gables Search Group, Inc.

Candidate recruiter: Mario Linale of Atlas Consulting Group, LLC

Job title: SOFTWARE ENGINEER – PROGRESS

Fee percentage—15%

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

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Job order recruiter: Susan Stone of SAP Recruiters

Candidate recruiter: Bob Ferris of Ferris & Associates, LLC

Job title: SAP BUSINESS ANALYST

Fee percentage—25%

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

— — —

Job order recruiter: Doug Boyce of J.D. Cotter Search, Inc.

Candidate recruiter: Catherine Reynolds of OnBoard Recruitment Advisors

Job title: STATISTICAL ANALYSTS

Fee percentage—25%

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

— — —

Job order recruiter: Joan Harris of Apple & Assoc. Inc.

Candidate recruiter: Sean Napoles, CPC of Career Brokers, Inc.

Job title: SYSTEMS DEVELOPER (.NET DEVELOPER)

Fee percentage—Flat

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

— — —

Job order recruiter: Alan Daum of Alan N. Daum & Associates, Inc.

Candidate recruiter: Jimmy Folger of ONESource Technical, Inc.

Job title: SENIOR PROJECT ENGINEER

Fee percentage—20%

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

— — —

>strong>Job order recruiter: Deborah Kahn of Professional Resource

Candidate recruiter: Ken Nunley of 7 Solutions USA

Job title: MANAGER, LEARNING & ORGANIZATION DEVELOPMENT WORLDWIDE

Fee percentage—25%

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

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330.455.1433, x125
mdeutsch@topechelon.com
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When a Top Echelon Network Preferred Member wants to recommend a split recruiter for their work in a split placement situation, they use a variety of descriptions to do so.

In this issue of The Pinnacle Newsletter Blog, those descriptions include the following:

• “really good candidates”
• “smooth process”
• “great to work with”
• “nice surprise”
• “great candidate”
• “timing was perfect”

Not only that, but one of the two split placements below is a recruiter’s first Network split in Top Echelon!  (We won’t give away the secret, but actually we will, because the recruiter’s name is Shannon Caston.)

Good . . . great . . . perfect.  These are just some of the words that Network recruiters are using to compliment and recommend one another.  All things being equal, there are worse things people can call you . . .

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

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“Cynthia Strzelecki from Spyglass Search is great!  She immediately went to work and found three really good candidates and one was hired.  It was a very smooth process, and Cynthia is really great to work with.”

Submitted by Connie Moore, CPC of CA Moore & Associates, Inc. regarding her split placement with Cynthia Strzelecki of Spyglass Search, Inc.

Position Title—STATISTICAL ANALYST

Fee Percentage—25%

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

— — —

“It was a very nice surprise when Shannon saw my [job order] and sent over a great candidate.  The timing was perfect because the client had just called asking to see more prospects.”

Submitted by Carol Calvano of Prof’l Recruiting Consultantsregarding her split placement with Shannon Caston of Management Analysis & Utilization, Inc.

Position Title—I & E ENGINEER/SUPERVISOR

Fee Percentage—25%

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

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330.455.1433, x125
mdeutsch@topechelon.com
Connect with Matt on LinkedIn.
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There’s a new sheriff in town when it comes to worker misclassification.

Many employers use 1099 independent contractors (ICs) to reduce the costs associated with workers. By utilizing ICs, employers avoid paying the employer share of payroll taxes, the expenses associated with Workers’ Compensation and unemployment, employee benefits costs, and the time and money associated with administering various employment tasks.

However, employers can’t just call a worker an IC to avoid those costs. The worker must meet certain criteria to qualify as an IC.

The Obama administration has been particularly concerned about cracking down on the misclassification of ICs who really should be W-2 employees.

Worker misclassification robs both state and federal governments of taxes and unemployment funds.  Up until now, most of the news about worker misclassification enforcement has come out of the IRS.  But according to a Forbes column titled “Independent Contractor Enforcement: There’s More Than The IRS To Fear” by attorney John Thomas, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has stepped up its own enforcement efforts against the misclassification of independent contractors.

This is all part of the Misclassification Initiative in which the DOL announced they would work with the IRS and share information to crackdown on worker misclassification.

This effort has resulted in several recent high dollar judgments against employers.  Most recently, the DOL announced it had recovered more than $1 million in back wages for workers at a Kentucky-based cable installation company. The Forbes column warns that many more DOL investigations are being conducted now.

It is important that you educate your clients of the ever-increasing focus on worker misclassification. Encourage them to look at their IC workforce and determine if those workers truly qualify as ICs.  In general, government agencies will be looking at the degree of control a company has over a worker and how financially dependent the worker is on the company when determining a worker’s correct classification. The best place to learn about correct IC classification is the IRS website.

Recruiters can help their client companies by offering to convert current 1099 ICs to W-2 employees.  You can offer to put those workers on contract assignments and outsource their employment to a contracting back-office that serves as the W-2 Employer of Record.

That way, your clients can still escape the administrative and financial burdens of employing their workers without the risk involved with making them ICs.

Time flies . . . whether you’re having fun or not.  And that’s just one reason to remember that the 2013 National Association of Personnel Services (NAPS) Conference will be here before you know it!

The other reasons?  Well, they’re tied to the fact that this event will be jam-packed with value for executive recruiters.  But before we get to that, the 2013 NAPS Conference is scheduled for Tuesday, September 10, through Friday, September 13, at the Cosmopolitan Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada.

As for the value?  Well, we just happen to have a list of that value right here:

• 20 of the recruiting industry’s leading speakers
• CPC, CTS, and CERS certification sessions
• Networking lunches
• Fast-track speaker breakouts
• An “Owner/Manager Special Day” embedded within the conference!
• And a whole lot more!

We’ve announced it before, but we’ll announce it again: Big Biller recruiting software and Hiring Hook recruitment website design are both sponsors of this year’s NAPS Conference!

The cost to attend the 2013 NAPS Conference is $795 for NAPS members and $1,195 for non-members.  However, special pricing and payment plans are available, so contact NAPS for more information.

Since 1961, the National Association of Personnel Services has built a reputation as being the educator for the executive search and staffing industry.  NAPS has achieved this not only through its annual recruitment conference, but also through its certification program and its emphasis on continuing education within the industry.

The NAPS Conference will be here before you know it!  We’ll see you in Vegas!