Brush Up on THESE Top Echelon Network Policies

The foundation of Top Echelon Network’s recruiting network are the Network Policies. Perhaps the most important policy is the “But For Rule.”

The rule is simple: “But for what piece of information caused me to act?” This rule can be applied to many recruiting scenarios, including candidate ownership, placement fees and policies, and candidate and job order referrals.

In this issue of The Pinnacle Newsletter Blog, I’d like to present some important Network Policies. Now of course, ALL of the Network Policies are important. However, these revolve around the “But For Rule.” And that makes them particularly important.

So brush up on these Policies and make sure to apply them to your dealings within the Network.

Perusing Network Policies

Policy #8—Duplicate Candidates in the Network

Top Echelon strives to prevent Network members from distributing duplicate candidates, thereby eliminating the questions about whose candidate to honor.  When in question, the question to ask is “But for what act would the agency have the desire to pursue the candidate?” Or simply put, “What caused the action to occur?”

Policy #9a—Candidate Ownership with Respect to Time

When determining how long a recruiter owns a candidate, refer to the “But For Rule.” If a member receives a candidate from another recruiter in the Network, but doesn’t work with that candidate until a year later, then the recruiter should split the placement fee with the originating member who first brought the candidate to their attention. “But for what piece of information caused me to act?”

Policy #9b—Candidate Ownership with Direct Hire

Top Echelon urges both recruiters to break the chain of communication with a placed candidate for a period of no less than 18 months. The placement fee is received, the guarantee period has been satisfied, and the candidate has become established in their new position. Thereafter, going forward, the candidate may work with a recruiter of their choice, as any future transaction is considered a “new beginning.”

Policy #11—Placement Fees, Refunds, Guarantees, and Replacements

Network members should never be surprised by a fee percentage, refund, guarantee, replacement, or fall-off policy, as the fee schedule must be agreed upon in writing by both agencies prior to extending the offer to the candidate. The candidate recruiter is to honor these policies that the job order recruiter executes with the client.

Policy #15a—Honoring a Candidate Referral

Once a recruiter accepts and acknowledges acceptance of candidate information from another Network member, they must honor that candidate referral no matter if they later determine they “already had the candidate.” “What caused the action to occur?”

Policy #15b—Honoring a Job Order Referral

Once a recruiter accepts and acknowledges acceptance of a job order from another Network member, they must honor that job order referral no matter how (or when) they later “receive” that job order on their own. The “But For Rule” states, “But for what piece of information caused me to act?”

Although we cover Top Echelon Network’s Policies with all agency owners who are new to the Network, we ask that agency owners be sure to share these Policies with others in their agency who are active members of the Network.

Thank you all for your cooperation!