Monthly Archives: April 2014

I Mostly Work For Free

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I’m an agency headhunter.  I love this Dilbert comic, it makes me laugh:

Dilbert Headhunter

 

The reality is, headhunting, recruiting, etc. can be a very lucrative job. Like most sales jobs, yes it’s a sales job, if you’re any good, you can make really good money. If you’re not good, you starve.

The truth about headhunting is I’m usually working for free.   I don’t blame my clients for this.  I completely know the deal going in, and if I ‘decide’ to work for free, I’ve made the conscious decision to do it.

Most people don’t know that about this profession.  That 90% of their time is spent working for free.  It’s why so many people leave agency recruiting to go to corporate recruiting.  The jobs are virtually the same, except on the corporate side you get paid each day.  You don’t get paid as well, but you get paid.  On the agency side, you rarely get paid, but if you’re good, those pay days are big.

Those in the industry will read this and think, “well, Tim, you must not be good at what you do, because I would never work for free!”  They feel like they have clients who would never asked them to do that, or they ‘qualify’ each opening before they do would take on the assignment.  Others will say, “that’s why I only work ‘retained’ search”.

Our reality, agency headhunters, is that everyday we are working on something for free.  My best clients will ask me, beg me, for help on a certain position.  We’ll work our butts off getting them great talent.  Then, we’ll get the call, “Hey, Tim, the resumes are great! We decided to go another direction. Thanks, though, we’ll definitely call the next time we have a need!”

Yep, you just worked for free.

The cool thing about a recovery economy is that the leverage of being able to go out and find more great clients is right there.  Clients who won’t want you to work for free.  Who will value the work you do for free, and not want to take advantage of that.  I feel for my brothers and sisters in the headhunting game.  Working for free never feels good, but you smile, you thank them for the opportunity, and we do what we do.

Hopefully, today, that isn’t working for free.

 

 

Recruiting is my Drug

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I don’t take drugs.  It’s not that I’m anti-drug, I just had something happen in my formative years that scared the hell out of me, so I never really went down that path. I’m 16 years old in 1986, and I’m sitting at home watching this cool new cable show called ESPN SportsCenter and they announce Boston Celtic’s first round draft pick, Len Bias, overdosed using cocaine, and died. I was in complete shock. His friends came out and said it was the first time he ever tried drugs.  First time, dead.  I was scared straight.

Don’t get me wrong, if I’m in pain, drugs are good.  If I’m sick, give me a pill to get better.  I would love it if there was a pill I could take and never get fat.  Also, to give me a full head of hair again.  One second thought, it sounds like I’m actually pro-drug!

I think all of us find certain things that tend to get us going.  For many people that is exercise. Others like to go out and drink and have fun.  I get super energized when I’m recruiting!  I know, geeky, right!?

Like most drugs, recruiting can bring out the best and worse in me.  When recruiting is great, you have a great opportunity for someone, you find the perfect person for that opportunity, it makes you feel like you can do anything.  It’s the high!  When recruiting is bad, you have positions no one wants, you find talent without any other options, your hiring managers think you couldn’t find ice in the North Pole, well, that’s the down side of drugs.

The high brings you back, though.

The right job, the right person, when it seems like no one else has had success.  It reminds me a lot of golfers.  I golf, but I’m terrible.  I still like to golf, because out of a round you’ll get a handful of really, really good shots, and it feels so good, it makes you forget about the downside.  That’s recruiting.  The positives out weigh the negatives.

I tend to find most people in HR, and many of those in Recruiting, hate to actually recruit.  It’s not their drug.  Maybe they like FMLA or developing comp plans. I don’t get high off those, but who am I to judge the drug of another!

People will read into this (besides that I might have a drug problem) that I ‘Love’ recruiting.  Let’s not confuse love and drugs. I love my wife and kids.  I like how recruiting makes me feel when it all works well.   “Oh, it’s so great that you found work that you love!”  Slow down.  If someone would pay me to fish all day, I’d love that! Recruiting is something I found that I’m really good at.  That’s important, for all of us.  Way too many times I meet people who haven’t found that, so I’m grateful for finding recruiting.

What’s your drug?