(Editor’s Note: This is the first of a two-part blog post about the award for perseverance that Top Echelon Network Preferred Member Rosemarie Christopher of Med Exec International received at the recent National Association of Personnel Services Conference. The second part of the blog post will be published next week.)
Many recruiters in Top Echelon Network have survived and thrived during this most recent recession. However, Rosemarie Christopher of Med Exec International received an award at the recent National Association of Personnel Services (NAPS) Conference for her efforts in that area.
Christopher was one of two recipients of “The Shero Award,” the female counterpart of “The Hero Award,” which was also passed out at the conference. These awards were bestowed upon those recruiters that the NAPS Board of Directors believed represented the best example of surviving and thriving during the recession.
One of the unique aspects of this year’s awards? It marked the first time since 1993 that they had been given out by NAPS.
According to Christopher, she made a change in her business model that made all the difference for her and her firm. It was a scary move to make, but she overcame that fear and as a result, has continued to enjoy growth and success.
That move was to become a “shared-risk” recruiting firm.
Christopher indicated that she got the idea for making that move from other Top Echelon Network recruiters at conferences and conventions that she attended.
“I had heard from many [Top Echelon] presenters at conferences over the years, but I didn’t know how to do it,” said Christopher. “When things got really bad in 2008, I was finally able to implement what they had suggested, which was that we as recruiters should be doing more of our searches as retained searches. So when direct hire was really in the tank, I thought to myself, ‘Why don’t I do what I’ve been advised to do?’”
A shared-risk firm is different than a full-retainer recruiting firm. Med Exec International specializes in the placement of Technical and Scientific professionals (including the areas of Medical Affairs, Regulatory Affairs, Clinical Research, and Quality Assurance/Control).
Under the firm’s current shared-risk structure, a company pays Med Exec $5,000 when it gives the firm a search. Then the company pays another $5,000 when the firm has scheduled interviews with three clients. Ultimately, those two $5,000 payments are deducted from the final 25% placement fee.
“When we told our clients that we were doing this, almost all of them said yes,” said Christopher. “And the ones that said no are still looking for the people they need.”
One advantage that Christopher and Med Exec has is that Scientific and Technical talent is in short supply in the Medical field. So despite prevailing economic conditions, companies have been willing to “take the plunge,” so to speak, when it comes to partnering with MedExec.
Despite that advantage, Christopher was very apprehensive about making the change to her business model.
“It sounds like a simple thing, but it wasn’t,” she said. “But as afraid as I was to do that, I was also afraid to lose both of my companies and my staff. So I did it, and I found out that companies were willing to do it, too.”
(Next week, Rosemarie will discuss the various factors that have contributed to her success as a recruiting firm owner, both inside and outside of Top Echelon Network.)