Chat with us, powered by LiveChat Recruiting Firm Owners Must be Encouraging and Positive

Why Recruiting Firm Owners Must be Encouraging and Positive

by | Jul 12, 2016 | Owner Issues, Top Echelon Blog

Enthusiastic businessmen, including recruiting firm owners, must lead by example. Human beings model behavior. It doesn’t matter whether that behavior is good or bad. Human beings will always copy it.

In recruiting, the desire to perform, created by the prospect of direct commission, results in an immediate and powerful drive behind performance, reaching the optimum point almost immediately. Pressure to move this motivator past the optimum can come from the manager, who continually exhorts the recruiter to produce. It can come from fellow recruiters who ask, “How are you doing?” or it can come from the recruiter himself as he worries about paying bills, etc.

A word of caution to firm owners

There is no relationship between productivity and motivation through direct commission payment. The low producer is just as highly motivated to earn large commissions as is the high producer. Further stress placed on direct commission is most likely to push the individual past the optimum motivation level and lead to performance deficits.

Three keys to stop this stress are as follows:

  1. Careful planning
  2. Positive encouragement from the manager
  3. Specific advice on what they should be doing differently or better

In other words, your recruiters don’t want to be berated for their lack of success. They are already acutely aware of their lack of success. They need positive encouragement.

This will NOT encourage a good account executive to slack off. You are after sufficient tension and anxiety to keep performance up, but not so much that it interferes with performance.

The most valuable help is practical, situation-specific advice offered in a positive manner. And THAT is why firm owners must be encouraging and positive with recruiters in their office.


Training Video: Uncover Hidden Candidates 

— — —

Bob Marshall of TBMG International, founder of The Marshall Plan, has an extensive background in the recruiting industry as a recruiter, manager, vice president, president, consultant, and trainer. In 2016, Marshall is celebrating his 36th year in the recruiting business. He can be reached at bob@themarshallplan.org or at 770.898.5550. Marshall’s website is www.themarshallplan.org.

More Articles of Interest