For over 30 years, The Fordyce Letter has delivered straight talk for the recruiting profession...

For three decades running, The Fordyce Letter has brought street-smart knowledge and tell-it-like-it-is opinions to recruiters in the know. Isn't it time you became one of them?

Subscribe to the The Fordyce Letter in print today and you'll get:

  • Advice from seasoned recruiting professionals
  • Hard-hitting closing and negotiation tips
  • Inside information from the industry's biggest billers
  • Tactics that will take your recruiting skills to the next level

That's not all. Only print subscribers have exclusive access to the newest articles published in The Fordyce Letter. The general public has to wait two years before articles are available in the archives on this website.

Don't stand there on the sidelines — it's time to play ball. Subscribe today »

Artices Tagged ‘clientmanagement’

Help Your Clients Frame a Quality Offer Letter

by Kathy Breitenbucher December 15th, 2009

Clients who lose their funding, change their minds, or don’t fully understand what it will take to get a person into their positions abound. So what can you do about it? Many trainers will tell you to “take control” of the situation, but with the news proclaiming higher and higher unemployment numbers, that has become easier [...]

No comments yet | Read this post...

In Sync: Support Clients Through Economic Changes

by Nancy Grimes December 10th, 2009

In an attempt to stay afloat in this shaky economy, many businesses are taking a close look at their operating processes, reevaluating their hiring needs, and determining how best to obtain top-notch talent. As you are well-aware, these companies have also taken a good, hard look at their current relationships to determine which are aiding them [...]

No comments yet | Read this post...

Building a STRONG Client Relationship

by LoriAnn Boyer December 8th, 2009

I’ve often heard recruiters comment that their main responsibility is to provide a service by sourcing and hiring candidates. I find that although sourcing and hiring is certainly at the heart of what I do, I believe that the keystone of my role as a recruiter is to continually build and refine my client relationships. In [...]

No comments yet | Read this post...

The Four Rules for Successful Recruiting in a Recession, Part 2

by Jon Bartos November 10th, 2009

In yesterday’s part 1 of this article, I explained the first two rules to follow in a tough, tough marketplace. After all, when dealing with client objections in this economy, you’ve got to have a strategy in place to deal with them. Here are the next two rules you need to implement immediately. Rule Number 3: [...]

No comments yet | Read this post...

The Four Rules for Successful Recruiting in a Recession, Part 1

by Jon Bartos November 9th, 2009

We’re in the middle of it, folks. The toughest economy in decades. We hear it every day from prospective clients and long-time customers alike. “We have a hiring freeze” or “We are about to have a “RIF (reduction in force)” or even “We’ll work with you, but only if you cut your fee.” Today’s marketplace is not [...]

No comments yet | Read this post...

12 Extras to Give to Your Clients

by Gary Stauble October 6th, 2009

In terms of being at the top of your niche market, you only need to be slightly better than your competitors to be the premier recruiting firm in your area. You’ve heard the phrase “little things mean a lot” but in terms of client relations, little things don’t mean a lot- they mean everything. Our clients [...]

No comments yet | Read this post...

Jeff on Call: Recruiting From Former Clients?

by Jeff Allen August 19th, 2009

Q: How long must I wait before I recruit from a former client? The underlying question is, “What constitutes a former client?” Establishing a recruiter-client relationship usually involves five major steps: Receiving a job order. Clearing the fee. Transmitting the fee schedule. Sending out the candidate for an interview. Placing the candidate. Even if you do all [...]

6 comments | Read this post...

Learn to Read Your Candidate Quickly and Effectively

by Sande Foster January 7th, 2009

As you know, the stakes are pretty high in today’s job market. A placement can be won or lost depending on how your candidate gets his or her point across. What do you know about the candidate’s style in the interviewing process? Do you know how to pick up crucial cues? Do you know how to [...]

3 comments | Read this post...

A Hire Versus THE Hire

by Elaine Rigoli September 3rd, 2008

Michael C. Munger, chair of political science at Duke University, has written a very insightful article on how to treat candidates. Now, before you think these are “over-simplified” tips beneath your level of expertise, consider his amusing article in The Chronicle of Higher Education. In it, Munger describes two separate instances when he was in the [...]

No comments yet | Read this post...

Why Managers Condone Incompetence

by Terry Petra August 22nd, 2008

There is one thing worse than hiring the wrong person. That is to hang on to the employee long after the evidence suggests you should let them go. This is a problem that challenges managers at all levels of the organizational hierarchy; both within our industry as well as with the clients we serve. For our clients, [...]

No comments yet | Read this post...

Implanting the DNA for Success

by Terry Petra August 20th, 2008

Our success is linked to the success of our clients. More specifically, our success is linked to the success of the managers we serve at the client’s organization. This link is based on the fact that nothing else has real value if the newly placed employee does not properly perform the essential functions of the position [...]

No comments yet | Read this post...

You Are Probably Underpaid

by Jason Davis January 14th, 2008

A problem exists in the Recruiting Industry. The problem is that not all recruiters feel that the fee they charge is justified. The truth is though; their fee should probably be more. There are lots of recruiters out there working less than 25% fees. This is what today’s post is about. I mean, you write an [...]

1 comment | Read this post...

The Best Action Is Often Another Question

by Jordan A Greenberg November 1st, 2005

Once again, one of the “Golden Rules” in our business regarding the principles of a “Class A search assignment” has proven to be gospel. In my twenty-fifth year of headhunting I have become vigilant about qualifying the searches I will and won’t spend my ultra-valuable, only-thing-I’ve-got-control-of, straight-commission time on. However, every now and then I [...]

No comments yet | Read this post...

*The Simple Brilliance of* ROBOCRUITER – Part 1

by Bob Marshall November 1st, 2005

Some years ago, I had the opportunity to visit the Idaho location of a man who I consider the best, most complete, recruiter in the world. To protect his identity, I will simply refer to him by his first name, Dan. Those of you who know me know of whom I am speaking. I nicknamed [...]

1 comment | Read this post...

What Makes Them Hire: Fallacies And Realities

by Jeff Allen October 1st, 2005

The employee selection process is about as random and unscientific as anything can be. Resumes and interviews are nothing more than snapshots of the candidate. They can be touched up, enlarged and changed to present a different image. Successful recruiters know that they are the photographers, and that a placement starts with presenting the right picture [...]

No comments yet | Read this post...

Multiple Searches – Exclusivity – ” Do You Make A Deal?”

by Barbara Bruno October 1st, 2005

Many search firms across the country are now hiring additional recruiters. Inevitably one of your “rookies” will be thrilled they just obtained twenty searches from the same client and they have an exclusive. Before they take a breath – they now ask the dreaded question, “What kind of a deal can I give them, for [...]

No comments yet | Read this post...

How To Make More Placements In Just 5 Minutes A Day

by Gary Stauble October 1st, 2005

One of the most vital skills that you can learn as a recruiter is how to zero in on those searches that give you the best chance of making a placement – and to only focus on them. Is this a skill that takes time to master?? No, you can learn it the first time [...]

No comments yet | Read this post...

Should I Take That Search Assignment From This New Client

by Scott Love August 1st, 2005

Before you start calling those candidates, ask yourself a few of these questions. Use this matrix to test each prospective client. Rank it on a scale of one to ten, with ten the best rating, one the worst. Add up your score and judge the likelihood of you filling the position and getting paid for [...]

No comments yet | Read this post...

By `n by Brer Rabbit – gets where he want to be.

by Jeff Allen August 1st, 2005

Even adding interest or “finance” charges can be risky unless you do it with other employers. You want it to appear that you expect payment, and are just being patient. Otherwise when your other records are subpoenaed, you’ll blow your cover. Since you should be referring past due accounts to your lawyer after 30 days from [...]

No comments yet | Read this post...

Turndowns and Falloffs

by Paul Hawkinson August 1st, 2005

After every recession, the power pendulum swings away from the employer and toward the candidate. Employees who have endured less than ideal working conditions during these economic downturns expect their employers to reward them when things turn around. When they don’t, they polish up their resumes and usually find a more than willing target audience. Those who [...]

No comments yet | Read this post...

What You Really Buy When You Pay A Fee

by Tony Beshara August 1st, 2005

Often the paying of a fee to a recruiter is perceived as “paying for” the person that is hired. This is a misconception. The service is what is being bought. Since the assessment of the service charge is based on the starting salary, the fee is therefore associated with the individual. But it is a [...]

No comments yet | Read this post...

Stretching the Limits in a Strong Market: Dealing With Comfort Levels

by Steve Finkel July 1st, 2005

How is your production – and bank account – in today’s market? Both looking solid? Good! For most firms, our current market is both strong and steadily improving, and is likely to continue that way for quite a few years! But there is a major trap in this kind of economy which may cost you both [...]

No comments yet | Read this post...

No is Good!

by Terry Petra July 1st, 2005

Every day I receive calls from practitioners who want to know how to increase their billings, close a greater percentage of their business, or move toward building exclusive client relationships. The most recent example was a call I received from an experienced recruiter with over nine years in this business. He’s averaging $175,000 per year in [...]

No comments yet | Read this post...

How to Stop Negotiating Away Your Fees

by Jeff Allen June 1st, 2005

Once you introduce yourself to an employer, the subject invariably turns to negotiating your fee. It’s as though they consider your services not worth the money. Most consultants are ready to negotiate too. Some even offer a reduction before they’re asked! They justify it by a multitude of excuses (“easy placement,” “important client,” “preferred list,” [...]

No comments yet | Read this post...

Pre-Prep is the Key

by Bob Marshall June 1st, 2005

For years now I have relied on A. Bernard Frechtman’s book, Employment Agency Law, A Guide for the Personnel Professional. In the book I have (which I purchased in 1985), Chapter 3 is entitled, “Collecting The Fee You Think You Earned.” In this chapter, Frechtman deals with what he calls The Efficient Procuring Cause principle. The [...]

No comments yet | Read this post...