Starting my own recruiting business from home.

Hello all,

I am currently in the process of starting my own recruiting business and would like to get some insight from some seasoned recruiters. I have been recruiting for 3 years and I left my firm in 12-2010 to go on my own. My plan was/is to open up more time on the phone by moving into a part time job working nights to stay afloat until I make a placement. I also have a 3 kids so phone time/planning can be a bit of a challenge in itself. I have come close to closing a deal but nothing yet. I'm starting to lose faith after 3 months with bills advancing. Any thoughts or advice I could use in this venture?

Thanks

Joel

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Permalink Reply by rehan hussain on January 8, 2013 at 5:18pm

Hello Alex,

I am a new member and in process of opening my own recruit. biz. Please could u expalin what you mean by "Some people might recommend partnering / splitting a feem- I find thats never a good idea as the process will get even more tedious and harder to control."?

I am working with a couple of big recruiters whom I will be working with on comm. basis only. So there will be a split 50/50, correct? e.g I bring them a an order and they find a candidate... well, this is what I have planned to the ball rolling. thoughts? thanks

Alex Kovalenko said:

Hi Joel,

Whatever you do - do NOT cut your fees please. ;)

Why did you leave your firm? Were you not making money there? Maybe there is a bigger issue here?

The bad news: With no firm backing you up: a) you do not have access to hundreds of thousands of advertising budgets that firms spend; b) access to your coworkers and their headhunted and carefully screened candidates, c) no structured environment.

The good news: All money that you make goes directly into your pocket (minus expenses). So make sure to pick up your own clients, by doing your biz dev calls in a morning and recruiting calls during the day. Some people might recommend partnering / splitting a fee - I find thats never a good idea as the process will get even more tedious and harder to control.

My quick 2 cents. Once again, this business is not for light hearted - as Danny C. would say - you gotta eat what you kill.

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Permalink Reply by rehan hussain on January 8, 2013 at 9:04pm

Hello Robin,

I am a new member and in the process of setting up my own recruiting business. If possible could we connect?

Would like to chat briefly, kindly call me if ok.

cell-416-721-1153

res-905-997-0644

Thank you and looking forward..

Robin Harpe said:

Joel, let me know how I can help you further...or if you want to chat....I love helping others transform their passion into Performance...

Joel C. Riet said:
Thanks Robin, you have some great stirring insight in a nutshell, I had no idea I would run into so much helpful information with starting this forum. I'm so glad I did!

Robin Harpe said:
Joel: Fabulous advice. When I counsel clients who want to "fire their job" one of the first items to discuss is how long can you remain afloat before you will get nervous (how long can you afford this). And, what are the alternatives. It appears to me you might have jumped into this without first making a solid business and marketing plan. You are now an Entrepreneur and their mindset is different than the traditional workforce. I interviewed Barbara Corcoran, star of Shark Tank and NYC Real Estate expert (you may see her on the news stations). We discussed being an Entrepreneur and she advised that not everyone should be an Ent. and that the real definition is someone who jumps off the roof and builds their wings as they fall. She also said those folks who want you to plan, plan, plan first before starting are the MBA types. So, I'm guilty of that part and you certainly fall into her definition of the Ent. So, now what do you do --- you set down for a couple hours and really think why you are unique, what you have to offer, what kind of customer service you bring to the table --- and then armed with your plan (including your financial forecast) you note how many calls it takes to get # of qualified resumes that will be presented to the client and offered the job. You do those activities (calls and searches) before you do anything else; you send time on your business and marketing after you have completed calls daily.....and that right now includes the weekends until you fill your pipeline. Praying doesn't hurt either as was written about Faith. And, never start your day before you finish your day!! Jim Rohn always preached that you must plan your day tomorrow at the end of today -- and you are ready to hit the ground running tomorrow morning. I'll add put the tasks in priority order - doing the things you don't want to do first before anything else. I successfully went from the Corporate HR world to the recruiting - headhunting world - to starting my own career coaching business on the side as an extra offering......You can do this too --- just keep in mind WHY you are doing it, never lose that focus.

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Permalink Reply by rehan hussain on January 8, 2013 at 9:18pm

Hello Barbara,

I am a new member and in process of setting up my own recruiting business at home. If possible I would like to have a breif chat to see if I can be of any assistance to your business. thanks

cell 416.721.1153

res 905.997.0644

Barbara Goldman said:

Best of luck to you, it's a big decision to go out on your own.

My company is going through a transition. We are highly specialized. We are signing a retained contract that will give us the opportunity to work in areas in which we have little experience. For example, IT.

As the assignments come in, I would like to have recruiters that we can call on to fill them. You must be able to work directly with the hiring authority, and not HR. We'll give you the assignment, and introduce you to the company, you then take it over. All orders are either retained, or exclusive/with commitment.

I am looking for strong individual recruiters to rely on, and perhaps small firms can get involved.

Let me know if you are interested in chatting.

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Permalink Reply by Donna DeMarcus on March 19, 2013 at 10:06pm

Hi Robert,

I realize this post was a few years back, but I am considering opening a recruiting business as well. Can you recommend an EOR (payroll service) that does temp placements with no cash outlay?

I have been out of the recruiting industry for a couple of years. My recruiting experience has been in the following industries: physician recruiting, nuclear industry, call centers (IT, Quality Assurance, HR, Customer Service and Sales), and cell tower industry. By chance, do you know if any of these industries are "Hot" right now. I've been conducting research and I know the healthcare is hot but I can't seem to find out about the others.

Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Donna

Robert said:

Hi Joel,

I started my own firm in October (A&F also). This may or may not help you but here is what I did.

1. Bought Maxhire for $98/month. I feel much more comfortable with a solid database.

2. Bought Careerbuilder for $600/month.

3. Set up standard searches in CB to quickly populate HM with candidates from CB.

4. Bought in all my Linkedin contacts to MH db.

Upgraded Linkedin account

5. Did memory jogs to enter any and every name I could remember (entire career!)

Called everyone to seek assistance and referrals

6. Hired graphic guy for $500 to make a website, logo and business cards

7. Set up arrangement with an EOR (payroll service) so I could do temp placements with no cash outlay

4-5 temps can generate $25k plus in revenue (takes the pressure off to at least have some income)

8. Reached out to every warm contact to announce my transition

8. Review daily leads on Indeed

Find contacts and market candidates every day

9. 12 hours 6 days a week - commit to 1 year at this pace.

If your ready to quit after 3 month then perhaps you did not count the cost.

So far for me 4 Direct placements and 6 temp placements 10 current open orders.

PS

I waited until empty nest to go out on my. I don't see how I could do this with kids at home with me.

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Permalink Reply by JP Sutton on March 27, 2013 at 3:36pm

Any Recruiters looking for more business, take a look at Direct Hire Portal- www.directhireportal.com

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Permalink Reply by Sangita Singh on August 29, 2013 at 4:17am

I would say, it's perfect to run this venture. See, to start an new business is always risky and needs more hard work. Once, you are into it ,you never know you might reach the apex position as well. Therefore, it's a big "yes" from my side.

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Permalink Reply by Nicholas Meyler on July 23, 2015 at 2:59pm

Good luck! One major piece of advice: Don't start up a new company unless you have a year's worth of income in savings already. Starting up new ventures takes time. Most startups fail because of inadequate resources. Better to stay put and squirrel away plenty of savings before taking a big risk, at least that is usually the case.

I hope your situation works out for you.