Having come from working a desk, we know the frustration of discovering a client has reconnected with a candidate you originally brought to them. This frustration is compounded when you confront the client, only to have them say they don’t feel they owe you a fee. If you’ve had any real experience as a recruiter, then the reality of back door hires is nothing new to you. Our partners at Adams, Evens & Ross have spent over two decades working on behalf of the staffing and recruiting industry to collect fees owed from companies that have failed to honor agreements made with their recruiters. This work has resulted in over a billion dollars of collected fees. As president and founder of Adams, Evens & Ross Inc., Wilson Cole has written and spoken extensively about how to prevent and recover lost fees related to back door hires. He recently shared his latest e-book with us, which details the most common arguments of client companies that refuse to pay fees as well as safeguards to find and prevent back door hires. Here are a few of our favorite chapters:

Chapter 2 – A signed contract with the right safeguards

If there is one resonating theme throughout the book, it is this:  have a good contract, fill it with the right safeguards and get it signed. If you’re curious about those safeguards, here’s a rundown:

1. The debtor (this how Cole refers to the client companies throughout the book) agrees to pay the fee regardless of what position the presented candidate is hired. This includes contracting candidates or full or part-time hires.
2. A fee is owed the recruiter if a presented candidate is hired within 12 months of the last interaction. Interaction includes email correspondence regarding the candidate.
3. If you offer a guarantee, it should only be to replace for the specific position in question, and should only be in effect if the invoice is paid within 30 days.
4. The debtor is responsible for fee if they refer the candidate to another company, division or entity.
5. The contract should include a jurisdictional clause, which would maintain that the contract would be governed by the laws of your state and not that of the client company.

Chapter 4 – “We already knew the candidate.”

Wilson Cole dissects nine common arguments of client companies in regards to refusing to pay a fee when it comes to back door hires. While we’re not going to go over every argument, here’s a taste of what Cole refers to as the most common protest of perpetrators of back door hires.

Cole breaks the argument apart with one sentence:  “Knowing the candidate and knowing they are looking for a job are two very different things.” Cole suggests questioning this argument by asking the client company if they would prefer you no longer present candidates they may know. He also says to keep an email chain logging interactions with contact at the client company in regards to presented candidates.

Chapter 3 – A tracking system.

You may be curious why we skipped chapter 3, only to come back to it now. Chapter 3 offers some of the most valuable advice relating to fee retrieval in cases of back door hires. Cole encourages recruiters to incorporate a tracking system to keep tabs on candidates and the clients to whom they have been presented.

Here at Recruiters Logic, the integration division of Recruiters Websites, we have teamed with Adams, Evens & Ross to streamline the tracking system process, making the tracking of candidates easier and more efficient. As experts in applicant tracking systems, we have utilized our knowledge to create an integrated system that, through the Back Door Hiring Hound resource at Adams, Evens & Ross, allows users to track presented candidates and receive alerts when a candidate gains employment by way of a back door hire.

If you’d like more information on how to retrieve fees you are owed but have lost to back door hires, contact our friends at Adams, Evens & Ross Inc. If you need an integrated applicant tracking system or an entirely new recruiting website, contact us at Recruiters Websites.