- Management matters. I can't speak for other teams, but my team went through a significant management change almost a year ago, and when it occurred, the resulting change(s) have yielded a recruiting team that has: A) shrank significantly (from about 15 to 7 in 9 months), B) been subject to short-cuts at critical junctures during the interview process, especially AT THE CLOSE of a deal (with the result of thousands upon thousands of billing dollars out the window); C) been subject to a stronger sense of fear and intimidation by the changes in said leadership. People on my team seem to dread coming to work than they did even a year ago. The attitudinal shift has largely been ignored by the higher-ups. Distressing? You bet.
- Culture shift. Whereas in previous years saw frequent out-of-the-office team-building exercises and bonding in a variety of ways - so important in a team-oriented sales environment - 2019 has been the opposite. There are far fewer of these important engagements, and teams have generally become distrustful of each other as the face-time has shrank.
- Work Experience by New Hires. AG has a whole has placed emphasis on hiring inexperienced recruiters generally fresh out of college - even in PERM! I'm certain it is done in an effort to undercut draws/salaries - ("let's take a 4-5 month chance on a 24-year-old with no recruiting experience; if it doesn't stick, meh..."). That seems to have been a shift over what has happened in years past. The result has been a churn-and-burn mentality with too many of these younger, inexperienced recruiters; I've seen many either get let go or leave prior to maturing in the craft.
- WFH/Work Remote. It's 2019, folks. Work-from-Home/Work Remote options in this industry are proliferating. The AG corporate company line of "you'll never work as effectively from home as in the office" is total bunk. I've surveyed non-AG recruiters over the last few years who WFH/Remote; they've seen their work and craft focus sharper, have seen their billings increase, and enjoy the flexibility inherent in not being tied to a cube 5 days per week. AG needs to get on board that train, quickly, or they're going to sacrifice talent. And also..
- Draw v Commission. AG, like other old school agencies, offer only a Draw v Commission compensation structure. Many more progressive agencies recognize that to attract talent, you need to offer a BASE SALARY PLUS COMMISSION structure. The latter alleviates the bane of any perm recruiter working in an environment of the former; it's not only a psychological factor - that you're not constantly worrying about "being behind" on your draw - but it shows real faith in the agency that offers you a base salary that they're in it for the long haul with you; yes, you still need to produce - it's a sales environment - but it absolutely is a greater leap forward to offer a base versus a draw scheme.
- Circus-like, bro-like culture. AG bullpens, on the whole, operate very much in a loud and boisterous environment. This is encouraged by certain managers, but they fail to realize, or simply don't care, HOW DISTRACTING this is to people who are committed to the process of making money (e.g. commitment to the phones, researching and strategizing on client and candidate outreach, etc.). Moreover, it's an environment that is hugely in to distracting, interjecting and long and unnecessary conversations about the "college football game Saturday" or "the Fantasy Football meeting". This all harkens back to the WFH/Work remote options I mentioned earlier...which should be an option across the board. In my experience, and others I've talked to, eliminating the distractions of loud, carnival-like explosions should be a priority. (Hello? WFH options!)
In the end, I will say that most of the people I've known at Addison Group are good folks who generally *want* to earn the most they can. I think, however, it absolutely matters: 1) Who leads your department, 2) What the culture fosters, and 3) and the idiom by which a recruiter can truly flourish. Our type of sales environment is unique: we're dealing with and in people, not widgets. There are a ton of disappointments, but also some incredible highs; but because we are in the "people business", it has been my observation that AG has a long way to go in flexing and adapting to a changing landscape on how to do business effectively.
