Let me start out by saying I love this forum. 

I just scrolled through the postings on the first page of the HR Professionals, HM's and Recruiters section and found that about half of the postings were complaining about lowered fees and how HR and Corporate Recruiters are ineffective.

Regarding Fees - ever hear of capitalism? You have the right to charge whatever you want for your service. Customers have the right to decide if they want to pay your price or not.  It's called "Fair Market Value", and depending on the state of the economy the value of your product/service goes up or down.  If you feel your service is worth 30% fees, IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO FIND A CLIENT THAT FEELS YOUR SERVICES ARE WORTH 30% FEES.   End of story. 

Guess what, the economy isn't bad right now, but it isn't that good either.  You know why that is?  People are watching what they spend on everything. Gas, groceries, and yes - recruiting fees.

Here's another reality for the outside recruiters, you're gonna love this...  This week I started to track how many calls I got from outside recruiters asking to work on my openings because they had the perfect candidate for my company.  Guess how many I got?  Alright I'll just tell you - 41 so far and it's on 10:15.  Since I started writing this at 10:00 I've gotten 2.

And lets talk about value... Someone mentioned this quote:
“When I need a heart by-pass, rest assured that I won’t select my surgeon on the basis of what he charges.”

Really?   Are you sure about that? When that gigantic heart bypass bill is getting turned over to a faceless insurance company its no big deal. Imagine if you were responsible for that bill out of your savings account.  I'd also be curious how the Millions of Americans that can't afford healthcare would respond to that statement.  It's a whole different story when someone can't afford to get normal immunizations b/c their employer doesn't offer medical benefits and they just can't afford it.

It's a very noble statement, but not reality for everyone.

Reality is that we price shop.  We want the best value for our money and we determine the parameters of that value.  I'm sure you don't walk into a car dealer and pay the sticker price without asking for a better deal, do you?  Companies have made a niche by this process - Priceline, Geico, etc.  Why shouldn't staffing service be any different?

Now that I am finished, attack me all you want, but I had to get it off my chest.  But let me share my background first - I've done your job.  And I did it well.  I've billed 7 figures, made it to the elite level at one of the worlds top 5 recruiting agencies (top 25 in billings out of 5,000 recruiters).  I've stayed til 11 PM and back in at 6 the next day for weeks on end, saturday & sundays no problem.  I work the phone EVERY DAY for candidates.  I've done it for over the last 10 years.

I chose this position as a Corp Recruiter and I am proud that Recruiting is my profession.  I'll still be recruiting in another 10 years, and I'll still be proud of what I do.

P.S. I have now received 5 calls from recruiters this morning.  That brings the total to 44 for this week.  I guess all 44 different firms are all "the best" and "completely unique" in how they find candidates.  

I wonder how many of those 44 will still be recruiting in 10 years?

HT -

You bring up a great point.  You found clients that you partner with that feel your fee is appropriate.  I applaud you for that.  I have recruiters I pay heavy fees to and am happy to pay them as a business partner.  But they had to prove their worth - trust and verify.

My point is that not every recruiter works as diligently as you do.  I WANT to partner up with firms that will contribute to our combined success.  Unfortunately, it just isn't the norm. 

Recruiters like you are out there and I love to work with people like you.

I can't tell you how many times I have put out a job that clearly required specific location experience and then have a TPR send in a candidate from out of state with zero history in that specific market. 

Keep in mind, that this post didn't say "your fees are too high".  It said as a business person, it is your responsibility to find a customer willing to buy your product at your price.  It also said that customers, whether buying milk or yachts, are generally going to shop around for the best price.

I guess I just got tired of hearing TPR's bash corporate recruiters and HR because they have a different perspective on the hiring process.  Call it a little bit of retaliation. That's all.  Not attacking any one. 

And that is why I love this forum, searchgoddess - the right to voice ones opinion, right or wrong (not saying yours is wrong (possibly mine is wrong)).

I accept the calls because I don't block them.  I don't act like a gatekeeper and block everyone, I talk to as many people as possible.  Which builds a network.   

I'll remind you that I am not attacking TPR's or outside recruiters.  I just snapped back a bit at the ones who attacked Corporate Recruiters.  Ironically I got the response I expected.  And that was you when you didn't reach a fee you liked, you said "They have now become a wonderful source company. Period."  Pity.

For the record - I loved the high horse comment.  I got a good chuckle out of that.  But I've been here long enough.