Drastically Increase Your Profits

By: Barb Bruno
Date: 9/1/2007

The economy is strong. The job order flow is consistently increasing. The major challenge of most recruiters is finding top talent and having enough hours in the day to get everything done.

There is one important question to ask yourself, "Are you enjoying RECORD PROFITS?"

Many owners of Staffing and Recruiting Firms have confidentially shared with me that their sales are up, but their profits are down. For years, our Profession has put too much emphasis on SALES vs. PROFITS.

Following is a list of twelve realities with Action Items. You can easily implement these to increase your profits starting today!

1. You are in business to make profits

Most owners and managers in our Profession believe their employees are capable of higher levels of production. The issue is not CAN they do better, it'sWILL they or DO they even want to do better? You cannot MAKE someone a Top Producer, you hire them.

ACTION ITEMS:

• Develop a hiring process that identifies individuals with sales experience and a track record of over-achievement

• Structure your hiring process and don't take shortcuts

• Monitor statistics - Numbers don't lie Remember, you are in business to Make a Profit; not provide jobs for your employees.

2. You need a precise exit plan

If you don't have a precise Exit Plan - you are making wrong decisions today. Think about the Vision you had when you decided to own your own company. What is your current Mission? Have you developed Strategies, Tactics and Action Items with dates to ensure you achieve your profit goals?

ACTION ITEMS:

• Review your Vision and Mission Statement

• Develop specific Strategies and Tactics

•Write Action Items and dates to achieve your Mission as well as the individual responsible for each Action Item If you don't know where you're going, you won't get there! Often an accountability partner or mastermind group can help keep you on track.

3. If you ARE your business, you are diminishing the value of your company

If you are the Top Producer of your company and represent the majority of the income of your business, you have just "bought yourself a job!" That may sound harsh, but if you want to increase the value of your company, you need to teach others what you know.

ACTION ITEMS:

• Replace yourself as the Top Producer

• Teach others what you know

• Determine a time each week to work ON versus IN your business. Start out with ONE HOUR each week and view your business through the eyes of a consultant Extremely wealthy individuals don't exchange "what they do" for "what they earn." They identify talent who can help them generate income and profits for their company.

4. Respect the 80/20 rule!

It is true that 20% of what you do provides you with 80% of your results. Imagine for a moment how much more effective you would be if you spent the majority of your time utilizing your top talents!

ACTION ITEMS:

• Determine your greatest talents. The 20% that provides you with 80% of your results

• Delegate to others what is not "BEST USE OF YOUR TIME"

• Ask yourself the following questions:

1.What provides me with the greatest results? (Continue doing these functions)

2.What is an absoluteWaste of My Time? (Stop doing these things NOW)

3.What NEWtechniques can replace the ineffective ones?

5. Conduct revenue modeling

Identify your highest profit and margin business. It is critically important for you to learn from your past history and successes.

ACTION ITEMS:

• Review placements for the past 24 months

• Determine your BEST BUSINESS (Highest fees, highest margins, highest profits)

• Detail this business: industry, title, geographics, salary, etc.

• Direct 85% of your Marketing efforts at this targeted business

6. Recruiting is cyclical

Change is the only certainty in our Profession. Technology has escalated change faster than any other time in history and the global conditions have a direct impact on our economy.

ACTION ITEMS:

• Know that the current amazing job market will not last forever

• Stay informed, anticipate trends and make adjustments

• Monitor statistics daily - numbers don't lie

• Repeatable systems ensure consistent production and enhance the value of your business

7. Temp and Contract enhance the value of your firm

If your Exit Plan is to sell, you should strongly consider adding Temp or Contract to your Direct Business. If you are a Staffing Firm, you should strongly consider adding a Direct Division.

ACTION ITEMS:

• Higher margins are more valuable than increased hours

• Direct Placements provide added revenue to your bottom line

• A blended firm brings a higher sales price

8. Hard work does not guarantee high profits

There are many owners, managers and recruiters in our Profession who work extremely hard and are not achieving top production. Recruiting is not an 8:00 - 5:00 job. It is extremely important to learn to work what is CLOSEST TO THE MONEY FIRST!

ACTION ITEMS:

• Plan and focus on results-oriented Activity

• Close your Open Door Policy

• Refrain from taking incoming calls or email between the hours of 9:00 - 11:30 am Complete at least 60% of your planned outgoing presentations before noon!

• Control your destiny with your OUTGOING not INCOMING calls!

• Don't allow the URGENT to prevent you from the IMPORTANT results oriented tasks you need to accomplish

9. Your business needs to be in order!

Proper Entity Structuring, Trusts and updated Corporate Records are critical to you not only making more profits, but keeping more profits!

ACTION ITEMS:

• Surround yourself with pro-active experts who will help you attain your financial freedom

• You should OWN nothing but CONTROL everything through a trust • Consider the Tax Advantages of Multiple Entities

• NEVER co-mingle personal and business expenses. A good attorney could "pierce your corporate veil" if you do!

• Keep your Corporate Minutes up-to-date outlining all major decision, purchases, and changes to again protect your entity

10. Develop multiple sources of passive income

You have opportunities to develop passive income sources sitting on your desk! The quickest way to develop additional sources of revenue is to unbundle your services.

ACTION ITEMS:

• Survey your Clients to uncover Services they would purchase

• Set aside 5% of cash-in in a "reserve fund" targeted for investments in passive income sources

• Turn yourWebsite into a revenue generator vs. an expense

• Think of services you could provide for the 95% of the candidates you "don't place"

11. Invest in your own education and growth

Education and the implementation of that education is what separates average companies from those that excel. If you truly want to increase the profits of your company, you also need to invest in the education of your Sales Team.

ACTION ITEMS:

• Determine what percentage you will budget on your P & L for education

• Identify the best training you can invest in for your growth as well as the growth of your sales team

• Commit to a lifetime of learning

12. Entrepreneurs have NO LIMITS!

Over the past three years, I have invested over $120,000 in my own education studyingWealth. I could not understand why such a large percentage of Staffing and Recruiting Firms could not survive from 2001 - 2004. Let me share the Greatest Things I learned from my Wealth Coaches.

• You ARE your own LOTTERY

• Think BIGGER and EXPECT those goals to become reality

• Write down very specific Affirmations and repeat them in the present tense often

• If you want to do one thing that will have the greatest impact on your ability to increase profits and accumulate wealth, "change the five people you hang around with most!"

When I first heard that advice, I didn't agree. In retrospect, once you start focusing on increased profits and wealth, you just start to attract different people into your life. You want to learn from individuals who have accomplished what you are attempting to also achieve. It can be lonely at the TOP, but it is even lonelier at the BOTTOM, not making profits.

Review these twelve realities and decide which change would have the greatest impact on your profits. Implement the change for the next twenty-one days so it becomes the new way you conduct business. Move on to the next change and plan to enjoy a much higher level of success and profits!

Barbara Bruno, CPC, CTS is one of the leading Recruiting, Sales, Management, Motivational, and Internationally Renowned Training Professionals today with thirty years of experience in the trenches.