The team members who do well at 7EG believe that our mission is an important one — helping our military Candidates connect with amazing careers.

We are doing extremely important work and when we are successful, so many people win…

• The Candidates gets a great career.
• The hiring company gets a superstar employee.
• The Candidate’s family also benefits.
• You get to help your support our country’s heroes, work from home, and earn above average compensation.

We are in 100% sales commission business!

We are paid for our results, not our effort.

Always keep your focus on the Sponsorship Fee we collect.

We would like you to set a MINIMUM goal for yourself of $100,000.

That’s only roughly one placement per week for 50 weeks.

Once you select your personal financial goal, work backwards to determine how many placements you’ll need to make in the next year.

Anticipate you’ll receive $2,000 if you’re focusing only on recruiting or business development, or $4,000 if you’re handling both tasks.

Make sure your financial goals are in line with the amount of time you plan to work.

One placement a week usually requires 40 hours of effort.

There are no shortcuts…at least during your first few years.

The recruiters who hit their goals don’t let anything stop them.

They understand the dedication required and they make it happen.

To help motivate you, decide now exactly how you’re going to spend your money (i.e. new car, retirement savings, college education, paying off loans, donating to charity, supporting a family member, etc.).

Keep your focus on your end result — the stuff you’ll buy with the money you earn — and imagine how great you’ll feel when you’re successful.

Talk about your results in the present — i.e. “I am earning $7,000 this month so I can take my family to Florida for spring break.”

Your success will depend on how well you set the ground rules for your Client and Candidate at the start of the search.

Describe our process and explain why it is so important that they follow it.

Get their verbal agreement that they are on-board and will do their part.

People want to be led — it’s human nature.  

So take charge and let them know what you will expect.

They will take you more seriously and instantly recognize you are a true professional and unlike all of the other recruiters.

Have “The Talk” during your initial conversation.

“I just want to let you know what you can expect from me and what I will expect from you.  This is a partnership.”

For Candidates:

“I will do my absolute best to help you get hired and I will always be transparent with you. If I say I’m going to do something, I will. I won’t ever leave you hanging or ignore you. How does that sound? Now, I need to know that you will commit to do the same for me. Once I present you to our Client, this process can move quickly.  The hiring manager is going to expect immediate answers from me and I need to know that when I reach out to you — either by phone, email, or text — that you will respond ASAP and always on the same day.  If you’re busy, just please take two seconds to text me back letting me know exactly when I’ll hear from you. I need to know you will always be reachable without me having to chase you for a response. Also, If at any time throughout this process you have concerns, change your mind about the position, or there’s something important you forgot to tell me, I need you to let me know right away. There will be no hard feelings if you’re honest and upfront with me. Can I count on you to commit right now that you will abide by my expectations? (Wait for a “Yes”).”

If the Candidate says “No” or is hesitant, then say, “Okay, this sounds like the timing might not be right for you now. I need to move on to other Candidates who can abide by our expectations, but I’ll always be here for you if you change your mind.”

You must be willing to walk away!

Getting their buy-in is crucial!

For your Clients:

Have “The Talk” during the Needs Analysis call.

“We very much appreciate you considering military talent for the _____MERGE POSITION. Our goal is to add enormous value to your team and our team is dedicated to working extremely hard on your behalf with zero financial risk on your end. We just have two simple requests.  First, we’d like to schedule a 15-minute weekly update call with you.  This call gives us an opportunity to brief you on the search and review any presented Candidates.  Next, we’ll need Candidate feedback from you within 48 business hours.  This is crucial in order for us to keep the best Candidates engaged.  I’m asking you to trust us and trust in our process. Are both of those requests doable? So, let’s schedule a standing meeting right now. What time works best for you guys?  I’ll then send Calendar Invites so you can add it to your calendar.”

This is the people business and without a doubt, how well you master this principle will determine how much success you enjoy as a recruiter.

You will be incredibly successful if you learn how to build rock-solid relationships with your Clients and Candidates.

To do that, you must genuinely care about them and put their needs first.

Show them love!

Building strong relationships with everyone you meet is the foundation of your business.

The most successful recruiters who earn $100K+/year are experts at this.

They plant lots of seeds and understand that many of their efforts may not pay off right away.

They have warm and friendly personalities and care deeply about everyone.

They are all-around good people — genuine, honest, and selfless.

They use video calls to the max.

Their phone is glued to their ear all day long.

They of course use emails and text, but they never miss an opportunity to make the extra effort with a video or phone call.

Constant communication is key.

Be responsive to Candidates, Clients and 7EG team members.

Do what you say you are going to do.

People don’t remember what you say, they remember how you make them feel.

Here are some of the most common reasons that can get your LinkedIn account restricted or in worst case blocked:

• Too many actions in a day
• Too many connection requests (going full stalker mode)
• Too many “I don’t know this person” reports from your outreach
• Low connection acceptance rate
• Spammy activity as a result of too much automation

Slow and steady wins the race!

Think of your LinkedIn account as your other fancy email. 

It has its own sending reputation which you need to maintain properly. 

Meaning, if you are sending too many connections invites or messages without  enough responses, you’re entering the danger zone. 

Here are things you can do to keep your LinkedIn account safe.

• Warm up your LinkedIn account before doing serious outreach.
• Choose carefully who you connect with on LinkedIn.
• Make each LinkedIn invite count, don’t waste them.
• Make your LinkedIn search accurate and targeted.
• Limit Connect requests to about 20/day.

Effectively managing your time is vital to your success.

It is very easy to get distracted and to waste time on activities that do not grow your business.

The time you devote to daily income producing activities like headhunting and contacting prospective Clients will directly relate to the number of hires you generate.

The specific hours when you work each day is entirely up to you.

They call it “work” for a reason.

There are no shortcuts.

Setting daily/weekly/monthly goals, devoting the time to achieve these goals and, most importantly, taking action will result in success.

In general, if you devote 40 hours per week, you can expect one placement per week after your initial three-month period.

Use our web-based Applicant Tracking System, RecruiterFlow for EVERYTHING you do at 7EG:  headhunt for Candidates, email, record all of your phone calls and manage your Pipelines, and track your metrics.

Everything!

It’s the backbone of your business.

Handwriting notes or developing your own system does not work with us, so please make RecruiterFlow a regular part of your process.

Maintaining good habits allows HQ to keep track of your progress and to best help you get more placements.

Unlike other recruiting firms — we NEVER let our fee prevent a Candidate from getting hired.

We are always flexible with terms, negotiate our fee if necessary, and do whatever it takes for a successful outcome.

Remember, we are not a not-for-profit organization, so we do need to do our best to generate revenue.

We have expenses and a responsibility to earn money for 7EG; however, if it’s just not possible, we eliminate our fee.

Keep in mind that even though we represent military talent first and foremost, you need to also serve as a valued advisor and extension of your Clients’ hiring team.

They pay the bills!

Our Clients trust us and value our opinion as industry experts.

If you ever feel a Candidate is not the right fit for a Client, do not promote him or her.

For example, if after presenting a Veteran you uncover a fact about him that disqualifies him from your consideration, it is your responsibility to pull the Veteran.

Your Client will respect you for taking this step.

Before presenting a Client, ask yourself, “If I owned the company, would I hire this Candidate to work for me?”

If the answer is “no,” do not recommend the Candidate.

You must be 100% confident in who you decide to put your name and 7EG’s name behind.

Our Toolbox includes numerous educational videos produced by top industry recruiters who each earn over $1,000,000/year.  

Learn from these experts!

Strive to be a SME.

The videos can be easily listened to while driving or exercising.

Listen to them multiple times so you can always learn new recruiting strategies.

You owe it to yourself to set aside time each week for your personal development and building skills that will help you throughout your career.

It’s been proven that if you devote just 20 minutes per day to your personal development, you will be in the top 95% of subject matter experts in the recruiting industry.

Guard your time as it is your most important asset.

You only have a limited number of hours each day.

Use them wisely and don’t let anyone waste them.

Talking to a Candidate for 20 minutes on the phone when you know there is no way we can help him right now or a prospective Client who you learn will never hire a recruiting firm, is not a good time investment.

Sometimes it’s really hard, but you must understand that you cannot help everyone and we are not a charity.

Be smart so you get the most out of every minute you work and always maintain a laser focus on getting hires.

Calendly.com is one of the best tools you have at your disposal.

You simply link the app to your phone’s calendar, block the times you are available, and then share it with Candidates and Clients.

It prevents the back-and-forth volleys of trying to schedule events.

It is extremely effective because it adds a level of professionalism and seriousness to your scheduled phone or video calls.

Always schedule phone calls and interviews on your Calendly account.

If the Candidate or Client doesn’t book the event on your calendar, do it on his/her behalf.

This way, the person will receive email notifications beforehand and view the appointment more seriously.

Make sure your auto instructions are clear in your Calendly settings.

Encourage video calls instead of phone calls when possible.

It builds a much stronger relationship.

Understand that the recruiting business is a roller coaster ride and every day is filled with successes and disappointments.

One day, you might get two placements.

The next, a top Candidate may fail his drug test and have his job offer pulled, or get fired or quit before we collect our fee.

You need to develop a thick skin to work in this business and learn to “go with the flow.”

Do not tolerate people who are rude, unresponsive, unappreciative of your service or disrespectful.

They will wear you down and cause unnecessary stress.

It’s not worth it!

Focus on Clients and Candidates you like and want to help.

When you encounter someone who rubs you the wrong way, a polite, “I don’t think I’m the person to help you right now, but I wish you all the best.”

That usually does the trick.

If the person apologizes, you can get back on track. 

If not, move on.

Treating your Clients and Candidates with respect, professionalism, and a friendly voice is a given.

This can be difficult at times.

Maybe a gatekeeper won’t put your call through, a Candidate is short with you, or a Client makes you feel like you’re wasting her time.

Just be polite and don’t take anything personally.

Also, always do what you promise.

Call people back who leave messages for you and respond to emails, even if it’s not going to lead to a fee.

There are too many mediocre recruiters who give our industry a bad name.

We need to always be professional and never waiver so 7EG develops a reputation as a credible, honest, and trustworthy company.

RecruiterFlow will automatically track your activity like phone calls you make each day, emails sent, conversations you have, interviews you schedule, etc.

The numbers don’t lie.

The most successful recruiters know exactly what effort they need to devote to achieve a hire.

If you strive for one placement a week, yet you’re averaging just two phone calls per day, chances are you’re going to fall way short.

You should know exactly what you need to accomplish on a daily and weekly basis to hit your goal.

For example, one recruiter knows that he needs to have Zoom conversations with 23 prospective Candidates for each placement.

By knowing exactly how you spend your time, and what is productive, you will clearly see what areas you need to improve.

Have a bulldog mentality.

Be creative and think of as many ways as possible to solve the challenge.

We get paid well because finding the right Candidate is difficult.

If it were easy, companies wouldn’t have a need for outside recruiting firms like 7EG.

Having trouble getting Candidates to apply to your Job Order and striking out with headhunting?

Call potential industry referrers, a local military base, a sales rep serving the industry.

Don’t take “no” for an answer so easily and never let a hurdle stop you from achieving your goals.

If the door is locked, then break the window.

There’s usually a creative solution to every problem.

Always get at least two POCs for each Client.

This is so important to maintain regular communication.

If you only have one, you’ll put yourself in a jam when your contact is out sick, traveling or just ghosting you.

Get the information at the start of the search so you’re prepared.

Also, make sure any Candidate you are helping has provided his Emergency Contact.

It looks horrible when your Client requests an interview and you can’t get your Candidate to respond to you.

Great success comes from total commitment.

Focus on your goal — i.e. one placement a week — and then devote all of your energy to achieving it.

Don’t think about what you’re going to do if you fail.

It’s easier to give up when you have an exit option already planned — i.e. “I’ll give this recruiting thing a shot for a few months and if it doesn’t work out, I’ll just get my job back at the restaurant.”

Constantly tell yourself that you are going to be successful.

Keep your focus on the success you will eventually enjoy, not the failure if you stumble.

So many recruiters in our industry earn six figures plus per year…and you can too!

You deserve to earn that kind of money too!

Prove to your Clients and Candidates that you truly care about them.

Be genuine.

If they sense you’re only working to make a placement fee, you’ll fail to build the strong relationship you need to be successful.

Expect to devote time and effort and not get paid for it.

That’s okay.

It will pay off for you in a referral, testimonial, or future business.

Care more than other recruiters and you will dominate them every time!

Are there any tasks you do that a spouse or family member can help you accomplish so you can get more done?

Maybe sourcing Candidates for you on Linked In, or organizing your calendar, or developing lists of prospective Clients you can approach?

Be creative and leverage family members who will benefit from your success.

It might make sense for you to focus on a specific position within so you can be viewed as an expert.

Maybe, for example, you want to focus on recruiting Penetration Testers or CISOs?

Or, if you’ve worked in finance, you have industry knowledge that can make you a really effective recruiter for IT positions at banks.

Being able to “talk the talk” with the Clients and Candidates will give you a huge advantage.

You’ll develop an industry reputation as an expert in this niche.

It also makes a ton of sense to develop an expertise by location — i.e. focus only Clients and Candidates in San Diego.

Standing during your calls will invigorate you with energy, passion, and enthusiasm, and it all comes through in your voice.

It puts less pressure on your diaphragm than sitting down.

Your voice will be clearer, the person will be more likely to understand what you’re saying so you can convey your message more clearly.

Psychologically you’ll be more confident as your standing position makes you feel higher than the person you’re talking to and more in control of the conversation.

Your head will be in a more elevated position too.

If you’re sitting, crunched over at your desk, your voice will sound dull and boring.

Lifting your head, lifting your eyes, and lifting your mouth results in a lifting of your voice and a lifting of your spirit.

You’re more likely to adopt a normal pattern of conversation – if you’re standing up, you can freely gesticulate (waving your arms about).

Of course the person can’t see what you’re doing with your arms, but freedom of movement mimics a normal face to face conversation resulting in more natural speech patterns.

Also, smile when you’re speaking — it really helps!

Please keep HQ in the loop IMMEDIATELY when anyone is really upset.

Our brand and reputation is extremely important.

We’re all human and we’re going to screw up from time to time.  

We’re also going to deal with people who will want to blame you when things don’t go their way.

They just want to know they’re being heard and may take it out on you.

An email or phone call from the company’s founder can really go a long way to put the upset person at ease.

Remember, this is an industry with 99% rejection…i.e. you evaluate 50 Veterans for your one opening, you’re going to have 49 people upset they didn’t get chosen.

Also we live in a litigious society so it is extremely important you keep HQ in the loop if you sense a situation might escalate.

Do you best to respond to other 7EG team members ASAP.

One of the challenges of working remotely is that it can often delay internal communication.

If someone contacts you, please be respectful and respond.

If you’re busy, take 5 seconds and send a quick text or email saying when you’ll get back to them.

So much of your communication will require leaving Voicemail messages for Candidates and Clients.

Please record a 7EG-geared VM greeting on your phone.

Smile at the start and speak with enthusiasm in your voice.

Example: “Hi this is Jordie from 7 Eagle Group. Please leave a message and I will call you back shortly.”

If you’re uncomfortable leaving a 7EG-geared message on your personal cell phone, then please get a free dedicated Google Voice number.

It is very confusing to Candidates and Clients when they call you and there’s no mention of 7EG on your VM recording. 

They will feel they are being scammed.

We all know hundreds of people — relatives, friends, or connections on Linked In, Facebook, and Twitter.

Every one of them could be the source of new business for you and 7EG — whether that be new Clients or Candidates we can place.

Don’t be shy.

Be proud of the great work you’re doing and ask your network for referrals.

People will appreciate the opportunity to support our mission.

Call your Client after the new employee’s first day to see how he/she is doing.

Call the new employee too.

Schedule some follow up calls too – maybe Day 7, Day 21, Day 45, etc.

Transitions are challenging for both parties and you want to be available to help make them easier.

You have a vested interest too in making sure the employee lasts past our guarantee period.

It sucks having to complete a freebie search because your employee got fired or quit before the guarantee expired.

Communicating regularly also demonstrates that you care about the successful match and not just about collecting a fee.

When you keep in touch, you’ll reap the reward of another very profitable benefit: you’ll get more assignments from your Clients and the Candidates will recommend their friends to you.

Each day, send LinkedIn “Connection” requests to people you want to target.

Don’t overdo it…maybe 20 or so a day.  If you do more, LinkedIn may freeze your account.

Use a short personal message (never the default message!). “Hi ____(first name)…Thanks for your ____(branch) service. I also served in the ____ and now we’re neighbors in ____. I would love to join your professional network.”

Expect most to connect back.

Once you’re connected, then follow it up with your question, offer to add value, or a request.

Go slow and do NOT go into sales mode until you’ve build a relationship.

Once you get the communication rally started, it will be much easier to keep it going.

Use LinkedIn’s Advanced People Search. Enter “U.S. Army” or any other branch in the “Past Job” field and write the specific “Title” (try variations) of the person you seek.

If you use this approach, you will see huge rewards.

It takes just a few minutes each day, and it really pays off.

One of the most frustrating aspects of being a recruiter is that you will spend a lot of time trying to reach Candidates and Clients and not get a response.

You’ll leave numerous Voicemails and send a lot of emails and texts that fall on deaf ears.

Getting ghosted is extremely frustrating!

It’s just part of the recruiting game, so don’t take it personally.

Once the person you’re trying to reach eventually responds, it will be much easier to keep the volley of communication going.

You’ll have momentum.

The first response is always the hardest to get, so go slowly.

If you’re headhunting a Candidate, start with a simple Connection request on Linked In.

“Thanks for your service in the Corps…would love to connect” will most likely work.

Yet, if you instead use the Connection request to tell the person all about the job, and the salary and ask if they’re interested, you are more likely to strike out.

It’s too much info too soon.

Once you’re connected, then ask your questions.

Refer to the section on Setting Expectations.

If you do a good job having “The Talk” with your Candidates and Clients, and building strong relationships, you will not get ghosted as often.

We’ve put a lot of thought into every word we’ve included in our email templates.

Please avoid the temptation to write your own messages, especially when you’re learning our process.

Here are the main advantages of using our templates:

• They’re grammatically correct so you don’t have to worry about writing an unprofessional message or saying something that is incorrect.

• We’ve tested these templates over the last 10 years and improve them regularly.

• They save you time and time is your most precious commodity. There’s no need for you to spend 5, 10, or 30 minutes writing your own messages when we have them already done for you.

It’s extremely important that you continually rank your Clients to determine how to prioritize your time.

Remember, you work on 100% commission and only get paid if there’s a hire.

If you determine the Client is not cooperating (i.e. unresponsive, or unwilling to interview or hire your Candidates) or that the assignment is too difficult because the Client’s expectations are unrealistic, let your POC know why you are unable to work under these conditions.

It’s okay to “fire” a Client or have to say “no” to them.

Then go spend your precious time working on a Client that is more likely to hire.

Criteria you can use to rank your Clients:

Exclusivity — is the Client willing to let you be the only recruiter for 30 days?

Urgency — is the Client desperate to hire or taking their time?

Ease of Filling — are you confident you can find the ideal Candidate?

Commission — What’s your payday when you’re successful?

Number of Assignments — does the Client have multiple positions thereby increasing your odds of getting at least one hire or does this look like a “one-and-done?”

Responsiveness — is the Client quick with valuable feedback on Candidates you present?

Repeater – has the Client hired from 7EG before?

Relationship with the POC — do you have a good vibe and get along well?  Does he/she respect your time and value what you’re doing for them?

Prestige — would a placement with this Client look good for 7EG because the company is well known?

Use the Advanced People Search to focus on your niche (i.e. Job Title:  Chief Tech Officer, Former Employer: U.S. Army,  Location: Boston).

You can expect at least 70% to accept your request.

Once you get the communication rally started, it will be much easier to keep it going.

Always add a personal note with your request — NEVER use just the default message.

Avoid the temptation to turn your camera off.

That defeats the purpose of Zoom and makes it harder to build a relationship.

Please remember represent 7EG and your personal appearance creates a meaningful first impression.

Wear a 7EG shirt, button down, or business casual clothing.

Avoid tee shirts, baseball hats, and clothes that do not convey professionalism.

Our Clients and Candidates are counting on you to do what you promise.

Whether that’s returning phone call, sending an email, providing a reference check, etc.

And ALWAYS be on time.  

NEVER keep anyone waiting.

If you’re running let, send a text or email and be respectful of others’ time.

Please do NOT deviate from our standard operating procedures.

We put our processes in place for a reason — they work!

If you feel you have a better way of doing things, present your ideas to HQ.

Recruiting is a challenging business.

What makes it even harder is that we are all remote and don’t have the luxury and overhearing how others do it and getting our questions answered quickly.

No doubt you will encounter many hurdles along the way.

Please reach out to a Team Lead or someone in HQ when you’re stuck and need help.

Check your ego at the door becuase there’s no shame in asking for help!

We strongly encourage you to attend every training session.

Learning from others is the best way to improve your skillsets.

Make it a habit to circle back to any Candidate you have to reject for a position.

Do NOT do what most recruiters in our industry do — ghost them!

That will give you — and 7EG — a really bad name.

Candidates will appreciate you getting back to them…even if it’s with bad news.

Practice writing and speaking messages that are clear and concise.

One word is always better than two!

Double check your grammar, punctuation, case, etc. — it looks HORRIBLE for you and 7EG when your message is filled with typos.

Avoid long emails when possible.

Get to the point right away.

Write in the present tense.

Use a free resource like ChatGPT if you’re unsure what to say.

It is crucial that you constantly look for ways to build your brand.

You can do this really effectively on any of the social networks (we’re partial to LinkedIn since it’s the most business-oriented network), but it could work with any of them.

Increase your quality connections/friends to the thousands.

Engage with interesting content by Liking, Commenting, and Sharing.

Remember, networking goes both ways so make sure to be a resource of information, education, introductions, etc.

Write original content.

Maybe start your own podcast specific to your niche?

The more people who know your name, the more hires you’ll make.

You’ll build a reputation as the “go-to” recruiter in your niche.

Understand that you are ultimately responsible for your failures and successes.

Do not look to blame the Candidates, Clients, Co-Workers, the economy, etc. when hurdles arise (and they will!).

You must believe that being a top-notch recruiter is doable.

Earning $100,000+ in Year 1 in achievable and accomplished every day by people with no formal training, no advanced education, and no prior experience.

Few other career paths allow someone starting from scratch to climb the ladder so quickly.

Never doubt your ability to also be massively successful and a leader in our industry.

The 

Set clear goals each day for what you need to accomplish.

Focus like a laser on activities that will get you closest to a hire.

Don’t get distracted with non-revenue generating tasks that keep you busy, but will have little chance of making you money.

It’s important too that you face what isn’t working for you and try new strategies and approaches.

Invest in your career and listen to ONE business/self-improvement book per week.

There are thousands of great titles on Audible.com that you can access for about $12/moth.

Listen while working out, exercising. 

Make time spent driving a car your business school on wheels!

Here are a few good ones to check out:

• The Success Principles by Jack Canfield
• Lead the Field by Earl Nightingale
• 10X Mentor by Grant Cardone
• Rework by Jason Fried
• Talent War by Mike Sarraille

We do not allow anyone to remain on our team who lies, cheats, or takes advantage of a co-worker, Candidate, or Client.

When attending Team Meetings or training sessions, please do your best to participate.

Ask questions, support your co-workers, and add value.

Please do not just stare silently at your screen.

We need you to participate!

Think out of the box so you can come up with creative solutions to your challenges.

Always be open to more effective ways to get hires.