The difference between success and failure in the staffing industry

I recently took a new role leading a healthcare staffing firm in Atlanta. Having spent my entire 25 year career in IT staffing, I wondered how different healthcare staffing would be. What I've found is that the people who are successful at MDA would have success anywhere, and the people at MDA who struggle would struggle anywhere. I know that isn't exactly a profound statement, so let me elaborate.

There are a few traits that winners have in whatever they do. If you have these traits, you are successful in most things in life. There are many but here are a few that I have noticed in my new role and I have seen over and over again through hiring and leading several hundred salespeople and recruiters in the staffing industry:

Passion: If you aren't passionate about helping people (whether they are clients or candidates) and you're just in it for the money, eventually you get frustrated and find another industry to work in....or even worse you jump from company to company getting a guaranteed compensation plan for a year and then leave when your guarantee is up. The top 10% of producers in the staffing industry have a sense of purpose and really care about what they do on a daily basis. They feel like they are making a difference and helping people. When you focus on helping others instead of "what's in it for me?", you are more successful. This was a lesson I had to figure out for myself when I was recruiting and selling. People who care more for their clients and candidates than they do for their own paycheck consistently produce at much higher levels. I've seen it play out so many times over 25 years that I don't believe it's an accident.

Have a daily plan: Sounds simple doesn't it? Who goes to work every day without a plan? Well, I can tell you that I find fewer than 20% of people have a detailed, written plan on what they are going to focus on when they sit down at their desk in the morning. Of course, these 20% are the ones that are winning and their success is not an accident. Why not spend 20 minutes each night before you leave work developing a list of things that you MUST get done the next day, and another list of activities you would LIKE to get done? You will find your productivity increase in a big way, but it amazes me how few people have the discipline to do this EVERY DAY.

Own your personal success or failure: It doesn't matter what your role is in a company....if you have an attitude and mentality that your success or failure is completely dependent on you and what you do, you will win. If you blame others, talk behind other people's back, assume a victim mentality and make excuses on why you aren't winning....you will never attain success in this business or life. In reality, of course it's much easier to be successful if you are surrounded by people who have these same traits, but blaming others for your lack of success leads to a mentality that allows you to settle for mediocrity and act like it's not your fault. I've yet to work for the perfect company and don't expect that I ever will. The opportunity each of us has in the staffing business is extraordinary, and it amazes me when people come into the business just to make a buck and never assume responsibility for their own actions, or lack thereof. Step up and take advantage of this incredible opportunity or some day you will wake up and realize you missed out on a tremendous opportunity. Those of us who know it can be done don't need you filling the heads of others around us on why they can't be successful. 

Work hard...and smart: This isn't an either/or situation, the great people in our industry do both/and. They don't work EITHER hard OR smart, they work BOTH hard AND smart. Efficiency matters in staffing but putting in the time does as well. The top 10% of people I have worked with have always worked the most hours and they have been efficient with those hours. There are only so many hours in the day and if you use half of them walking around shooting the breeze with your co-workers, or spend your time at the coffee machine justifying to anyone who will listen how you aren't getting any support and that's why you aren't having success, you will lose. If you come to work each morning, sit down and review the daily plan you made the night before, prior to leaving the office, and start hammering away at the phones or focusing on the top priority items from your daily plan.....you are going to win and win big.

Be a team player: No one wants to work with a brilliant jerk. We all have worked with these people in the past. You know the kind. They produce at high levels but feel they are always the smartest person in the room, don't care about anyone else on the team, and are in it only for themselves. These people are not only annoying, but they ruin the team morale and can't be tolerated. It's leadership's job to make sure these people are not allowed to ruin it for the entire team. It is not that hard to be a top producer AND care about your teammates. 

Top performers know their numbers all the time: I get a kick out of people who tell me they don't want to work for a company that tracks metrics. You might as well tell me you don't want to be successful in the staffing industry. In 25 years of doing this, I have never....let me repeat, never seen a top producer who didn't know exactly what their performance was relative to the key performance indicators that have proven to predict success. There are usually only 3-4 key numbers to track so you don't have to work for NASA to understand what these are. I had my own personal dashboard that I tracked daily when I ran a desk. Know the numbers that predict future success and develop your daily plan to hit those numbers every single day. For a daily plan to be effective, you must have a goal that is written down for each day and the goal should be at least one or two of your key performance indicators. For instance, I may have closed a bunch of deals in the past couple weeks and I know that I need to refill my pipeline so I will focus more on outbound calls and finding new business this week. My daily goals will reflect that and I won't leave the office until I have hit my goal for the day. The point is that you always know exactly what you need to be focused on at any point in time because you use the KPIs as a road map for success and you know where you are at all times versus where you need to be. If you are behind in one area, you focus on that area until you get back to plan and then move on to whatever area your numbers tell you need attention next. Top performers use KPIs to tell them something and take action, not waiting for their leader to have to tell them what needs to be done. People who don't know their numbers lose. Simple as that.

The staffing business provides an unbelievable opportunity for those of us fortunate enough to work in this field. That's all it is though, an opportunity. People who live the traits I've outlined above have great success and actually enjoy going to work each morning (or most mornings!) because they love helping others, are organized and have a plan, aren't afraid to work hard but also efficiently, take accountability for their own success or failure, love being a part of a team, and use proven KPIs to help them determine where they need to spend time to attain their goals. If you do these things, you will not only win in your professional life but you will be a much happier person as well. Take advantage of this opportunity!