SnapDragon Associates does not charge candidates for our services. Never work with any agency, search
firm, or job board who wants to charge the job seeker for services. Ethical recruiters are paid their fees
from employers and employers only.
Every communication (written and verbal) you have with SnapDragon Associates is 100% confidential. We never call current employers to verify your employment until we are far along in the process and have your authorization. We advise all candidates to always avoid using their employer’s electronic communication systems to communicate about a career search.
SnapDragon Associates serves candidates and clients in every state in the U.S. as well as Canada and Mexico. Although North America is our primary focus, we have conducted executive search services in Europe.
We take a proactive approach to recruiting! The need to hire Best in Class has never been greater, and those candidates do not have their resumes posted on the World Wide Web. There are many candidates available for a given role, but the building materials industry’s top talent is passively looking, almost always actively employed, and to find them you need someone to identify and market directly to them. We use our network of building materials industry contacts and resources to locate the passive candidates you are looking to hire. The few candidates who are actively seeking opportunities have no effective way of promoting their availability while protecting their confidentiality and look to SnapDragon Associates as a secure and confidential partner.
Executive building materials recruiters are cost effective. This benefit of using an executive search firm outweighs the cost of preparing and executing an advertising campaign, screening, and qualifying candidates and operating without a needed employee for an extended length of time. The use of executive building materials recruiters is an investment in raising the quality of your team to the next level. For smaller companies, where one hiring mistake can have a tremendous impact in cost for the company and its future, using executive building materials recruiters can be invaluable. For larger companies, using executive building materials recruiters for those time sensitive or critical roles allows their employees to focus on profitable responsibilities. Top executive talent is at a premium and can make or break the prosperity of a business. Professional, industry specific, executive recruiters can deliver the best talent to your door for more value.
We currently fill a broad range of positions in the Lumber and Building Materials industry. Some examples are:
- Senior Management – CEO, COO, CFO, VP
- Management – Sales, Operations, Marketing, HR, Logistics, Purchasing, IT
- Sales – Regional, Inside, Outside, Specification
- Operations & Logistics
- Designers – Kitchen, EWP, Truss
- Engineering
- Inventory
- Administrative & Support Roles
- Manufacturers
- Retail Lumber Yards and Pro Dealers
- Distributors
- Wholesalers
- Building Materials Suppliers
- Co-ops
- Architectural Millwork Shops
The length of the process varies. Sometimes the stages move quickly and other times they can take several weeks, even months, depending on a multitude of factors, such as client involvement, the complexity of the search, the timetable for when the position needs to be filled, the number of candidates in the applicant pool, the economy, etc. We will do everything in our power to help facilitate the process as quickly as possible.
Let’s talk about recruiter expenses and why we have chosen our fee structures. We have used recruiters ourselves, in the past, so we understand the cost and the impact to your budget, but we also understand how hiring the wrong person can be a greater hit to your team.
Companies who choose to work with recruiters to hire for critical jobs have many options at their disposal when making the decision which recruiter to provide these services. It is equally crucial to decide how best to pay for your recruiting services. The fee-based structures we use here at SnapDragon are retained, engaged contingency and SnapSearch.
A company which utilizes a retained search fee arrangement is looking for more of a business relationship with the recruiter on a trusted advisor basis. The recruiter is now hired and paid as an outside extension of a company’s hiring team. With this type of arrangement, recruiters are constructing a dedicated search and process to find the right candidate. The focus is on quality and appropriateness for the position. The best interests of the client are at the forefront, where they should be.
With a retained search, recruiters are anxious to get the word out about the company that has the positions available. They are protected from predatory competition from other recruiters because they usually have an exclusive working relationship with their clients.
We have found that an engaged contingency fee agreement may represent a perfect middle ground. It is part contingency (most of the payment comes at the end – good for you) and part retainer (an upfront engagement fee – good for the recruiting firm). With this type of arrangement, a company pays a recruiter (is actually the recruiter that gets paid?) an engagement fee of $5,000.00. SnapDragon is then paid a contingency fee based on a percentage (generally 25-30% depending on position) of the first year’s guaranteed income less the engagement fee 10 days after the start date. This differs from retainer agreements where there are higher fees, 33-40%, and scheduled payments throughout the search process based on time periods and/or criteria that are met along the way. Our experience shows that most client companies like this approach because both parties have “skin in the game” and are motivated for the right reasons to achieve the best outcomes. We will be an industry insider, a trusted advisor who will offer you his/her expert opinion and talents in identifying Best in Class talent and will be accountable to you by providing extensive screening before recommending a candidate. You will be employing a whole team, including researchers, recruiters, and marketing professionals to work on your search.
Every organization must examine its own internal needs to determine the best way to utilize outside recruiting assistance. Hopefully, the above information provides you with a new perspective and a good starting point.