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FAQ
1. Tell me more about Paladin.
Paladin has specialized exclusively in marketing and creative staffing
since 1990 and provides a full range of temporary and permanent staffing services
for any marketing and creative function your company might have.
Paladin has offices throughout the United States and provides expertise in freelance,
direct-hire, contingent and retained search for marketing and creative placements.
Any company that has a marketing need can benefit from Paladin. Paladin’s
clients include agencies and design firms of all types and size, service firms,
financial institutions, smaller companies to large Fortune 1000 corporations
across all industry sectors and municipal and not-for-profit organizations.
Our associates are experts who have the exact expertise you need, when you need
it. Whether your requirements are long or short-term, on-site or off, or for
mid to senior-level talent, Paladin can help you fulfill your direct hire or
freelance staffing needs quickly and expertly.
2. What makes
Paladin different from other staffing firms we use?
We deliver on our brand promise of marketing talent and expertise.
Our talent. Paladin’s associates are
the best in their fields. We have developed a strong reputation
of proven performance within the marketing and creative industries,
which allows Paladin access to the most talented professionals
in the business. In addition, we make sure our associates meet
your specific requirements by putting each associate through
a thorough screening process.
Our expertise. Our staff members have previous
marketing and advertising experience, as well as years of recruiting
expertise. We understand and assimilate your business, and hiring
needs, fast. We consistently deliver the right talent for positions
because we have solid experience within the industries we service.
Client service is our specialty. We conduct business in a manner
that demonstrates both the company's and each individual's commitment
to an ethical, honest and above-board approach in all dealings.
Complete client satisfaction is our number one goal.
3. What are your fees?
Freelance fees: Once you hire a Paladin
associate, Paladin will bill you an hourly, project or day rate
for the person’s time. This rate will be determined and
agreed to by both yourself and Paladin in advance of placing
the Paladin associate on the assignment. No additional fees
above the agreed upon rate are charged. Paladin partners with
a PEO (professional employer organization) and acts as the employer
of record for freelance and project work, so your Paladin associate
stays on our payroll. We manage all taxes and other mandatory
deductions like Social Security, Medicare and workers’
compensation insurance premiums.
Temp-to-perm fees: Once
you have hired a Paladin associate for a freelance assignment,
you have the option to convert them to a regular staff position.
A conversion fee would apply under this circumstance. The conversion
fee is based on a hourly sliding scale and reduces according
to the total number of hours the associate has worked on the
assignment. Call your Paladin office for specific details.
Contingency search fees: Paladin charges a
fulfillment fee for direct-hire placements on a contingency
basis. No fees are associated with the search until you decide
to hire a Paladin associate.
Retained search fees: Paladin offers an innovative
and unique retained direct-hire search option. This choice allows
companies to reduce their fee by paying for a portion of the
search in advance. This option is highly efficient for companies
with multiple searches. For retained search fees, please contact
the office nearest you at 888.paladin (725-2346) to discuss
your exact requirements.
Payroll-only fees: Paladin offers a payroll-only option
for clients who have hiring freezes, want to outsource their
entire marketing or creative departments, or may have found
their own associate but want to be removed from employer-related
obligations like unemployment insurance. Rates are negotiated
on a case-by-case basis.
4. Who comprises Paladin’s freelance and direct-hire
talent base?
All Paladin associates or candidates must have two to three
years professional work experience and must have worked within
his/her field in the past year. Often they are the hidden job
seekers who come to Paladin to confidentially find new positions
or freelance assignments.
Only the best and most experienced are considered
for opportunities through Paladin. Paladin is contacted by thousands
of individuals each week, yet only a small fraction are accepted
as potential associates.
5. How do you find your talent?
We have developed strong alliances within the markets we serve.
Therefore, we have been able to attract our superior talent
through an extensive networking and referral base. We partner
with industry organizations and sponsor professional marketing
and creative associations in an effort to better access the
crème de la crème of talent in these industries.
In addition we can augment our search capabilities with proactive
postings on general and industry-related job boards so that
our clients don’t have to incur the expense or hassle.
6. How much experience do your associates typically have?
The minimum experience level is two years and there really
is no maximum, as long as the person has worked within the last
year in his/her current area of expertise. It really depends
on the type of jobs our clients are looking to fill, as Paladin
will recruit talent to suit their needs. Paladin provides associates
at senior, mid and junior levels. Paladin Associates’
years of experience range from two to 20+ years.
7. How do you charge for your freelance professionals’
time? Do you have a rate card?
Our temporary talent typically works at an hourly rate.
Time is tracked, paid and billed weekly. Clients are charged
on the same basis as the employee is paid—again, usually
at an hourly rate. However, some jobs are considered on a day,
week or project rate basis.
Paladin does not have a rate card as our professionals are a
fluid labor market where supply and demand are in constant flux.
Pricing is also influenced by the specific nature and length
of the assignment, the uniqueness and extent of the educational
background, expertise and skill sets required by the position
and whether managerial experience and responsibility is required.
Paladin handles the sensitive intermediation on the client’s
and associate’s behalf to determine appropriate and mutually
agreeable pricing. Of course, we do know the accepted rate range
for frequently placed job skills and share that information
with clients who need to know generally what they can expect
to pay for certain types of skills. To successfully fill assignments
that result in a satisfied client and Paladin associate, we
negotiate fair pricing that compensates the employee and considers
the needs of our client and Paladin.
8. How are we billed?
After client approval, Paladin associates on freelance
assignments submit weekly time records to Paladin. Paladin then
bills its clients weekly for those hours. Clients are billed
by Paladin’s Accounting Department, which is in Chicago.
Associates working on project rate jobs have their work billed
at agreed upon intervals as work progresses. Direct-hire fees
are billed the first week of employment.
9. How long does it take to find candidates?
It depends on the assignment or direct-hire position, and the
type of skill set required. We’ll let you know up front
what our expectations are of fulfillment and try to set a realistic
timeline to manage your hiring expectations. Some freelance
assignments can be filled within hours, while direct-hire jobs
sometimes take weeks. In general our clients report being very
pleased at our quick turn-around time.
10. If we don’t
like the freelance associate or their work, what are our obligations?
Paladin saves you time and money in recruitment costs
and troubleshoots in advance to avoid wrong-hire situations.
Your satisfaction is our guarantee.*
In the rare instance that a Paladin Associate doesn’t
perform as expected, let us know immediately. If a person or
situation is just not working out, we will replace the person
with another associate or credit you for the time of the person
who has been dismissed. Either way, you have no financial obligation
for the work you found unsatisfactory as long as we are advised
in a reasonable period of time.
* Terms of our guarantee are included in Paladin’s Client
Letter of Agreement.
11. Who owns the work a Paladin associate
completes, and how are we protected against breach in confidentiality?
Our associates sign a Paladin Letter of Agreement stating
that work done on behalf of a Paladin client is the property
of the client. In addition, they sign a confidentiality agreement
on Paladin’s behalf as well as your company’s non-disclosure
agreement.
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