Pros
To be clear on how Teema works- you are a 1099 contractor with no salary, draw, wage, or any pay or benefits whatsoever. If you don't close any deals, your annual income is zero. It's not an 'employer'. If you close a deal, they take 20% of it. I don't personally believe that they offer anything in exchange for that 20%- apparently some people feel that they do- my review is just to explain how Teema works. Pros: Certainly has all of the benefits of being self-employed! To be fair, they do offer discounts on tools some recruiters apparently use (job board access, etc.)- but these discounts are small, inconsistent, and Teema is not large enough to have much sway as a purchaser- they could disappear next month or next year. For example, they might have a discount to use Monster or Dice, cheaper than if you purchased it on your own- but, Teema is very small fish to Monster/Dice, and those companies could change or eliminate the discount next month. I was initially attracted to the number of InMails that they had pooled for Recruiter licenses, but one day we received an e-mail that 95% of the monthly InMails we had were gone, effective immediately. Interestingly, their 20% take did not decrease. They offer a cheapo off the shelf ATS. Part of the Teema pitch is that you can 'work on other recruiters' jobs' that they have open, and you split the fee with them (so 40% apiece). If you're new to the staffing world- working on another perm job with no access to the hiring manager and no idea what's going on is just a miserable slog. The other recruiter (who is likely several states away, so you can't just go have a conversation with them) can farm out low percentage jobs, waiting to see if you find someone good- or, they can promote their own candidates and box you out. The best 'Client Managers' as they call them generally fill their own jobs, and only give out the poor quality ones to others. The only way to actually recruit (self-employed or no) is to have & manage the relationship directly with your own clients
Cons
You are self-employed- you have no salary, no healthcare, no retirement benefits, nothing. If you happen to make a placement you have to give them 20% of the fee, and then wait another 30 days after the client's check arrived to get paid. If you don't make a placement, they are not doing anything for you- you're an LLC and on your own. Again, just to be clear- they provide you absolutely nothing, other than maybe the chance to do 'splits' on low-quality jobs that another Teema recruiter wants to farm out. If you'd like to purchase tools (LinkedIn Recruiter, job board access, job postings), you pay for all of these things out of your own pocket. It's literally like.... running your own business, but giving away 20% of your revenue for absolutely no reason. If you want to be self-employed, just be self-employed and keep 100% of the commission checks you bring in. There is no additional benefit from Teema Solutions Group
