Mission – tripodiqualityconsulting.com

Our Mission

At Tripodi Quality Consulting, our mission is to revolutionize the way organizations think of Quality and quality contracting. We aim to accomplish this mission by focusing on two primary objectives.

Redefine Quality

Our goal is to educate decision makers on how to lengthen time preferences and ensure the long-term profitability through an integrated understanding of Quality.

At Tripodi Quality Consulting, we define Quality as the maximization of prosperity or profit, when and only when, profit is measured over an eternal time horizon and that considers all externalities.

"Quality is the building into an object of truth."

– Dr. Jordan Peterson

Solve the Staffing Firm Incentive Problem

Our goal is to disrupt the quality contracting business with high efficiency solutions that simultaneously improve the quality of service provided to clients and the quality of life of contractors.

The general incentive problem with commissions is discussed in detail in Steven Levitt’s Freakonomics. See below for more details on how this concept applies to staffing firms.

The Staffing Firm Incentive Problem

"But as incentives go, commissions are tricky. First of all, a 6 percent real-estate commission is typically split between the seller’s agent and the buyer’s. Each agent then kicks back roughly half of her take to the agency. Which means that only 1.5 percent of the purchase price goes directly into your agent’s pocket. So on the sale of your $300,000 house, her personal take of the $18,000 commission is $4,500. Still not bad, you say. But what if the house was actually worth more than $300,000? What if, with a little more effort and patience and a few more newspaper ads, she could have sold it for $310,000? After the commission, that puts an additional $9,400 in your pocket. But the agent’s additional share—her personal 1.5 percent of the extra $10,000—is a mere $150. If you earn $9,400 while she earns only $150, maybe your incentives aren’t aligned after all."

- Steven D. Levitt,

Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything

For Contractors

Staffing firms charge clients between 25% and 100% of a contractor’s wages. The recruiter’s commission is typically around 50%, with 50% going to the firm. To be generous, let’s assume a 25% upcharge on the contractor’s rate. If the contractor’s rate is $100/hr, the staffing firm is charging the client $125/hr. For a standard 6-month contract at 40 hrs/wk, the recruiter’s commission is $13,000. What if, with a little more effort, the recruiter could have gotten the client manager to convince the client to accept a higher rate? What if, with a little more effort, the recruiter could have gotten you a rate of $115/hr? For a contract of this length, that puts an additional $15,600 in your pocket. But the recruiters additional commission is only $1,950. If you earn $15,600 while they earn only $1,950, maybe your incentives aren’t aligned after all.

For Clients

Clients will often have a need for a part time contractor or simply won’t have the budget for a full time role (40 hrs/wk). Staffing firms make money based on hours billed, so they are incentivized to convince clients that the market is only demanding full time contracts or simply not dedicate resources to filling these roles. What if, with a little more effort, the staffing firm could have found a contractor that met your exact needs? What if, with a little more effort, the recruiter could have found a contractor to agree to 20 hrs/wk. With a contractor rate of $100/hr, the client is paying a rate of $125/hr. For a standard 6-month contract, the staffing firm makes $13,000 more, but it ends up costing the client an additional $65,000. If you would save $65,000 while they lose out on $13,000, maybe your incentives aren’t aligned after all.

This example is to keep things simple. What is likely to happen instead, is that in order to keep the contractor in budget, the staffing firm claims they can find someone to fill the role for $65/hr ($81.25/hr for the client). So, you are now paying $84,500 for a less capable contractor, instead of paying $52,000 for a high performer to do the job in half the time. Meanwhile, the staffing firm has increased their take from $13,000 to $16,900.

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