~ Aretha Franklin -- won eight Grammy Awards in a row (1968 to 1975)
~ Michael Jackson -- won eight Grammy Awards in one night (1984)
~ Metallica -- won eight Grammy Awards over their career
These are indicators of high standards of performance in the music industry.
In the recruiting industry eight remains the current standard for performance. Technical recruiters need eight to make The List. They need eight LinkedIn recommendations to make The List of Boston's most-recommended recruiters -- Boston's Rockstar Recruiters.
Boston's Top 100 Technology RecruitersIn the fall of 2012 Beantown Web asked the question, "Who are Boston's Rockstar Recruiters?" Welcome to the 12th installment of The List.
To begin the quest, Beantown Web identified more than 400 technology recruiters via LinkedIn. Most are located in the Boston area. Some are located in New Hampshire and Rhode Island and conduct a significant amount of business in the Boston area.
Beantown Web then turned to LinkedIn to identify customer satisfaction scores. In particular, how many people were willing to provide a public recommendation for each recruiter?
Musical performers have Grammy Awards. For those of us who perform on different career stages, we have LinkedIn recommendations to recognize our performance. Only 100 out of 400 technology recruiters in the Boston metro area has earned Boston Rockstar Recruiter status with at least eight LinkedIn recommendations received.
Boston's Top 10 Technology Recruiters
Boston's Top 10 Rockstar Recruiters perform to a higher standard. The best in the recruiting business have received at least 40 LinkedIn recommendations each.
Here are the Top 10 Boston Rockstar Recruiters for the third quarter of 2015 [number of LinkedIn recommendations received + given]:
- Chris Fountas [102 + 9] -- The Ceres Group
- Scott Dunlop [95 + 6] -- The Bivium Group
- Brendan Andersen [76 + 20] -- CyberCoders
- Doug Schade [76 + 11] -- WinterWyman
- Jamie LeBlanc [75 + 2] -- The Bivium Group
- John VanderSande [65 +2] -- WinterWyman
- Roy Evans [48 + 19] -- CyberCoders
- Danielle Lief [45 + 8] -- InnoTECH Staffing
- Chris Mitchell [41 + 4] -- WinterWyman
- Bill Sullivan [40 + 6] -- The Tyche Project
Top 10 in Assists
Some players are valuable because they score a lot of points. Others pass the ball effectively. This second list ranks "assists." It answers the following question:
"Of the recruiters listed in the Top 100, who are the most generous in offering recommendations to others?"The Top 10 most generous Boston Rockstar Recruiters for the second quarter [number of LinkedIn recommendations given + received] are as follows:
- David Perlman [59 + 19] -- Grenadier Search Group
- Scott Ragusa [38 + 25] -- WinterWyman
- Marsh Sutherland [32 + 12] -- Walden Recruiting
- Carol Taylor [29 + 17] -- Private Clients
- Andrea Williams [25 + 28] -- Career Minded Recruiting, LLC
- Brendan Anderson [20 + 76] -- CyberCoders
- Roy Evans [19 + 48] -- CyberCoders
- Phil Hurd [17 + 34] -- Oculus Search Partners, LLC
- Sean Dowling [17 + 23] -- WinterWyman
- Nagesh Kumar Gona [16 + 29] -- XpertTech, Inc.
- Jeff Sweet [16 + 21] -- VLink, Inc.
Team Scores
Now, for the team scores. The following teams placed the most recruiters (at least three) in the Top 100 [number of recruiters in the Top 100]:
Gold Category:
- WinterWyman [7]
- CyberCoders [5]
Honorable Mention:
- PeopleSERVE Inc. [3]
- Softworld [3]
Suggested Strategy
There are no televised awards ceremonies for technical recruiting performance. There is no single measure we can all agree on to decide which recruiter or recruiting firm might work best for you as a candidate or as a hiring manager.
However, there is one place to start your search. It is the same place many of us start when buying a car, or looking for a plumber or finding a dentist. That place is personal recommendations. LinkedIn provides personal recommendations.
If you have technical skills and believe you offer above average value in the marketplace, then consider working with recruiters who have consistently demonstrated above average customer service in the form of personal recommendations.
The List of Boston's Rockstar Recruiters is made available exclusively to the 400+ Web Design and Web Development alumni of CDIA, some of the most talented designers and developers I have had the pleasure to teach, mentor and collaborate with. You will hear more about the CDIA Alumni in the very near future. Until then, rock on!
[ NOTE: You can follow Beantown Web on Twitter @webapprentices and become a Fan of Beantown Web on Facebook. ]
The list of 
or 
from early April ] listed by number of job postings at Indeed.com:
Select
five technical skills in the Top 25 and focus on becoming proficient --
if not expert -- in each technology. What are your top five technology
skills? What projects can you link to that demonstrate expertise in
these technologies? For example, you can view a 
In the fall of 2012 Beantown Web asked the question, "Who are Boston's Rockstar Recruiters?"
The list of