Once upon a time, there was a trade association called the National Association of Legal Search Consultants. I used to tell friends that NALSC proves there is a trade association for everyone. People in my line of work would gather for an annual conference and do what comes naturally to recruiters… network. And since it was a client-free zone, we let loose telling war stories over cocktails until the hotel bars kicked us out. It was fun.

My hero in the business was Bob Major, who is still active at the firm he founded, now known as Major, Lindsey & Africa. When NALSC was in its prime (think 15 to 20 years ago), Bob presented a Recruiting 101 session for newbies to the business. Since ours is a profession that requires no particular accreditation or CLE, I look back in awe at how generous Bob and others were at these conferences. He was essentially training his future competitors.