In the competitive staffing industry, understanding what your clients and candidates truly think about your services can make the difference between thriving and merely surviving. Net Promoter Score (NPS) gives staffing firms a concrete way to measure loyalty and satisfaction, transforming subjective feedback into actionable data.
For staffing firms navigating complex relationships with both clients and talent, NPS provides a clear metric to track performance, identify improvement opportunities, and make strategic decisions that directly impact revenue growth and market position.
What is NPS and Why Does It Matter?
Net Promoter Score is based on a single question: “How likely are you to recommend our company/service to a friend or colleague?” It measures the customer experience on a scale from 0 to 10, categorizing respondents as Promoters (9-10), Passives (7-8), or Detractors (0-6). The score itself ranges from -100 to +100, with higher scores indicating stronger loyalty.
For staffing firms, NPS matters because it directly correlates with retention and referrals—two critical drivers of sustainable growth. When clients consistently recommend your firm or candidates eagerly refer other professionals to your recruiters, you gain a powerful competitive advantage through organic growth while reducing acquisition costs.
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How NPS Can Benefit Your Staffing Firm
Here’s how it can benefit your business:
1. Measures Customer Loyalty and Satisfaction
NPS provides a clear snapshot of how your clients and candidates feel about your services. A high score indicates strong loyalty, while a low score signals areas for improvement. Unlike other metrics, NPS focuses on the likelihood of recommendations, which is a strong indicator of long-term loyalty.
According to Bain & Company, NPS’ co-creators, companies with high NPS scores grow at more than twice the rate of their competitors.1 In an industry where relationships are the foundation of success, a strong NPS can directly correlate with better client retention and candidate satisfaction.
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2. Identifies Areas for Improvement
By analyzing feedback from detractors and passives, you can pinpoint specific pain points. For example, are clients frustrated with slow response times? Are candidates dissatisfied with the quality of placements? NPS helps you uncover these issues and address them proactively.
3. Tracks Changing Customer Sentiments
The staffing industry is dynamic, with shifting client needs and candidate expectations. Regularly measuring NPS allows you to stay ahead of trends and adapt your strategies accordingly. For instance, if your NPS drops suddenly, it could indicate a new competitor or a change in market demands.
4. Provides Actionable Customer Insights
NPS feedback is a goldmine of information. It reveals what’s working, what’s not, and what you can do to enhance the client and candidate experience. For example, if multiple clients mention poor communication, you can implement new processes to keep them informed.
5. Drives Revenue Growth
Happy clients are more likely to renew contracts and refer others, while satisfied candidates are more likely to accept placements and recommend your firm. Improving your NPS, directly impacts your bottom line.
As a result, firms that prioritize candidate and client satisfaction are more likely to see a higher revenue growth compared to those that don’t. This highlights the importance of using NPS to drive financial performance.
Understanding the NPS Scale: Promoters, Passives, and Detractors
The NPS scale divides your clients and candidates into three distinct categories based on their responses to the recommendation question:
- Promoters (9-10): These enthusiastic clients and candidates are your biggest advocates. They regularly refer business to you, remain loyal even when competitors approach them, and provide valuable feedback. For staffing firms, promoters often become sources of repeat business and referrals.
- Passives (7-8): These clients and candidates are satisfied but not enthusiastic enough to actively promote your services. They’re vulnerable to competitive offers and unlikely to drive referrals. Many staffing firms find that passives represent their greatest opportunity for improvement and growth.
- Detractors (0-6): These dissatisfied clients and candidates may damage your reputation through negative word-of-mouth. They’re likely to switch to competitors and may actively discourage others from working with your firm. Their feedback, however, offers invaluable insights for improvement.
Understanding this distribution helps you identify where to focus improvement efforts and which relationships need immediate attention to prevent lost business.
How to Calculate Your NPS
Collect responses to the NPS question from your clients and candidates
- Calculate the percentage of respondents who are Promoters (those who answered 9-10)
- Calculate the percentage of respondents who are Detractors (those who answered 0-6)
- Subtract the percentage of Detractors from the percentage of Promoters
The formula is simple: NPS = % Promoters – % Detractors
For example, if 45% of your staffing clients are Promoters, 30% are Passives, and 25% are Detractors, your firm’s NPS would be 20 (45% – 25% = 20).
This single number gives you a benchmark to track over time and compare against industry standards, helping you measure the effectiveness of your client and candidate experience initiatives.
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Interpreting Your NPS
While the calculation is simple, interpreting your score requires context. Here’s a general guideline:
- 0 to +30: Good, but there’s room for improvement.
- +30 to +50: Excellent, indicating strong customer loyalty.
- Above +50: Exceptional, putting you in the top tier of staffing firms.
A high NPS means you’re delivering an outstanding experience, while a low score signals the need for improvement. For example, if your NPS is low, it could indicate issues with communication, placement quality, or candidate experience.
How to Improve Your NPS
Improving your NPS isn’t just about raising a number—it’s about creating a better experience for your clients and candidates. Here are some proven strategies:
1. Offer Exceptional Customer Service
Train your team to go above and beyond in addressing client and candidate needs. For example, if a client is frustrated with a delayed placement, offer a personalized solution to rebuild trust.
2. Deliver High-Quality Placements
Consistently matching the right candidates with the right roles is key to earning promoters. Use data and feedback to refine your placement process and ensure better outcomes.
3. Keep Clients and Candidates Informed
Transparency builds trust. Regularly update clients and candidates about the status of their placements and how their feedback is used.
4. Incentivize Recommendations
Encourage clients and candidates to refer others by offering rewards or discounts. For example, you could provide a discount on future services for every successful referral.
5. Act on Feedback
Show clients and candidates that their opinions matter by addressing their concerns and making improvements based on their suggestions.
How NPS Differs from Other Metrics
Unlike Customer Satisfaction (CSAT) metrics that measure immediate satisfaction with specific interactions, NPS focuses on long-term loyalty. For staffing firms, this distinction matters—a candidate might be satisfied with an interview process (high CSAT) but still unlikely to recommend your agency if the placement wasn’t a good culture fit.
Similarly, a client might rate a specific placement positively but hesitate to recommend your firm if your selection process is cumbersome. NPS captures these broader relationship dynamics that transaction-specific metrics miss.
- Using NPS Surveys to Gather Feedback
Implement NPS surveys strategically to maximize insights: - Send surveys at consistent intervals to track trends over time
- Include one follow-up question asking why respondents gave their specific score
- Survey both clients and candidates for comprehensive feedback
- Keep surveys brief to increase completion rates
- Use digital platforms that make responses easy and immediate
You might send candidate NPS surveys 30 days after placement and client NPS surveys quarterly. Through follow-up questions, you might discover that candidates who rate you as passive (7-8) often cite limited communication during the onboarding period—an easily addressable issue that could significantly improve your scores once fixed.
Leveraging NPS Data for Continuous Improvements
Turn your NPS data into actionable improvements:
- Address detractor feedback immediately to recover at-risk relationships
- Identify common themes in passive feedback to move these clients to promoter status
- Learn from promoters what you’re doing right and replicate those successes
- Train your recruiters and account managers based on feedback patterns
- Establish NPS improvement targets and track progress quarterly
If your firm finds that hiring managers consistently mention response time as a reason for detractor scores, you could implement a technology solution to ensure all client inquiries receive responses within two hours. This could significantly increase your NPS within months and directly impact client retention and referrals.
Related Reading: From AI Confusion to Competitive Edge: A Practical Playbook for Staffing Leaders
Ready to take your NPS to the next level?
At Newbury Partners, we help staffing firms design effective NPS programs that drive measurable business results. Our team can assist with survey setup, result analysis, and implementing strategies based on feedback.
Email our Vice President of Client Services, Erin Mackenzie, at erin.mackenzie@newburypartners.com to learn more about how we can help you and your organization.
Follow Newbury on LinkedIn to receive future blog posts and insights tailored to the staffing industry.
Last updated on April 30, 2025.
Reference
1. How the Net Promoter ScoreSM Relates to Growth. (n.d.). Bain & Company. Retrieved March 13, 2025, from https://www.netpromotersystem.com/about/how-net-promoter-score-relates-to-growth/
