How To Get Started

We get a lot of calls saying, "We go to the Topgrading Shop and see quite an array of tools to help companies roll out Topgrading, but please, simplify it - what do we need?"

The one absolutely essential tool for Topgrading is licensing the Topgrading forms. There are 5 forms, but the crucial ones are the Topgrading Career History Form (licensed, you can email it to candidates and use it to cut a stack of resumes to only 3 people to interview) and the Topgrading Interview Guide (the 32-page handy form to write notes on). Without the Topgrading Interview Guide no company we know of has achieved even 70%, let alone 90% hiring success. To license the form, click here.

With a 15 minute phone call we can tailor a specific proposal, but a typical program looks like this:

Small Company, Inc.
60 employees
10 managers

1 manager (Ideally the CEO) attends Smart & Associates workshop
(This total immersion in Topgrading for a day equips the CEO to confidently launch the Topgrading.) 		$2,750
Avoid Costly Mis-Hires
(This free, downloadable 50-page eBook is a practical overview of Topgrading methods.)		 Free
Topgrading: How Leading Companies Win by Hiring, Coaching, and Keeping the Best People (big book) (@ $27.95 x 10 managers)
(This is the complete Topgrading manual, including sections on hiring, firing, coaching, and how to become and remain an A player.)		 $280
First year of license for all 5 forms and interview guides
(The electronic versions are easy to email, download, and print out.)		 $1,000
First year of license for 1-hour hiring video
(Available through links 24/7, this is a great introductory course and "refresher."		 $1,000
Train-the-Trainer 7-hour DVD package
(Workshops can be conducted internally with this video.) 		$1,250
Consulting on Implementation
(This optional component can consist of conducting a workshop, providing coaching through all the hiring steps -- scorecard, career history form, phone screen, round robin interviews, Topgrading Interview, reference check, or simply answering questions from time to time.) 		TBD
  $6,280

Larger Company, Inc.
300 employees
25 managers
3 locations

2 managers (CEO, HR) attend Smart & Associates workshop (offered quarterly)
(This total immersion in Topgrading for a day equips the CEO and head of HR to confidently launch the roll out.)		 $4,700
Avoid Costly Mis-Hires
(This free, downloadable 50-page eBook is a practical overview of Topgrading methods.)		 Free
Topgrading: How Leading Companies Win by Hiring, Coaching, and Keeping the Best People (big book) (@ $27.95 x 25 managers)
(This is the complete Topgrading manual, including sections on hiring, firing, coaching, and how to become and remain an A player.)		 $699
First year of license for all forms/guides
(The electronic versions are easy to email, download, and print out.)		 $3,333
First year of license for 1-hour hiring video
(Available through links 24/7, this is a great introductory course and "refresher.")		 $3,333
Train-the-Trainer 7-hour DVD package
(Workshops can be conducted internally with this video.)		 $1,250
On-premises 2-day Topgrading workshop for remaining managers
(We conduct this workshop, which powerfully launches Topgrading. Managers are coached through the complete, Topgrading Interview process.)		 $25,000
Consulting on Implementation
(This optional component can consist of conducting or co-leading workshops, coaching, or simply answering questions during implementation.) 		TBD
  $38,315

Additional costs (call for rates) are for our Topgrading professionals interviewing candidates for selection or promotion - a "second opinion" until your Topgrading Interview skills are solid.

Any CEO or other manager looking at costs can say, "Hey, as soon as we've avoided one typical mis-hire, we've saved hundreds of thousands of dollars, enough to pay for all the Topgrading tools for decades!"