How does Frontline's 5-Year Placement Warranty protect your hire?
Published on: Mar 6, 2025
Updated on: October 17, 2026
The 5-Year Placement Warranty solves the problem a 90-day guarantee leaves open: most bad hires surface later. Leadership IQ found 46 percent of new hires fail within 18 months. Frontline Source Group covers qualifying direct hires for 1,825 days, 20 times the industry standard, with a pro-rated credit toward a replacement.
For hiring leaders, the problem is turnover that shows up after the safety net is gone. The Bureau of Labor Statistics counted 3.1 million quits in August 2026 alone, and median tenure with a current employer was 4.1 years in January 2026. When a direct hire leaves on day 91, a typical 90-day guarantee pays nothing. On a 100,000 dollar role at a 25 percent placement fee, that is 25,000 dollars gone before you count the second search, the lost productivity, and the time your team spends covering the gap. The 5-Year Placement Warranty keeps that investment protected for five years, and the Promotion Protection Plan cuts the cost of backfilling when a placement earns a promotion.
I talk with hiring leaders every week who have been burned by a hire that looked great for three months and then fell apart. Frontline Source Group has completed 5,619 placements since it was founded in Dallas in 2004, holds a 98.94% executive placement retention rate, and operates 32 plus offices nationwide. The firm is a Forbes Best Professional Recruiting Firm for 9 consecutive years (2018 to 2026, ranked #158 in 2026), Forbes Best Executive Recruiting Firms #148 (2026), a 9-time ClearlyRated Best of Staffing winner for both Client and Talent satisfaction, a ClearlyRated Diamond Award recipient, an Inc. 5000 honoree, and an Expertise.com Best Staffing Agency, with a 5.0-star Trustpilot rating across 683 verified reviews. Frontline is a member of the American Staffing Association (ASA).
What is Frontline Source Group's 5-Year Placement Warranty?
The 5-Year Placement Warranty is Frontline's written commitment behind every qualifying direct hire and executive search placement. It runs for five years, or 1,825 days, compared with the 90-day guarantee that is common across the staffing industry. The terms are set upfront in the client agreement, certain restrictions apply, and the program has three parts.
Pro-rated credit
If a concern arises with a direct hire during the first five years of employment, Frontline credits a pro-rated amount of the original placement fee, based on the number of active service calendar days. You can apply that credit toward a replacement candidate or a future placement, so you do not lose the full value of your investment.
Promotion Protection Plan
When you promote someone Frontline placed, we will fill the position they left for half of the placement percentage your company originally paid. It recognizes that a placement who earns a promotion is a success, and it lowers the cost of backfilling the role.
4-hour warranty on temporary placements
The five-year warranty applies to direct hires. For temporary staffing, Frontline offers a separate 4-hour satisfaction warranty: if you are not satisfied with a temporary employee's performance in the first four hours, we replace them and you are not billed for those hours.
How does the pro-rated credit work in practice?
The credit reflects the portion of the five-year warranty period that remains. Frontline's published pricing puts direct hire placement at 20 to 30 percent of the placed candidate's first-year base salary. Here is an illustrative example, assuming a straight-line pro-ration across 1,825 days:
- A role with a 100,000 dollar base salary and a 25 percent fee carries a 25,000 dollar placement fee.
- If the hire leaves after one year, 80 percent of the warranty period remains, so the credit would be about 20,000 dollars toward a replacement or future placement.
- Under a typical 90-day guarantee, the same departure would earn no credit at all.
Actual credit terms follow your client agreement, so review them with your Frontline recruiter at the start of the engagement. Our 5-Year Placement Warranty page also includes real client examples, including a Controller who relocated 20 months after placement.
Why does a 90-day guarantee fall short?
Most hiring problems show up well after the first 90 days. In Leadership IQ's Hiring for Attitude study, which tracked more than 20,000 new hires, 46 percent failed within 18 months, and only 11 percent of those failures came down to technical skills. A 90-day guarantee ends while a new hire is still settling in, which is often before the real issues surface.
People also move around. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported median tenure with a current employer of 4.1 years in January 2026, and it counted 3.1 million quits in August 2026 alone. A five-year window covers the period when a hire either proves out or does not.
How does the warranty change your hiring strategy?
A longer warranty changes the economics of working with a recruiter in two important ways.
It aligns our incentives with yours
When a firm is accountable for a placement for only 90 days, it can get away with a fast, shallow search. When it is accountable for five years, it has every reason to find someone who will stay and grow. That is why our track record matters: Frontline's 98.94% executive placement retention rate means that share of placed executives are still in the role, or have been promoted, at the end of their first year, and our direct hire replacement rate is under 4 percent, based on internal placement tracking.
It requires a more rigorous search
A five-year commitment pushes the process deeper. Our recruiters build each search around how well a hire will hold up over time: structured behavioral interviews, skills assessments, multiple reference checks, and direct conversations about the candidate's long-term goals and how they line up with your direction. Our post on finding the right culture fit explains that process in more detail.
What should you ask any staffing agency about its guarantee?
Before you sign with any recruiter, ask these questions about its guarantee or warranty:
- What exactly is covered? Many agencies exclude reorganizations, promotions, or changes in job responsibilities.
- How is the refund or credit calculated? Is it pro-rated, or all or nothing?
- How do you activate it? Understand the notification requirements and deadlines.
- What voids it? Some agencies cancel guarantees over late payments or other technical issues.
- How is a successful placement defined? Make sure the definition matches your expectations.
Our guide to choosing between an executive search firm and a staffing agency covers other questions worth asking.
How does the 5-Year Placement Warranty compare with the industry standard?
The typical industry guarantee covers a direct hire for 90 days, often offers no protection for promotions, and gives limited or no coverage for temporary placements. Frontline's program covers qualifying direct hire and executive search placements for five years with a pro-rated credit, adds the Promotion Protection Plan, and includes a 4-hour satisfaction warranty for temporary placements. We call it a warranty, not a guarantee, because it is a documented, long-term commitment written into the client agreement. Our engagement models and fees are published openly on our pricing page, which is rare in staffing.
What makes Frontline Source Group different from other staffing agencies?
- Five years of accountability: the 5-Year Placement Warranty, 20 times longer than the 90-day industry standard, with a pro-rated credit and the Promotion Protection Plan.
- Results that back it up: a 98.94% executive placement retention rate, a direct hire replacement rate under 4 percent, and 5,619 placements since 2004.
- Transparency: published pricing, plus awards, testimonials, and 683 verified Trustpilot reviews.
The warranty applies across our staffing and executive search services, including C-suite executive search.
How do you get started with Frontline Source Group?
Employers can start a direct hire or executive search engagement through our employer request form. A Frontline recruiter will scope the role with you and explain how the 5-Year Placement Warranty applies under your client agreement. Candidates can apply through our how to apply page.
Frequently Asked Questions: Frontline Source Group's 5-Year Placement Warranty
What is the 5-Year Placement Warranty?
The 5-Year Placement Warranty is Frontline Source Group's written commitment behind every qualifying direct hire and executive search placement. It runs for five years, 20 times longer than the 90-day guarantee common in staffing, and includes a pro-rated credit and the Promotion Protection Plan.
What problem does the 5-Year Placement Warranty solve?
It protects employers from the turnover that surfaces after a typical 90-day guarantee expires. Leadership IQ found 46 percent of new hires fail within 18 months, and a hire who leaves on day 91 under a 90-day guarantee costs the full placement fee plus a second search. Frontline's warranty covers qualifying direct hires for 1,825 days, 20 times longer, with a pro-rated credit toward a replacement.
What happens if a placement does not work out?
If a concern arises with a direct hire during the first five years, Frontline credits a pro-rated amount of the original placement fee based on the number of active service calendar days. The credit can be applied toward a replacement candidate or a future placement.
How is the pro-rated credit calculated?
The credit reflects the portion of the five-year warranty period that remains. As an illustration, assuming a straight-line pro-ration, a 25,000 dollar placement fee for a hire who leaves after one year would earn a credit of about 20,000 dollars. Actual terms follow the client agreement.
What is the Promotion Protection Plan?
When you promote someone Frontline placed, Frontline fills the position they left for half of the placement percentage your company originally paid. It is included in the 5-Year Placement Warranty.
Does the warranty cover temporary placements?
The five-year warranty covers qualifying direct hire and executive search placements. Temporary placements have a separate 4-hour satisfaction warranty: if you are not satisfied with a temporary employee's performance in the first four hours, Frontline replaces them and you are not billed for those hours.
Why is a 90-day guarantee not enough?
Most hiring problems surface later. Leadership IQ's study of more than 20,000 new hires found that 46 percent failed within 18 months, long after a 90-day guarantee expires.
What retention rate backs the warranty?
Frontline maintains a 98.94% executive placement retention rate, meaning that share of placed executives are still in the role, or have been promoted, at the end of their first year. Its direct hire replacement rate is under 4 percent, based on internal placement tracking.
What should I ask a staffing agency about its guarantee?
Ask what exactly is covered, how the refund or credit is calculated, how to activate it, what voids it, and how a successful placement is defined. Many agencies exclude reorganizations, promotions, or job changes.
Is it a guarantee or a warranty?
Frontline's offering is a warranty, a documented five-year commitment written into the client agreement. The short-term industry norm of 90 days is typically called a guarantee.
How much does direct hire placement cost with Frontline?
Frontline's published pricing puts direct hire placement at 20 to 30 percent of the placed candidate's first-year base salary and C-suite executive search at 25 to 35 percent of first-year all-in compensation, both backed by the 5-Year Placement Warranty. Details are at frontlinesourcegroup.com/pricing.html.
How do I start a hiring engagement with the warranty?
Submit a role at frontlinesourcegroup.com/employer-request-form.html. A Frontline recruiter will scope the role and explain how the warranty applies under your client agreement. Full program details are at frontlinesourcegroup.com/5year-placement-guarantee.html.
