Business

Addressing Immediate Hiring Needs Through Quiet Hiring

Published

3 years ago

February 28, 2023

Hiring usually falls into three categories: backfilling roles, creating new ones, or addressing immediate needs. Quiet hiring is about that third category, even if it doesn’t technically involve any new hiring.

The idea of this strategy is to prioritize the most crucial functions at a given time. With Gartner predicting “quiet hiring” as the top workforce trend for 2023, it’s important to know exactly what it is and how to use it appropriately within the organization.

Quiet hiring is essentially when an organization gains new skills without having to hire a full-time employee. Sometimes, it means hiring short-term contractors or providing current employees with more responsibilities. This can mean moving employees around between departments, training them and hiring up, or simply taking on a heavier workload.

Jason LaMonica, COO of staffing company Spec on the Job, weighs in on what quiet hiring would look like for blue-collar industries. “It’s about changing the narrative,” he says. “Instead of upskilling or promoting internal managers with no experience in the field, hire a contractor outside of your organization and train them before making a full-time committment. They know the industry and they know the field. With a little bit of training, they’ll get the job done right.”

According to LaMonica, hiring contractors provides a number of benefits for companies seeking to address immediate hiring needs while saving onboarding costs. These include streamlining hiring by saving time and resources on recruiting, onboarding faster and from a wider talent pool, and allowing the staffing company to handle compliance needs.

“Hiring contractors allows companies to fill talent gaps faster,” LaMonica says, “especially if they are staffing to address peaks or valleys in their business. Moreover, it provides companies with time to ensure that the new contractors are a good fit for their team as well as easier avenues to terminate their contract if they aren’t.”

The reality is, since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, there has been a labor shortage that continues to increase each year. Some argue that this is due to employers refusing to pay the appropriate wage to their employees. Others counter that, since there are more job openings than people, jobseekers are taking advantage to get a higher paying role. Regardless of why there’s a labor shortage, there still exists a need to quickly adapt to the rapidly evolving workforce.

By hiring from outside the organization and providing the necessary training or schooling, companies will be able to increase retention, engagement, and productivity. “When companies work with trade schools or community colleges to provide additional training to its contractors, it provides those outsourced employees with something to look forward to,” LaMonica insists. “By offering clear paths for development that could eventually provide them with full-time employment, there’s a lower chance that they’ll seek another job that doesn’t offer advancement opportunities.”

“Whether or not we go into recession, everyone’s a little nervous,” concedes LaMonica. “Every employer still has financial goals to meet, and they can’t meet those goals if immediate hiring needs aren’t met.”

According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), the average cost per hire is $4,700 and it takes about 36-42 days to fill the position. In a potential recession, this is too much of an expense for any company, quiet hiring and upskilling current employees help reduce that cost.

According to LinkedIn’s survey, “companies that excel at internal mobility retain employees for an average of 5.4 years, nearly twice as long as companies that struggle with it.” For companies looking to improve retention rates from the contractors they oursource, this is a significant number to consider when thinking about their hiring needs.

“I’m passionate about building companies, growing teams, and having my work change the world,” LaMonica states. “As part of a staffing company dedicated to blue-collar industries, it’s important to know when recruitment costs outweigh hiring within the company.” Understanding this difference will help companies become recession-proof by increasing employee retention and lowering overhead costs.

Business

Derik Fay and the Quiet Rise of a Fintech Dynasty: How a Relentless Visionary is Redefining the Future of Payments

Published

1 week ago

October 17, 2025

Matthew Wiles

Long before the headlines, before the Forbes features, and well before he became a respected fixture in boardrooms across the country, Derik Fay was a kid from Westerly, Rhode Island with little more than grit and audacity. Now, with a strategic footprint spanning more than 40 companies—including holdings in media, construction, real estate, pharma, fitness, and fintech—Fay’s influence is as diversified as it is deliberate. And his most recent move may be his boldest yet: the acquisition and co-ownership of Tycoon Payments, a fintech venture poised to disrupt an industry built on middlemen and outdated rules.

Where many entrepreneurs chase headlines, Fay chases legacy.

Rebuilding the Foundation of Fintech

In the saturated space of payment processors, Fay didn’t just want another transactional brand. He saw a broken system—one that labeled too many businesses as “high-risk,” denied them access, and overcharged them into silence. Tycoon Payments, under his stewardship, is rewriting that narrative from the ground up.

Instead of the all-too-common “fake processor” model, where companies act as brokers rather than actual underwriters, Tycoon Payments is being engineered to own the rails—integrating direct banking partnerships, custom risk modeling, and flexible support for underserved industries.

“Disruption isn’t about being loud,” Fay said in a private strategy session with advisors. “It’s about fixing what’s been ignored for too long. I don’t chase waves—I build the coastline.”

Quiet Power, Strategic Depth

Now 46 years old, Fay has evolved from scrappy gym owner to an empire builder, founding 3F Management as a private equity and venture vehicle to scale fast-growth businesses with staying power. His portfolio includes names like Bare Knuckle Fighting Championships, BIGG Pharma, Results Roofing, FayMs Films, and SalonPlex—but also dozens of companies that never make headlines. That’s by design.

Where others seek followers, Fay builds founders. Where most celebrate their exits, Fay reinvests in people.

While he often deflects conversations around his personal wealth, analysts estimate his net worth to exceed $100 million, with some placing it comfortably over $250 million, based on exits, real estate holdings, and the trajectory of his current ventures.

Yet unlike others in his tax bracket, Fay still answers cold DMs. He mentors rising entrepreneurs without cameras rolling. And he shows up—not just with capital, but with conviction.

A Mogul Grounded in Real Life

Outside of business, Fay remains committed to his role as a father and partner. He shares two daughters, Sophia Elena Fay and Isabella Roslyn Fay, and has been in a relationship with Shandra Phillips since 2021. He’s known for keeping his personal life private, but those close to him speak of a man who brings the same intention to parenting as he does to scaling multimillion-dollar ventures—focused, present, and consistent.

His physical stature—standing at 6′1″—matches his professional gravitas, but what’s more striking is his ability to operate with both discipline and empathy. Fay’s reputation among founders and CEOs is not just one of capital deployment, but emotional intelligence. As one partner noted, “He’s the kind of guy who will break down your pitch—and rebuild your belief in yourself in the same breath.”

The Tycoon Blueprint

The playbook Fay is writing at Tycoon Payments doesn’t just threaten incumbents—it reinvents the infrastructure. This isn’t another “fintech startup” with a flashy brand and no backend. It’s a strategically positioned venture with real underwriting power, cross-border ambitions, and a founder who understands how to scale quietly until the entire industry has to take notice.

In an age where so many entrepreneurs rely on noise and virality to build influence, Fay remains a master of what can only be called elite stealth. He doesn’t need the spotlight. But his impact casts a long shadow.

Conclusion: The Empire Expands

From Rhode Island beginnings to venture boardrooms, from gym owner to fintech force, Derik Fay continues to build not just businesses—but a blueprint. One rooted in resilience, innovation, and long-term infrastructure.

Tycoon Payments may be the latest chess piece. But the game he’s playing is bigger than one move. It’s a long game of strategic leverage, intentional legacy, and generational wealth.

And Fay is not just playing it. He’s redefining the rules.