On the long-running TV game show “Family Feud,” contestants guess the most-popular answers that a group of 100 people gave in response to questions they were asked. As contestants share their guesses, the show’s host shouts, “And the survey says … !” to prompt the survey answers to appear on the game board. A recent Staffing Industry Analysts survey of more than 5,000 contingent workers revealed ways recruiters could do a better job. While I doubt these survey results will make it onto a game show, they do offer solid insights.
The top five ways contingent workers said recruiters at their staffing companies could improve are:
- Act more in the interest of recruits
- Do a better job preparing recruits for interview/assignment
- Find better work/more perm opportunities
- Improve communication
- Be more honest/transparent
On-Sites Offer Visible Support to Talent
Having a staffing rep at a company site benefits both the client and the talent working there. He or she is an extension of the client, helping onboard talent, providing coaching and counseling, and assisting with client needs such as advising ways to streamline hiring processes. In addition, the staffing rep shows talent the staffing company cares about them and their experience through regular interactions and communications about their assignment and where they want to go with their career journey. Based on their feedback, our on-site rep can help them prepare for new assignments at the site or to interview for permanent opportunities at the client. In other words, they act in the best interest of recruits.
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Understand Client Business Goals and Challenges
On-site staffing representatives consult with clients to understand their business, operations, growth objectives and challenges. They partner with leaders to determine what success looks like as well as what keeps them up at night. The most frequent concerns are high employee turnover, low productivity, safety and/or compliance issues. On occasion, clients may have new managers with a different focus and supervisors or start-ups with people who have been promoted based on performance and don’t know how to manage. Armed with this information and understanding, the on-site rep can advise and help with HR and/or operations functions such as hiring, onboarding, employee relations, payroll, invoicing, safety/compliance and training. They improve communication between a company and its talent to help ensure everyone is pulling in the same direction to achieve key goals.
On-Site Staffing Helps Meet Varied Goals
Having a dedicated, on-site staffing partner can benefit growing companies by helping them smoothly implement operational and people strategies. Hire Dynamics has found that a great time to engage is when a partner is in growth, seasonal or start-up mode. Regardless of the stage, clients need to trust their staffing firm to augment their staffing models by designing solutions to meet their needs. Once the growth needs are met, a client may switch to a staffing model in which a local branch representative serves their needs.
These are just a few of the ways having a staffing representative on-site can help both contingent workers and the company where they work achieve their goals. I don’t know that I will ever be a game contestant, but I do know that listening to workers on the front lines is always valuable in helping them and the client team succeed.
