Have you come to a point in your relationship with your staffing provider where your goals and expectations don’t seem aligned? You’re not alone.
A recent report from Orion Novotus revealed clients’ slipping confidence in their talent solution provider’s ability to deliver. On average, respondents gave their talent solution providers’ ability to align with business objectives a D grade, or 69 out of a 100. The majority of the respondents reported that their relationship and goal alignment was positive during the initial phases, but instead of evolving to meet changing needs, talent solution providers began running on autopilot.
Here are some other notable statistics from the report:
- Less than half (45 percent) of respondents view their talent solution providers as “valued, trusted business partners”
- Only 29 percent of companies utilized metrics provided to them from their staffing partner to improve business decisions, primarily because the respondents didn’t find the metrics useful
- Only 8 percent of respondents believe their provider meets expectations all of the time while 72 percent believe it’s most of the time
According to the report, there are four specific areas where talent solution providers fall short: reducing hiring costs, recruiting passive candidates, providing transparent performance metrics and filling hard-to-fill positions. Over the past two years, talent solution providers had a 35 percent failure rate at meeting clients’ objectives. The inability to cut hiring costs was the main reason for failure. Additionally, 14 percent failed at providing transparent performance metrics and 12 percent were not able to fill hard-to-fill positions.
If your current provider’s performance isn’t up to par, it may be time to reevaluate your relationship. Here are three things a talent solution provider should offer to ensure ongoing performance success and alignment with your business objectives.
1. Structured and Frequent Touchpoints
Organizing meetings with your talent solution provider may seem like the most obvious solution, but many clients feel that finding time for effective communication is often neglected by their provider. A combined 44 percent of survey respondents think there needs to be better communication between executive leadership and talent providers and recurring meetings with company leaders.
Usually, those in leadership roles don’t show as much interest as they should in their talent program’s progress until a problem arises and, by that point, it’s challenging and costly to solve. At the same time, talent solution providers tend to not engage as much with stakeholders from all levels. This can be a big mistake, because open communication with your recruiter is very important.
So, what’s an easy fix? An onsite solution. A provider that offers onsite solutions lends itself to improved communication. In this model, a team is always present on the warehouse floor and fully dedicated to your needs. Unlike a branch-based model, an onsite team can deliver real-time support and better communicate your goals to associates and identity and solve labor management issues before they weaken your operation’s performance.
When operational leaders and talent solution providers don’t have frequent communication, they increase the chances of being misaligned with or not meeting business goals. However, a continuous dialogue allows you and your provider to tailor processes and strategies to fit your changing needs.
2. Technology to Record and Track Metrics
Orion Novotus’ report concluded that 31 percent of respondents believe tracking metrics that show impact and success is the top practice to improve for aligning talent solution programs with business objectives.
While operational leaders expressed this area as needing the most improvement, 42 percent admitted that they don’t consistently review the metrics that are provided by their talent solution provider.
Determining which metrics are most important to your operation’s success is the first step towards improvement. Once established, work with your provider to agree how these metrics will be reported on and how often.
Talent solution providers should have technology platforms to capture real-time workforce metrics. Not only should your provider be able to run customized reports specific to your established metrics, they should also have the ability to analyze them and extract insights that shape future forecasting.
Gaining visibility into key workforce metrics will help you ensure you’re getting the most ROI possible from your staffing program.
3. Innovative Recruiting Tactics
Many jobs are left open and difficult to fill as the unemployment rate continues to fall forcing companies to compete for labor in a shrinking talent pool. Deloitte found that 60 percent of companies are globally revamping their sourcing strategies while another 27 percent are considering changes to stay competitive and attract skilled workers.
Now, more than ever, it’s critical to partner with a talent solution provider who can give you a competitive edge in your market. The first thing that your provider should do is conduct a local market analysis.
A local market analysis takes into account factors such as unemployment rate, competitor wage rate and workforce demographics. An in-depth market analysis could reveal that you need to raise your wages, or focus your recruiting efforts on a specific segment of the population – like students or veterans. This analysis should inform your entire recruitment strategy.
Depending on what your local market analysis revealed, your provider should deploy a mix of digital and grassroots recruiting tactics. Digital recruiting tactics are important to master as more candidates are finding jobs through social networks, like Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. However, more traditional methods should still be utilized to ensure you’re not limiting your reach. Partnering with local organizations, like churches or community colleges, and sponsoring events and job fairs will increase brand recognition and generate buzz within the area.
On top of all this, it’s essential that your talent solution provider offers a stellar candidate experience. Is there a specific website dedicated to job seekers? Is the process simple and fast? Do they offer application help? These are some of the first interactions candidates have with your brand, so it’s important to leave a good impression. Take a look at our "5 Tactics for Recruiting top Talent" for more ideas.
Boosting Program Alignment
Companies are becoming increasingly dissatisfied with their current talent solution provider’s ability to align staffing programs with their business needs. If your provider isn’t hitting the mark, it may be time to evaluate a new partnership.
There are several things you should look for when searching for a new provider: an avenue for frequent communication and feedback, the utilization of technology to track and report on metrics, and analysis-driven recruitment strategies. These characteristics can give you confidence that your provider’s effectiveness will not slip as your operation grows and the relationship progresses.
