Businesses all across the country
are cutting back. In December, the
national unemployment rate rose from 6.5 percent to 6.7 percent. But even
with companies making cuts in areas
such as staffing, the work still needs to
get done. The high unemployment rate
has led to an increased number of people who are looking for work through
temporary staffing firms, something that
companies can take advantage of.
“When the economy is down and all
businesses are focused on the bottom
line, utilizing the flexibility and cost savings that staffing firms offer is a win-win
situation,” says Melissa Hulsey, president and CEO of Ashton.
Smart Business spoke with Hulsey
about the services that temporary
staffing firms offer and how you can
take advantage of those to help get
through these tough times.
How does the current unemployment rate
affect available talent?
When unemployment rates rise above 4
percent, an increase is seen in the quality of the available labor pool. With our
unemployment rate in Georgia currently
at 7.5 percent, staffing firms have seen
an increase in their database of well-qualified employees ready to go to work.
There are great candidates out there
who have been let go, through no fault of
their own, and are willing to come in to
help companies with projects. Many of
these people have excellent qualifications, great attitudes and steady work
history. By utilizing staffing firms, companies can see a big return on investment while tapping into this great talent.
Another advantage of bringing in highly
qualified contingent labor is the new
ideas and perspective they can bring to
your business in challenging times.
How can a staffing firm save businesses
money?
You can save on the human resource
cost by not having to spend on advertised postings, and ramp up interview
and pre-screening time. Especially for
small to midsized business, sometimes
HR is one of the first positions to go. By
utilizing a firm you can outsource the HR
department in a timely manner without
having a cost. Second is the benefit cost
— you don’t have to provide temporary
employees the benefits that you would
have to your permanent employees; this
generally adds a minimum of 30 percent
to the average person’s salary. You’re
saving that cost upfront and there’s also
no risk of raising your state unemployment rate. Finally, you pay only for the
project that you need done without the
downtime.
What kinds of services can staffing firms
provide during these tough times, and how
can businesses take advantage of them?
Any short-term, temporary need —
meaning you have somebody that’s going
to be out for a limited period of time or
you have a short project that needs to
be done. Long-term contract projects
that require more involvement in corporate operations are also widely used.
Contingent labor is a perfect solution to
cover all of these needs. Currently
there’s an ever-growing sector where
companies are using staffing firms to fill
positions in technology, finance, human
resources, medical and more, including
higher-level management such as CEOs,
CFOs and CTOs.
As businesses are analyzing their budgets, they can look at parts of their company where job functions can be outsourced. They can use a firm to bring
that person in for the needed period of
time, take advantage of the talent that’s
available and then reap the monetary
savings of partnering with a staffing
firm.
How will establishing a relationship now
prepare you for future growth?
If you can, align yourself with a staffing
firm that’s going to get to know your
company and corporate culture. Just as
it takes time to get to know a person, it
takes time to get to know a company and
build that relationship. Once this partnership is established, a firm can keep
an eye out for particular talent that it
recognizes as a good fit for your organization. Testing and prescreening processes can be reviewed and modified as
needed. Most firms also have access to
resources for job profiling; this is a great
thing to do when work loads are down.
Knowing what skills and personality fit
best into your organization will put you
ahead of the competition as growth
occurs.
MELISSA HULSEY is president and CEO of Ashton. Reach her at (770) 419-1776 or [email protected].
