Top 5 Signs It’s Time to Bring In an Outside Staffing Partner
Your company is growing at a fast pace. You’re on track to tackle your benchmarks in record time. The people on your staff are excited about the company and your continued mark in the industry you serve.
These are all signs you’re doing something right. They’re also indications that it might be time to delegate some of the responsibilities.
As your company grows and flourishes, you can’t keep relying on the methods that helped you begin. Great companies start with leaders who know that their personnel is their biggest asset. They often took a hands on approach to hiring. With a small company, that approach serves pretty well. As you flourish, though, there are often a great number of obstacles between developing a position description and finding a long term employee to bring just the right ingredient that makes your team stronger and more dynamic.
Five Indications You Need to Partner with a Staffing Agency
Companies sometimes overlook staffing agencies. They think of the old idea that temp workers are less skilled (which isn’t currently the case, if it ever was). Terms like staffing agency might sound like a bad idea if you’re among the business owners who don’t know what recruiters do. Or think they all only work with temporary solutions.
The truth is that staffing agencies can be a godsend to busy startups, small businesses, and growing corporations. They have access to professionals who simply won’t see the postings you place on your own. They also tailor their criteria to meet your unique company — so the prospective employees you meet are far more qualified than the vast number who would apply through an open board.
If you’ve been handling all this in-house, here are five signs you might want to bring in a professional agency.
- Your Staff Is Overworked. If you have employees wearing multiple hats and working longer and longer hours, it’s a sign you need more staff members. Often this happens because you’re growing (yay!) but you don’t have the time to hire because the people in charge of hiring are also working long hours.
- Recent Hires Haven’t Worked Out Well. This is a huge concern. The hiring process is time consuming. If you hire the employee only to find that they’re not a great fit for the company, it means starting over. This is common because applicants are gearing all of their energy to obtain the job and often companies are also showing their best side. It’s not dishonest, just more enticing. Both parties want a fit. But the end result means a lot of wasted time and training for both parties.
- Your Hiring Manager Needs an Assist. Whether you have a small staff of one or a large team, there’s always more work than people. If positions are remaining open for an extended period of time or the hiring process itself is taking too long, it’s a good indication that a staffing partner can help your company.
- You’re Having Trouble Finding Prospects that Meet Your Needs. The beauty of a staffing agency is that they specialize in finding candidates for your specific industry. These candidates are already vetted by the agency and you’d often never discover these prospects on an open job board. It’s a whole pool of amazing talent you’d never find otherwise.
- There’s a Lack of Cohesion in Your Acquisition Strategy. Your acquisition strategy, when handled expertly, will be the defining force in your ability to build an excellent company culture. If you’re finding that the hiring process is about putting out current fires or hiring for one position, ON ITS AXIS’ organization design services are the optimal solution to build an engaged, cohesive team for the long term.
If these five signs sound familiar to you, the ON ITS AXIS Talent Acquisition Planning Program might be just the thing to help your company culture grow with the ideal candidates for each of your needs.
Kelly O’Connell is the EVP of ON ITS AXIS, a product and people consultancy helping startups, scaleups and social good companies innovate. Originally published at www.onitsaxis.com on December 6, 2018.