TIGHT LABOR MARKETS REQUIRE HAPPY WORKFORCES
AND CLIENTS
The news today is confusing. On the one hand, the economy is robust,
and on the other, there are some soft spots. If the economy is
slowing, why are labor markets so tight in some industries? With
the mixed messages, how do we ensure our clients receive the service
they expect?
Multi-regional employers are challenged with managing staff and
ensuring they are meeting their productivity goals. They cannot
afford productivity reductions because they don't have the needed
manpower.
There is only one quality that matters now: service; service to
our clients and, equally as important, service to the workforce
that we manage. The right technology platform deepens connections
between all aspects of the staffing equation, profitably and predictably.
Like it or not, we are all in the volume business by the sheer
number of candidates and customers we manage. Our ability to provide
the differentiating levels of service relies on our technology
platform. Ensure your provider has the same service focus, in both
its software and staff.
High Tech’s Personal Touch
Technology can play a large role in the service you provide to
your clients and your workforce. Let's start with recruiting.
The right technology helps us find the right people and connect
them with employers more quickly and efficiently. How many of
us are using the right platforms to do those old-fashioned things?
Technology should help us keep in touch with our clients, tell
us who hasn't seen our faces or received a phone call for a while,
plus when to send birthday cards, among other things. It should
be an early warning system telling our clients that some of their
job assignments are nearing completion. We can then take steps
to give the clients options they can pursue without causing stress
or upsetting business functions. Your software must allow your
staff to rapidly manage employee call-ins, as those are some
of the most eager and dedicated employees on the team. This small
bit of additional information can have a dramatic impact on placement
choices made by your in-house staff.
Focus that same technology on the employees we manage, and we
can keep in touch with them on a personal basis. Tight labor markets
and savvy employees demand this. Your firm's reputation and business
depend on this because employees in a tight labor market are similar
to shoppers – they have options and they can take their business
elsewhere.
Savvy recruiters take care of employees, remembering birthdays,
preferences, strengths, letting them know assignment end-dates
and next assignment locations with a comfortable amount of advance
notice. In other words, the cold efficiency of technology can forge
deeper working relationships and foster loyalties. This is one
of the keys to beating your competition; putting the right people
in the right jobs. It is also the profitable strategy.
The ultimate sum in this equation is when your firm is able to
consistently take employees from a temporary position to direct
hire. It shows the investment you made in your technology is paying
dividends, and that you are making those tight connections that
give your clients even more confidence in your abilities.
While it may seem like lost revenue in the short term, the transaction
will pay dividends in the future. The former employee will spread
the word about your firm and your client will sing the praises
of your ability to connect them with a professional and capable
new employee.
Not only does the proper platform provide you an advantage in
working with your clients and your temporary employees, but it
is also a benefit to your internal employees. By making things
easier on the employees who are making the placements, you have
taken steps to reduce turnover.
Battling the Nationals
The right technology – the one that helps your internal people
stay connected to their employees and clients – makes for
a more efficient and dedicated workforce. With national employment
businesses encroaching on local markets, a consistent internal
employee base not only maintains continuity, but becomes a competitive
advantage.
Many national companies are notorious for their employee turnover.
One can only imagine a client's frustration when new account executives
are routinely introduced. The smaller local firm, or the savvy
larger business, implements a technology that directly impacts
and helps ease a recruiter's workload. That technology should also
help increase efficiency and create opportunities to establish
more personal contacts with the temporary workforce and your clients.
This results in a more dedicated, loyal workforce. It also creates
deeper client relationships, better placement decisions and increased
business.
It’s About Service
Our clients are looking to us to deliver the right employee, more
guidance and a more personal connection. We need to know our
clients and their businesses on a deeper level. It means providing
them with old-fashioned personal service through high-technology.
Tom Sarach, Jr. is the Vice President of Operations for COATS,
Inc., a staffing industry technology provider based in Virginia
Beach, VA. He can be contacted at 757.499.3808, or by email at
tsarach@coatssql.com.
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