VIEWPOINT – Amit Somaiya, CEO, IMS People Possible reports on common mistakes that impact productivity when working with an ORS partner.
For those of us that work in the staffing industry, there are two constants that drive the industry: endless change and the war of talent.
The market becomes more competitive daily, with many fearing it is saturated in key areas and where turning a profit is a real challenge. The continuous pressure placed on the staffing industry to provide higher levels of service to clients and candidates, reduce operating costs to remain competitive and evolve strategies to engage, attract and secure the very best talent has driven many staffing companies to partner with a strategic Offshore Recruitment Services (ORS) partner.
By utilising the expertise, knowledge and experience of an ORS partner these companies are able to focus their resources and time to generate higher ROI, reduce cost, increase productivity, efficiency and skills and fill job orders faster.
The flexibility outsourcing offers has seen some recruitment agencies outsource parts of the recruitment process quickly when the business environment requires, without compromising on quality, others have outsourced the entire process to minimise operational complexity, turnaround times, and to offer a consistent talent acquisition process.
It’s not just for the large firms either; staffing companies of all sizes are seeing the benefits that the invaluable support, assistance and knowledge of their ORS partner bring to the table and can help their business grow at a pace the company can dictate and manage.
However, sometimes companies do not achieve the results they want to achieve and end the partnership in the initial stages. Through our years of experience, we at IMS People Possible have identified the most common mistakes that prevent businesses from maximising productivity when working with an ORS partner.
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Expectations and reality
What are the most common mistakes that prevent recruitment agencies from maximising productivity when working with an ORS partner?
- Impatience and/or unrealistic expectations: building a relationship takes time and in most cases it will take 60 – 90 days to realise incremental revenue from your offshore recruiting support and success may be initially seen only in one area, for example, you’re able to produce more viable candidates for future assignments or can cover more orders from your MSP clients.
- Failure to define ‘success’ before launch: it is key to determine your desired ‘success’ levels and ROI before starting to achieve a viable business model. Offshore recruitment must always produce a measurable and easily identifiable return on your investment, for example, making a specific placement, delaying or reducing internal hiring or handing over those important but not critical recruitment functions to your ORS team.
- Lack of clearly defined metrics: at the outset of the engagement its essential to determine how you will measure progress and success. Any ORS partner worth their weight will be more than willing to provide full and transparent metrics to define their success.
- Inconsistent communications process (stick to your plan): agree upon what activities will be tracked and by whom and clarify in what manner and with what frequency reporting data will be generated and delivered; then stick to the plan so everyone knows what to expect.
- Changing priorities (changing ships midstream): an upfront investment in the creation of business processes, training and a communication routine is necessary, any change of priority after this will result in delays and the process needing to start again.
- Chasing the purple squirrel: working with your ORS partner is going to make your life easier, however they are not suddenly going to be able to source the purple squirrel; as it is very likely they don’t exist in the first place. Don’t expect the impossible or you are setting your ORS partner up to fail.
- Inadequate internal processes: you need to guarantee your internal processes mirror your ORS partners processes and give regular feedback to maintain this or you will never be on the same page.
- Wandering internal champion: assigning responsibility for overseeing the project from your side to a senior-level employee is a significant part of the project and they will need to be vested in the project’s success and see it as an ongoing role, not just during the initial stages.
- Forgetting they are ‘you’: for the partnership to truly succeed it is necessary to view your ORS partner as your remote or satellite office. For success it has to be a two-way relationship and if you want to maximise the relationship you will need to provide regular feedback, a timely response to any requests and keep your ORS team fully updated on your processes, software and any key information needed to perform their job efficiently and effectively. The only difference between your internal and external teams should be one works remotely.
Above all else, a strong, mutually beneficial partnership is the absolute foundation of a successful ORS relationship, however it does require the full and thoughtful participation of all stakeholders. Without a true partnership approach the result will not be increased productivity or the ability to promptly provide their clients more qualified, interested and available candidates and the cost savings of up to 50 per cent will not be achieved.
This blog was first featured in The Global Recruiter Magazine Issue 190
