Maximizing Your Flexible Workforce

7/3/2012By Mary Walker

It is a clear reality that contingent workers (defined as freelancers, contractors and temporary employees – basically all non-permanent employees at an organization) are playing an increasingly larger role in an organizations’ success. With this in mind, leaders need to have a strategy on the impact this may have. Properly utilizing contingent labor may be a key driver in achieving your company or departmental goals. Here are some tips and best practices to help you succeed in making the most of your contingent workforce.

Define your strategy

It is very important that you have a clearly defined strategy laying out the reason your department will utilize contingent labor. This varies by company and department. Once your strategy is defined you can properly work to align resources and vendors to fulfill you contingent labor need.

Here are several reasons why an organization or department would use contingent labor:

  • To increase capacity on a project basis, seasonal basis or to deal with overflow work/peak demand
  • To bring in specialized skills that complement full-time staff on projects outside your “bread and butter” work
  • To provide coverage during “life events” such as vacations, Maternity leave, illness and employee resignations

Develop relationships

Once your strategy is defined the next stop is to develop relationships with a vendor that you can rely upon to provide you with the resources needed. We all know that there is much more to hiring great talent than reviewing a resume. Even though it’s not a full time hire making sure the talent is a culture fit is critical. Talented individuals need to work in an environment where they will thrive and feel connected to the mission. It is critical that you develop a partnership with your staffing resources to ensure they are fully engaged with your strategy.

Create an on boarding plan

Develop a very clear and effective on boarding plan for your contingent workforce, Many companies focus on elaborate on boarding plans for permanent hires but do not have a strategy for on boarding contingent workers, As contingent workers play a greater role in your workforce it is essential that you have a plan to properly onboard them so they are productive as quickly as possible.

Require accountability

Have key metrics in place to hold your vendors accountable for meeting your department goals. What are your key drivers and how will the contingent workers help you meet those drivers?

As we continue to navigate through this economic recovery the increased practice of hiring highly skilled contingent labor may be the “new normal”. In any organization human capital is by far the greatest asset. With the increasing trend that your workforce will be comprised of more contingent workers, developing a strategy and partnering with a trusted vendor may very well be the most important thing you do this year.

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