Give Yourself a Staffing Check Up
By Sue Davidson, CEO of Davidson Staffing
The staffing industry has grown tremendously since I started in 1974. At that time, there were only a handful of staffing firms out there, and little competition. Now, with so much competition in the marketplace, you would be doing your company a disservice if you neglect to schedule a yearly staffing "check up" to see how your chosen services fit the bill.
Where to Start
I suggest starting with a list of the services that are most important to you and your company culture. Then evaluate the services you are presently using and compare them to each other. Following are some suggestions on where to start.
Interviewing
Now's a great time to review any special questions or procedures you want your staffing partner to cover during candidate interviews. Perhaps you like to screen for a certain personality type that fits best with your company culture, or all candidates must be able to work occasional overtime. Ask your partners to review with you the special questions and procedures they follow for your company, and tweak them to stay up-to-date with evolving company trends and initiatives.
Testing
Any staffing company can give tests and most do, but are they testing for skills that relate to your jobs? If your staffing firms' skills tests are outdated, you're not getting a true picture of candidate skills. This is true particularly in the legal industry and in specialty markets, where rules may change frequently. Ask your staffing partners to confirm which software skills they are testing your candidates on to ensure you're seeing candidates who fit your requirements. A true partner will happily set up a trial test session for you so you can perform a firsthand check up.
Screening and Verifications
Most staffing companies claim to verify employment history and educational background. When you decide to interview or hire a candidate, does your staffing partner show you how the candidate has been evaluated? An estimated 15% of candidate applications will have some discrepancy in the education or employment history reported by the candidate versus that reported by the institution or past employer. Don't assume that a step was taken simply because it was promised. Spot check the work of your staffing partners to ensure this is in fact being done, and done properly.
Training Programs
Do your staffing partners offer candidate training programs? This can be a great service for you to take advantage of, if you're not already doing so. At Davidson, for instance, we provide software tutorials so candidates can brush up on any areas of weakness with a particular software.
Davidson Staffing provides monthly lunchtime Tips and Tricks software classes on a variety of software topics. Classes are available to candidates, clients, and clients' employees and can be a great supplement to your own internal training programs. Our hiring managers are invited to sit in on a class for free to evaluate our training.
And beginning in August 2005, we will also offer a "Law Firm Ethics Class" to our legal temporaries and for anyone you hire directly from Davidson Legal Staffing.
Pay a Visit to the Office
Have you visited your staffing partners' offices? Making an appearance to the office and having your staffing company show you how they test, interview and recruit candidates can tell you a lot about how they address your hiring needs. Be sure that your staffing partners visit your office as well. By providing a tour and discussing your specific requirements in detail, you will ensure a better match when you request assistance.
Davidson Staffing invites you to check us out. We take great pride in supporting the continuing education of our staff members, many of whom are certified staffing professionals (CSP's) in order to provide our clients with a quality, professional service. Click here to Meet Our Staff.
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