Operating a staffing agency can be very complex. Between regulations, worker turnover, changing business needs and evolving technologies, managing the operations can be a virtual juggling act.
But it essentially boils down to two critical needs:
You can’t do one without the other.
We’d like to focus on finding those opportunities for your workers; and we’re not just talking about finding any old position, we’re talking about finding quality opportunities that match the skills, goals and abilities of your talent.
By finding the right opportunities, you create more success for your people and your clients, and help your agency build a foundation for long-term prosperity.
Before finding opportunities for talented workers, have you tested for skills? Have you taken the time to speak about his or her needs and goals?
The process really should start by talking to your talent when it comes to finding opportunities. What are their dream jobs? Where do they want to be in five, 10 or 15 years? What positions would they love to hold and what industries do they want to reach? If you’re going to provide the right opportunities for your talented workers, you must start by understanding their professional goals and dreams.
This can be done through interviews, surveys or simply sitting down and talking with them. When you understand where people want to go, you can provide better opportunities and give your clients motivated, inspired talent. You also begin to build rapport, which can increase the reputation of your agency as one that cares about its people.
Outside of their goals, you also need to understand your staff’s skills and abilities. In this case, testing becomes very important. By tests, we don’t necessarily mean multiple-choice questionnaires (although they can be useful), we mean skills testing like typing tests, program tests (like Excel or PowerPoint) and editing tests.
These tests can help you better understand the skills and abilities of your talent and give you direction and support for finding the right opportunities and positions. With the right tests, you’ll have a strong foundation for putting your talent in the right seats.
While human resources personnel from your clients can help you get the basic information on the position, it’s often best to speak with managers and staff leaders who will be overseeing anyone you send to fill a role. Human resource experts are helpful, but often they can’t answer the important questions you have about the specifics of the job.
You may get some pushback, as managers and directors may be “too busy” to speak with you directly, but emphasize that speaking with them will help you better fill the role, which supports you getting the access that you need. After you’ve spoken with the company’s leadership, you are much better equipped to decide which staff members will thrive in which opportunities.
One of the best ways to provide quality service, streamline your process and deliver excellent opportunities to staff members is to focus on a specific niche. Be as narrow as possible while still being able to have lots of opportunities for talent and you’ll become the go-to choice for both companies and people who need work. You will see that if you establish yourself in a specific industry or sector, instead of finding the right opportunities for your talented workers, the opportunities might begin to find you.
If you are dedicated to finding opportunities for talented workers, then you need to ensure that the companies are of the highest quality. It can be tempting to accept any contract that rolls your way, especially if you are just getting started, but if you want to develop a strong foundation of opportunities, you need to take your time, research companies and make sure they treat people with dignity and respect.
Scale Funding can help make your staffing agency financially sound. Through our payroll funding programs, we have the knowledge, resources and skills to help you get through lean times while capitalizing on your successes.
Scale Funding is an invoice factoring company serving businesses across the United States. For more information on factoring, call (800) 707-4845 for a free, no-obligation consultation and quote.