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With a number of businesses relocating to Austin, starting up or simply setting up branches there, staffing has become a major challenge. This challenge is faced by large and small companies alike. Since the city boasts of a lot of skilled workers, why is still difficult to hire them?
A Brief Overview of Austin’s Labor Gap
In almost every sector today, technology drives growth. Many companies are automating their processes, transitioning to a cloud service, integrating new systems, leveraging AI, and much more. This development requires skills, which are in demand, especially in Austin. You can click here to know why more companies are moving to the cloud now than ever.
In 2019, SHRM (Society for Human Resource Management) undertook a study on labor shortage and released a report on their findings. They discovered that 83% of the respondents could not recruit the right candidates within the last 12 months. On the other hand, 75% believe there’s a shortage in skills.
Additionally, they noted that the reasons for these struggles are:
- Candidates did not have the matching workplace skills.
- Salaries and bonuses did not fit the market.
- Low interest in an organization or a small number of candidates.
- Candidates did not have matching technical skills.
- Competition from various employers.
SHRM also discovered that many companies now try to solve their staffing problems by outsourcing recruiting efforts to staffing agencies. Others are hiring temporary contractors to fill the positions. You can visit https://www.shrm.org/hr-today/trends-and-forecasting/research-and-surveys/documents/shrm%20skills%20gap%202019.pdf to get the complete report.
Why Your Business Needs a Staffing Agency
As many employers turn to freelance, temporary, and part-time workforce to fill labor gaps, staffing companies are now invaluable resources. They help businesses to find talents efficiently and quickly. The following are reasons why your company needs a staffing agency:
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Quick Hiring
The labor market is no longer the same as it was in previous years. Also, the process of hiring employees takes more time and is more difficult now than in the past years. Managers spend a lot of time reviewing resumes as well as conducting interviews. Yet, they have to create time to carry out their daily operations.
But seeking help from a trusted agency to hire employees will save you money and time. A staffing agency can screen and present qualified candidates to your company. This will ensure that the manager interviews only people that are suitable for the position.
Flexibility
Some companies do not want to hire full-time employees for different reasons. But it has to do with leaner operations. They want to remain productive and retain only the workers that they absolutely need. Therefore, they look for ways to ensure that every dime they spend goes into helping the business.
Hiring temporary staff allows companies to have people only when they have need of them. Also, those people must be productive while on the job. Employers are now realizing the essence of operating a fluid labor force that they can dynamically adjust to suit their current hiring needs. Staffing agencies offer flexible services that drive companies to choose a labor force that adapts to their business demands.
Low Risk
Employers are saddled with many legal responsibilities such as paying certain taxes, obeying the labor laws, and providing some form of insurance for their business and staff. From an operational and financial perspective, hiring staff comes with much financial risks, particularly if the manager wants to fire someone or the person leaves unexpectedly.
When you employ the services of an Austin staffing agency, they assume most of the liabilities on your behalf. Generally, in the case of temporary associates, they stand in as the employer in a candidate’s record. Therefore, the employing company will rest assured that the staffing agency will maintain total responsibility for the candidates while they’re on the job.
Conclusion
Even if your goal at the end of the day, is to get a full-time workforce to fill certain positions in your company, hiring temporary workers through staffing agencies may just be a smart move. In most cases, these temporary workers end up becoming the perfect fit for the job. They also give you and the employee, enough time to figure out things before making the position more permanent. More than skill testing, staffing agencies ensure that you get candidates that align with your company’s culture.
