Finding a great employee is easier said than done. It’s easy for companies to find people who want to work — but are these people the right people? The more a small business grows, the more it needs to focus on retention and performance, rather than just filling a slot. At the same time, the hiring process is time-consuming, and it can easily get out of hand. Staffing your business may take more time than you’re able to invest; at the same time, a rushed or disorganized hiring process can lead to disaster.
This — among other reasons — is why many small businesses are turning to employment agencies to help them fill the empty positions in their offices. Employment agencies do the work for you, and can help small businesses find both permanent and temporary hires. While many employment agencies do indeed work with staffing temporary positions at first, they often help small businesses find employees that end up making a lasting impact, and may very well stay on for the rest of their careers! With that being said, we’re going to look at some of the top advantages of working with employment agencies.
1. Finding the Right Fit
It’s estimated that 22% of new hires leave their jobs within 45 days of being hired. Part of the reason why this happens is that staffing your team is a complex process, and it’s easy to hire someone because they are available rather than because they are right for the job. With that being said, a staffing company can separate the wheat from the chaff, as it were. Those who provide staffing services are experts on the hiring process, and can work to isolate the qualities and experiences that make a potential employee the right fit for a position. They can also identify the warning signs of a potential hire that may be a great person, but just not right for the job. With that being said, a new hire that is the right fit for the job is less likely to leave early, and that solves the issue of turnover. It’s estimated that the costs of employee turnover range from 30% to 150% of the employee’s salary; and with 57% of organizations considering retention a major problem, it’s an issue that plenty of companies are dealing with. Staffing companies can help decrease this issue in a major way.
2. Increasing Diversity
A big problem for companies today is diversity. It’s easy for small businesses to inadvertently become homogenous, with too many employees of a single gender or ethnic background. With that being said, employee agencies can focus on finding new employees with the intention of increasing diversity. New hires won’t be selected, of course, based solely on whether or not they have a specific background — but staffing companies can focus on specific areas or outreach methods which will organically increase a company’s diversity. This will benefit the business at large — research has shown that gender-diverse companies are 15% more likely to outperform their peers, and ethnically diverse companies are 35% more likely to do the same.
3. A Wider Hiring Pool
Employment agencies work with a wide pool of potential hires. In fact, it’s estimated that up to 3 million temporary or contract employees work with staffing agencies in America each week. It can be difficult for small businesses to get the word out about open positions — and a lot of people may see those positions and dismiss them at face value, thinking that they might not be candidates for them. A staffing agency can dip into its pool of potential employees and provide potential matches for select jobs. This gives small businesses the greatest likelihood of finding fantastic employees in a relatively short amount of time!
While hiring new employees is something that small businesses can do on their own, it, like any task, is best done by professionals. Working with a staffing agency will ensure that the hiring process is done efficiently, with the best potential for great hires!