“The world is changing,” according to Karen Trim, Operations Manager at Eve Anderson Recruitment Limited. “No more are there brick-and-mortar businesses,” she continued, explaining that global shifts, economic as well as social have given rise to a different business model entirely.
These kinds of arrangements support more agile business models which are required to maximise on scarce resources in creative ways that allow companies to contract staff while offering valuable employment opportunities.
Some changes are accompanied by shifts in recruitment patterns to correspond to the reconfigured staffing needs within a business climate that currently operates with fewer resources than before.
As a result, many companies are phasing out the need to hire as many in-house, permanent employees as they once did; rather, they choose to contract their workers on a project basis, which can create a win-win situation for both parties.
More flexibility for you, fewer resources for me
In certain instances, due to the independent nature of their work, contract employees hired to a see a project to fruition aren’t always required to be present at the office. In fact, quite a number of these positions, when advertised, clearly state that the tasks of the job are not necessarily carried out in-house.
The employees add value to the company through the services rendered regardless. However, the transient nature of the project for which they are hired eliminates the need for employers to provide, in many cases, office space, and in most cases, benefits such as health insurance, maternity and stipulated vacation leave.
Each contractor, along with his/her employer can develop a bespoke contract with its own terms. Resources expended on training and onboarding can also be retained by the employer, allowing further resource conservation.
The New Normal
A common complaint is that many persons, millennials in particular, are unable to find permanent jobs. However, although it does demand that the employee exercise a greater deal of personal resource management, holding a temporary position can actually allow him/her a degree of flexibility that a permanent position can fail to offer.
Additionally, the varied wealth of experience from contract to contract, project to project can make for a more nuanced resume that speaks to a broader range of experience.
“Many people don’t see it like that,” Trim explained. “It’s almost like steering them along the path of starting their own consultancy.”
Indeed, the services that temporary workers provide can very easily fall within the realm of independent consultancy. Communicating the inherent independence and personal control of these short-term project positions can frame the job offering in a more positive light to better attract the right candidates. With calls for greater flexibility and a higher quality of life factored into the work schedule, bringing across the understanding that this could very well be the “new normal” for those whom it suits can have the effect of attracting a good crop of candidates to your company.
Eve Anderson Recruitment in the executive screening of its candidates opens to them the possibility of entertaining contract work in ways that will be beneficial to their needs. As the contractor, your responsibility is to offer packages that will be seen as attractive, while allowing your business to retain some of its revenue during the current climate.