Future of Sourcing - Workforce Management https://futureofsourcing.com/tags/workforce-management en Job-Centric Upskilling: The Future of the Work Marketplace https://futureofsourcing.com/job-centric-upskilling-the-future-of-the-work-marketplace <div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/articles/Job-Centric-Upskilling-Future-Work-Marketplace.jpg"><a href="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/articles/Job-Centric-Upskilling-Future-Work-Marketplace.jpg" title="Investing in talent reskilling and upskilling will be necessary in the coming years to fill the talent gap." class="colorbox" rel="gallery-node-2193-61Oq2GMZSMg"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/styles/juicebox_medium/public/articles/Job-Centric-Upskilling-Future-Work-Marketplace.jpg?itok=NtNxpJdN" width="624" height="325" alt="Investing in talent reskilling and upskilling will be necessary in the coming years to fill the talent gap." title="" /></a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-intro field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"> <p><em>Investing in talent reskilling and upskilling will be necessary in the coming years to fill the talent gap says&nbsp;Vugar Adigozalov, Head of Marketing with <a href="https://www.qureos.com/business/" target="_blank">Qureos</a>. He shares the benefits of skills training for employees and companies, and shares the five forces driving the demand for more technically skilled talent.</em></p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-related-news field-type-entityreference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Related news:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/looking-for-a-career-in-sourcing-and-procurement-heres-how-to-get-started">Looking for a Career in Sourcing and Procurement? Here’s How to Get Started</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"> <p><a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/01/calling-global-upskilling-movement/" target="_blank">The World Economic Forum</a> estimates that more than half of all employees worldwide need to upskill or reskill by 2025 to embrace the changing nature of jobs. According to <a href="https://hbr.org/2022/04/6-strategies-to-upskill-your-workforce" target="_blank">Harvard Business Review</a>, organizations turn toward reskilling and upskilling to build the talent they cannot acquire or productively deploy. And yet a <a href="https://www.bcg.com/publications/2020/leadership-agile-blindspot" target="_blank">2020 global BCG study</a> showed that &ldquo;talent and skills&rdquo; was the second-most under-invested area in corporate transformation efforts.</p> <p>Skills gaps continue to be high as in-demand skills across jobs change in the next five years. The top skills that employers see as rising in prominence in the lead-up to 2025 include critical thinking and analysis, problem-solving and self-management skills such as active learning, resilience, stress tolerance and flexibility. According to <a href="https://www.weforum.org/reports/the-future-of-jobs-report-2020" target="_blank">The Future of Jobs Report</a>, on average, companies estimate that around 40% of workers will require reskilling in six months or less, and 94% of business leaders report that they expect employees to pick up new skills on the job, a sharp uptake from 65% in 2018.</p> <h1>Five Forces Pushing for Workforce Upskilling</h1> <p>By focusing on job-specific capacities, upskilling can benefit all industry players, including job seekers, companies and the economy by going beyond training and concentrating on specific job capabilities. In recent history, five main forces have pushed the global economy and the future of the work marketplace to invest in talent reskilling and upskilling to meet future demand.</p> <h2>1. AI &amp; Automation</h2> <p>Automation and offshoring were placing jobs at risk&mdash;especially for low-wage workers. At the same time, companies were struggling to find the skilled workers they needed to grow. <a href="https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/ca/Documents/deloitte-analytics/ca-covid19-upskilling-EN-AODA.pdf" target="_blank">The World Economic Forum</a> expects AI to create more jobs than it destroys, asserting that 133 million new jobs will emerge. Many business executives share the WEF&#39;s optimistic view of AI&#39;s job-creation potential. Employers have traditionally relied on university graduates and post-graduates for several reasons: to help close talent gaps, bring new knowledge, skills and capabilities to the organization; and as a source of future leaders. However, this traditional approach is no longer enough and colleges and universities cannot produce enough graduates to meet industry needs.</p> <p>In 2017, the McKinsey Global Institute estimated that <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/future-of-work/jobs-lost-jobs-gained-what-the-future-of-work-will-mean-for-jobs-skills-and-wages" target="_blank">as many as 375 million workers</a> &ndash;representing 14% of the global workforce &ndash; would have to switch occupations or acquire new skills by 2030 because of automation and artificial intelligence.</p> <p>It&#39;s time for companies and individuals to embrace the upskilling imperative. For companies, upskilling enables building a future-ready workforce; it&#39;s a way to keep their skills relevant and future-ready. Making deliberate, significant investments in learning will ensure organizations and employees alike have the knowledge, skills and capabilities needed to work effectively in a digitized, automated world, and build and consume AI-powered insights.</p> <p>Automation, in tandem with the COVID-19 recession, is creating a <a href="https://www.weforum.org/press/2018/09/machines-will-do-more-tasks-than-humans-by-2025-but-robot-revolution-will-still-create-58-million-net-new-jobs-in-next-five-years/" target="_blank">double-disruption scenario</a> for workers. By 2025, humans&#39; and machines&#39; time spent on current tasks at work will be equal. A significant share of companies also expect to make changes to locations, their value chains and the size of their workforce due to factors beyond technology in the next five years.</p> <h2>2. COVID-19 Pandemic</h2> <p>The COVID-19 pandemic has inadvertently been one of the biggest catalysts for workplace change, creating a mass &ldquo;experiment&rdquo; in remote working. The onset of the pandemic in the spring of 2020 prompted massive global economic disruption, with unemployment levels not seen since the 1930s&#39; Great Depression. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. economy faced a skills gap.</p> <p>Though unemployment was low, many workers struggled in low-wage and &quot;gig&quot; economy jobs. Researchers at the <a href="https://news.uchicago.edu/story/will-coronavirus-related-job-losses-eventually-return" target="_blank">University of Chicago project</a> that 32% to 42% of COVID-induced layoffs will be permanent. While the disruptive shock to the economy was rapid, the shift to new forms of work will evolve.</p> <p><img alt="By focusing on job-specific capacities, upskilling can benefit all industry players, including job seekers, companies and the economy by going beyond training and concentrating on specific job capabilities. " src="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/Job-Centric-Upskilling.jpg" style="width: 600px; height: 375px;" /></p> <h2>3. Global Workforce Upskilling Race</h2> <p><a href="https://www.weforum.org/impact/reskilling-revolution-preparing-1-billion-people-for-tomorrow-s-economy/">The World Economic Forum</a> works with over 350 organizations to provide 1 billion people with better education, skills and economic opportunities by 2030. The ambitious program prepares the global workforce with the skills needed to future-proof their careers, as technologies like AI enable greater automation.</p> <p>By working together with a growing network of 21 committed ministers in 11 countries, the Reskilling Revolution has mobilized an impressive multistakeholder. Founding members include Adecco, Coursera, Dubai Cares, The Education Commission, the Government of France, iamthecode, Infosys, LinkedIn, ManpowerGroup, PwC, Salesforce and UNICEF.</p> <h2>4. Governments Tackling the Talent Gap</h2> <p>As the tasks of government change, so too will the skill sets needed of government employees. For instance, in the 2020 federal budget proposal, the <a href="https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/insights/industry/public-sector/on-the-job-upskilling.html" target="_blank">White House</a> included resources to reskill 400,000 federal workers &ndash; about 20% of the workforce &ndash; in hard-to-fill roles such as data science, IT and cybersecurity.</p> <p>As technology advances, governments at all levels are increasingly looking to evolve the skills of their workforce. The <a href="https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/insights/industry/public-sector/on-the-job-upskilling.html" target="_blank">U.S. Army</a> is also upskilling civilian workers in the emerging talents of the future. The new program, called Quantum Leap, has an initial plan of retraining about a thousand employees for systems analyst, application developer and data manager roles by 2023.</p> <h2>5. Next-Generation Workforce Providers</h2> <p><a href="https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/pages/monitor-institute/topics/monitor-institute-by-deloitte.html" target="_blank">Monitor Institute by Deloitte</a> conducted in-depth research for market-driven training and education providers seeking to expand opportunities for the global workforce through upskilling. The report makes four broad recommendations for improving outcomes for workers and employers alike and closing the talent gap:</p> <ul> <li><strong>Be market-responsive</strong>: Providers should develop deep partnerships with companies and tailor programs to employer needs.</li> <li><strong>Focus on the &quot;good jobs:&quot;</strong> Good jobs are defined as those that meet the distinct needs of participants: their characteristics can include compensation, career growth, economic mobility or flexibility of work schedules. A good job might look different for different demographics.</li> <li><strong>Lift untapped talent</strong>: Tailored skills training is essential, but it is often critical to provide other &ldquo;wraparound&rdquo; supports to help job seekers succeed.</li> <li><strong>Invest in organizational capacity</strong>: The report urged next-generation workforce providers to build internal capabilities for continuous improvement, use data to measure program quality and tap into unconventional funding sources to boost sustainability.</li> </ul> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/workforce-management" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Workforce Management</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/workforce-development" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Workforce Development</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/upskilling" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Upskilling</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-addthis field-type-addthis field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><div class="addthis_toolbox addthis_default_style " addthis:title="Job-Centric Upskilling: The Future of the Work Marketplace - Future of Sourcing" addthis:url="https://futureofsourcing.com/job-centric-upskilling-the-future-of-the-work-marketplace"><a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_linkedin"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_facebook"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_twitter"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_googleplus"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_pinterest_share"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_reddit"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_email"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_print"></a> </div> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-region field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Region:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/regions/global" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Global</a></div></div></div> Mon, 27 Jun 2022 02:00:00 +0000 Vugar Adigozalov 2193 at https://futureofsourcing.com https://futureofsourcing.com/job-centric-upskilling-the-future-of-the-work-marketplace#comments Three Ways to Deal with Workforce Retention in Today’s Hyper-Uncertain Labor Market https://futureofsourcing.com/three-ways-to-deal-with-workforce-retention-issues-in-todays-hyper-uncertain-labor-market <div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/articles/Workforce%20Retention.png"><a href="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/articles/Workforce%20Retention.png" title="Workforce Retention" class="colorbox" rel="gallery-node-1751-61Oq2GMZSMg"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/styles/juicebox_medium/public/articles/Workforce%20Retention.png?itok=wRZxLe5k" width="624" height="325" alt="Workforce Retention" title="" /></a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-intro field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"> <h1>Three Ways to Deal with Workforce Retention in Today&rsquo;s Hyper-Uncertain Labor Market</h1> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-related-news field-type-entityreference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Related news:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/how-to-find-calm-in-the-midst-of-chaos">How to Find Calm in the Midst of Chaos</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"> <p>With unemployment claims skyrocketing to almost 10 million at the end of March and expected to jump by millions more, COVID-19-driven economic jolts have quickly shifted the labor environment to the most volatile we&rsquo;ve seen &ndash; well, ever.</p> <p>For some employees<span style="font-size: 13.008px;">&nbsp;&ndash;&nbsp;</span><span style="font-size: 13.008px;">especially those with tenure, or high performers in essential business functions</span><span style="font-size: 13.008px;">&nbsp;&ndash;&nbsp;</span><span style="font-size: 13.008px;">the natural instinct will be to hunker down and weather the storm. Others, spooked by their current organization&rsquo;s readiness to navigate this hyper-uncertainty (especially those with relevant and in-demand skillsets), will start exploring their options in search of more stable opportunities.&nbsp;&nbsp;</span></p> <p>This greater openness to external job opportunities, and as a result, unsolicited recruiting messages, raises the risk of workforce turnover. And while many organizations are furloughing and laying off workers to address pandemic-related cost concerns, areas of the labor market are surprisingly still tight, making it harder to find and source talent for in-demand roles.</p> <h1>Talent Is Key For Navigating Chaos</h1> <p>Data shows <a href="https://www.hrdive.com/news/tie-talent-to-business-strategy-to-bolster-performance-study-says/571010/" target="_blank">72% of an organization&rsquo;s value</a> is tied to its employees &ndash; and this link is even more imperative for maintaining business performance in tough times. No organization can afford to lose their best workers right now. Holding onto talent that may be considering leaving requires organizations to implement targeted, proactive retention programs.</p> <p>The industries, locations, and job functions most at-risk according to a recent <a href="https://www.datanami.com/2020/04/03/how-covid-19-is-impacting-the-market-for-data-jobs/" target="_blank">labor market analysis</a>:</p> <ul> <li>Recruiters (115% above national volatility average), software engineers (+105%), marketers (+82%), and finance professionals (+77%), all <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2020/02/14/workers-in-these-5-fields-are-most-likely-to-quit-their-jobs.html" target="_blank">typically categorized as highly volatile</a>, are even more so today. Given these functions are some of the most competitive, it&rsquo;s crucial to check in with these workers internally and identify and address any underlying attrition risk factors. &nbsp;</li> <li>Companies based in the greater San Francisco (50% above average) and Washington D.C. (+41%) areas tend to face above-average worker volatility levels. Organizations across every industry and size located in or around these cities should make retention their top priority, especially given how much this crisis will hit startups.</li> <li>Historically stable roles such as teachers (now 101% above average), skilled trades (+97%), construction (+83%) and healthcare staff (+77%), specifically nurses and doctors (+54% each), are <a href="https://www.workforcelogiq.com/2020/03/23/covid-19-analysis-impact-on-the-u-s-labor-market/" target="_blank">among the most volatile</a> considering the pandemic. This spike points to future talent risk with these workers on the frontlines of our COVID-19 response.</li> </ul> <h1>Strategies And Best Practices To Get Retention Right</h1> <p>Programs will look different for every organization given each has unique needs and objectives, but there are tried and true ways to boost retention. During these challenging times, when many companies are strapped for time and resources, it&#39;s especially important to implement very targeted strategies.</p> <p>Predictive insights offer a huge advantage in finding the best candidates and attracting them with the right recruiting messages. This intelligence also enables companies to identify the risk of attrition before it manifests, and high-value talent resigns.</p> <p><strong>1. Keep your employees engaged by making them feel heard.</strong></p> <p>Over <a href="https://www2.deloitte.com/global/en/pages/about-deloitte/articles/millennialsurvey.html" target="_blank">75% of millennials</a> &ndash; who make up the largest percentage of the workforce<span style="font-size: 13.008px;">&nbsp;&ndash;&nbsp;</span>feel businesses focus too much on corporate agendas, and not enough on contributing to society. While running a profitable business is important and will require even more attention in light of today&rsquo;s reality, companies can&rsquo;t ignore the societal implications of the pandemic and must demonstrate a commitment to the well-being of their employees and communities. On a broader scale, it&rsquo;s important that employees of all generations feel heard. One of the best ways to engage, and subsequently retain, your workforce is to understand what encourages staff to perform at their best and create cultures that prioritize those motivators.</p> <p><strong>2. Foster a supportive work environment and community.</strong></p> <p>Some studies show <a href="https://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/how-leaders-can-stop-loneliness-and-create-community-at-work/mental-healthcare" target="_blank">loneliness in the workplace</a> was already a pervasive issue before the pandemic &ndash; and the gravity of today&rsquo;s situation will likely add fuel to the fire. When employees feel lonely, they&rsquo;re often disengaged from their work, making them less productive, and more apt to explore new roles and company cultures. Making people feel part of a community while at work is important &ndash; especially while most are working remotely. Virtual happy hours or team lunches over video where folks order from a local restaurant can boost morale, establish a sense of community and facilitate team bonding. It&rsquo;s also important to recognize employees&rsquo; contributions, increasing their overall confidence and incentivizing them to do good work not only in the interest of the business but also for their own satisfaction and motivation.</p> <p><strong>3. Tell them what <u>they</u> need to hear.</strong></p> <p>Employees jump jobs for a variety of different reasons, but today, fears over job security, company resiliency and business stability top the list. When employees feel they could lose their jobs or career momentum, they&rsquo;re more apt to explore other opportunities that will fuel their professional development. Employers need to understand the workplace characteristics their employees value and prioritize them accordingly. Today, for example, employees are putting more weight behind company resiliency (<a href="https://www.workforcelogiq.com/2020/03/23/covid-19-analysis-impact-on-the-u-s-labor-market/" target="_blank">up 12% from December</a>) followed by business stability, which means reassuring staff of the company&rsquo;s performance and financial health in this challenging time, and clearly communicating what you&rsquo;re doing from a resiliency perspective, is key.</p> <p>While undoubtedly more difficult today, with the right best practices, strategies, and market intelligence, employers can still source and sustain a reliable talent pipeline to thrive despite the uncertain employment environment.</p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/workforce-management" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Workforce Management</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/talent-management" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Talent Management</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/talent-sourcing" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Talent Sourcing</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/workforce-retention" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Workforce Retention</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-addthis field-type-addthis field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><div class="addthis_toolbox addthis_default_style " addthis:title="Three Ways to Deal with Workforce Retention in Today&amp;rsquo;s Hyper-Uncertain Labor Market - Future of Sourcing" addthis:url="https://futureofsourcing.com/three-ways-to-deal-with-workforce-retention-issues-in-todays-hyper-uncertain-labor-market"><a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_linkedin"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_facebook"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_twitter"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_googleplus"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_pinterest_share"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_reddit"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_email"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_print"></a> </div> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-region field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Region:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/regions/global" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Global</a></div></div></div> Mon, 28 Jun 2021 02:00:00 +0000 Joe Hanna 1751 at https://futureofsourcing.com https://futureofsourcing.com/three-ways-to-deal-with-workforce-retention-issues-in-todays-hyper-uncertain-labor-market#comments 5 Tips to Simplify the Hiring Manager Experience When Sourcing External Workers https://futureofsourcing.com/5-tips-to-simplify-the-hiring-manager-experience-when-sourcing-external-workers <div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/articles/5%20Tips%20to%20Simplify%20the%20Hiring%20Manager%20Experience%20When%20Sourcing%20External%20Workers.png"><a href="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/articles/5%20Tips%20to%20Simplify%20the%20Hiring%20Manager%20Experience%20When%20Sourcing%20External%20Workers.png" title="Here are five tips to help you scrutinize ways to simplify sourcing external workers to create a better experience for your hiring managers." class="colorbox" rel="gallery-node-1943-61Oq2GMZSMg"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/styles/juicebox_medium/public/articles/5%20Tips%20to%20Simplify%20the%20Hiring%20Manager%20Experience%20When%20Sourcing%20External%20Workers.png?itok=gaibOJ9E" width="624" height="325" alt="Here are five tips to help you scrutinize ways to simplify sourcing external workers to create a better experience for your hiring managers." title="" /></a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-intro field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"> <h1>5 Tips to Simplify the Hiring Manager Experience When Sourcing External Workers</h1> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-related-news field-type-entityreference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Related news:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/harnessing-workforce-intelligence-for-strategic-and-holistic-decision-making">Harnessing Workforce Intelligence for Strategic and Holistic Decision-Making</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"> <p>If you&rsquo;re in Talent Acquisition or Procurement, you know all too well that hiring people &ndash; whether employee or non-employee &ndash; can be complex and time-consuming. When you&rsquo;re busy with the day to day, it&rsquo;s easy to get distracted from tackling process improvements. Yet, it&rsquo;s not hard to simplify and modernize procedures for your hiring managers. Some simple improvements can make sourcing external workers a more streamlined process.</p> <p>Below are five tips to help you start scrutinizing ways to <a href="https://blog.utmost.co/simple-talent-sourcing-for-hiring-managers" target="_blank">simplify sourcing external workers</a> to create a better experience for your hiring managers:</p> <h2>1. Keep It Streamlined</h2> <p>One of the main criticisms about the hiring process, in general, is that it can be overwhelming when dealing with several top candidates. To improve the process, ask yourself:</p> <ul> <li>How can key hiring manager activities be streamlined?</li> <li>How can approvals and reports be accessed via mobile devices?</li> <li>How can interview scheduling be simplified?</li> </ul> <p>By identifying best practices and reorganizing or removing outdated processes, HR or Procurement has the impetus to drive change. For example, you can work with your hiring managers to create a list of questions in which candidates must have certain qualifications to make it to the next level of consideration.</p> <p>Additionally, by using technology, time and expense approvals can be made on-the-go via a mobile device. And basic calendaring systems can simplify interview scheduling, avoiding the back-and-forth of time availability for all parties, especially your hiring managers.</p> <p>A typical Vendor Management System (VMS) can handle some process simplification for requesting external workers, enabling the hiring manager to make key parts of hiring more efficient. However, a VMS will not give you nor the hiring manager key insights into your total talent workforce that includes non-employees as well as employees.</p> <h2>2. Solve Selection Dilemmas with Data</h2> <p>When faced with hiring decisions for selecting non-employees, talent acquisition now has more analytic tools at its fingertips than ever before. Two of the top critical questions on hiring managers&rsquo; minds can be answered with data:&nbsp;</p> <ul> <li>What will help drive success in this role and at your company?</li> <li>What are the talent market dynamics influencing your hiring for this role at this particular location?</li> </ul> <p>To get insights with analytics, many HR and Procurement professionals use either free tools or purchased tools (i.e., your HRIS for success profiles; your ATS for pipeline reports; and Glassdoor for salary, reviews and competitor insights). These tools are helpful as you hone-in on gaining insights into your candidate pool as well as get a more holistic view of individual candidates. Technology solutions that the company already owns may include an analytics capability, so check into that before investing in an additional solution to avoid cobbling together data from disparate systems.</p> <h2>3. Use Technology to Simplify Hiring</h2> <p>Digital checklists are one feature that can help streamline the hiring process. These enable hiring managers to move quickly while meeting your organization&rsquo;s hiring requirements. Configuring checklists by job type or even by geographic location can help hiring managers evaluate candidates based on role-specific requirements, as well as guide them through each step.</p> <p>You can also tap into technology that gives you&nbsp;<a href="https://www.healthcaresource.com/our-advantage/capabilities/structured-interview-guide" target="_blank">structured interview guides</a>. These give your hiring managers a consistent framework, which will assist you to more judiciously vet candidates. Structured interview guides also help hiring managers and recruiters stay aligned on role requirements so that the process can move forward smoothly and effectively.</p> <p>Even more important, these tools promote a high degree of reliability, validity, and legal defensibility compared to&nbsp;unstructured interviews as each candidate is asked identical questions.</p> <p>You can further enhance the interview and evaluation process by using&nbsp;<a href="https://www.healthcaresource.com/our-advantage/capabilities/behavioral-assessments" target="_blank">scientifically backed behavioral assessments</a>, some of which are known as personality tests. These assessments objectively show your hiring managers how well-suited candidates are for a specific role with uncanny precision, taking the guesswork out of candidate evaluations while simultaneously keeping hiring managers on track.</p> <p>One such longstanding example is the DiSC profile system. Others may be more closely aligned with questions that specifically advise whether the candidate is suited for a specific role such as marketing or accounting.</p> <h2>4. Outsource Your Sourcing</h2> <p>Creating a single entry point for hiring managers to go for requesting workers (employee, contingent, project, freelance, etc.), regardless of how or where those workers are sourced or managed, results in a streamlined request process for <a href="https://blog.utmost.co/total-talent-management-benefits" target="_blank">true total talent management</a>.</p> <p>Systems using this approach streamline the process to request data, correctly classify the request to reduce compliance risk, route it for approval, dispatch it for sourcing and flow worker data back into the system.</p> <p>This helps reduce confusion of which system to use for various types of non-employees, eliminates duplicate and re-entry of requirement details, and improves Net Promoter Scores (NPS) for hiring managers for HR shared services as a measure of their performance.</p> <p>One solution to request external workers is to layer complementary services such as using ServiceNow with a VMS. You create a digital workflow that connects systems, apps, and data using their platform. This ensures end-to-end visibility resulting in a better hiring manager experience.</p> <p>Another option is to use an <a href="https://utmost.co" target="_blank">Extended Workforce System</a> (EWS) that integrates with your Human Capital Management (HCM) system. By using a single global access point to request external workers, your organization can create one place to go&nbsp;for hiring managers to request and manage all classifications of&nbsp;workers, whether employee or non-employee.</p> <p>Because all people-related requests are initiated through their&nbsp;access point known as the Front Door, this ends the confusion about where a manager should go for different types of&nbsp;workers. As a fully self-service software, the system guides inexperienced managers, while providing streamlined processes&nbsp;for experienced managers to make the process as easy as possible.</p> <p>When you are able to capture all requests through one place, it ensures you receive optimum multi-channel sourcing. Additionally, you gain insight into your total talent for a complete picture of all workers, not solely external workers.</p> <h2>5. Centralize Your Hiring Team</h2> <p>One of the most advantageous structures for larger organizations&rsquo; hiring process involves creating a dedicated, centralized hiring team that handles the entire process &ndash; from sourcing to onboarding &ndash; in one department. Until a new non-employee is in the final stages of interviewing, only the recruiter, hiring manager and candidate should have interacted to that point.</p> <p>Centralization is crucial to more than just getting a requisition request and the subsequent steps needed to fulfill the position. A truly centralized team involves one task force-type group that is involved in developing not only sourcing strategies, such as the one mentioned above, but also is key in other factors. This includes identifying top talent, coordinating and tracking the process throughout the interview and background check stages, and ensuring a smooth onboarding process that is consistent with that of the employees in your organization.</p> <p>To bridge the gap between non-employee talent acquisition and talent management once they are onboarded, an organized centralized team is vested in the total experience for hiring managers and candidates.</p> <p>A centralized team also allows for autonomy and provides an environment for lean operations to quickly identify ineffective processes and execute changes quickly, freeing up the hiring manager to concentrate on their role within the hiring process.</p> <p>Simplifying processes in the talent acquisition workflow for non-employees is not only critical for a great hiring manager experience, but improved processes will also create a better experience for your candidates by default, helping to build your company&rsquo;s brand.</p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/vendor-management-system-vms" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Vendor Management System (VMS)</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/talent-management" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Talent Management</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/workforce-management" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Workforce Management</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/telecommute" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">telecommute</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-addthis field-type-addthis field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><div class="addthis_toolbox addthis_default_style " addthis:title="5 Tips to Simplify the Hiring Manager Experience When Sourcing External Workers - Future of Sourcing" addthis:url="https://futureofsourcing.com/5-tips-to-simplify-the-hiring-manager-experience-when-sourcing-external-workers"><a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_linkedin"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_facebook"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_twitter"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_googleplus"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_pinterest_share"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_reddit"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_email"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_print"></a> </div> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-region field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Region:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/regions/global" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Global</a></div></div></div> Thu, 25 Mar 2021 02:00:00 +0000 Neha Goel 1943 at https://futureofsourcing.com https://futureofsourcing.com/5-tips-to-simplify-the-hiring-manager-experience-when-sourcing-external-workers#comments Weighing VMS and MSP deployment options? Experts share their secrets! https://futureofsourcing.com/weighing-vms-and-msp-deployment-options-experts-share-their-secrets <div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/articles/VMS_vs_MSP.jpg"><a href="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/articles/VMS_vs_MSP.jpg" title="Weighing VMS and MSP deployment options? Experts share their secrets!" class="colorbox" rel="gallery-node-1559-61Oq2GMZSMg"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/styles/juicebox_medium/public/articles/VMS_vs_MSP.jpg?itok=Dw2_21Uy" width="624" height="325" alt="" title="" /></a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"> <div><span data-contrast="auto" xml:lang="EN-US">The&nbsp;</span><span data-contrast="auto" xml:lang="EN-US">c</span><span data-contrast="auto" xml:lang="EN-US">hicken or the&nbsp;</span><span data-contrast="auto" xml:lang="EN-US">e</span><span data-contrast="auto" xml:lang="EN-US">gg?&nbsp;</span>For organizations of all sizes and compositions, it can be a daunting challenge to determine whether to implement a new <a href="https://futureofsourcing.com/the-rules-of-outsourcing-have-changed" target="_blank">contingent workforce management solution</a>. Nearly every type of business can benefit from leveraging contingent labor in one form or another as evidenced by the continuing growth in the use and utilization of all manner of non-employee workers. From the traditional &ldquo;temp&rdquo; workers supplementing full-time staff to the more recently use of independent contractors, project workers, freelancers, and other worker classifications that increasingly comprise the contemporary workforce, organizations of all stripes have become more comfortable and reliant on the contingent workforce as a regular part of their business operations. According to the World Economic Forum&rsquo;s insight study <a href="https://www.weforum.org/reports/the-future-of-jobs-report-2018" target="_blank"><em>The Future of Jobs Report 2018</em></a>, by the year 2022 between one-half and two-thirds of companies will be utilizing contractors, temporary labor and freelancers to address growing skills gaps.&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Not surprisingly, the complexity of modern workforce management has created a crowded field of providers that support the design, development and management of contingent workforces. Two of the most trusted and effective offerings are <a href="https://futureofsourcing.com/a-msp-service-delivery-model-based-on-design-thinking" target="_blank">Vendor Management System (VMS) software products and the Managed Services Providers (MSP)</a>. Both have become trusted industry-standard practices and both represent significant challenges to implement successfully. &nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Yet, despite knowing that intrinsic value exists in applying either a technology or a service (or both) to contingent workforce management, it can be difficult for organizations to determine whether either option is best suited to help achieve their objectives. And for those that conclude there are benefits to employing both, the question is further complicated by the decision surrounding which to deploy first and why. For guidance on making the best of these thorny dilemmas, savvy organizations need workforce management experts to help guide their decision-making and execute on deployment.&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>We asked workforce management solution experts for their best advice on how to determine if their operations could benefit from VMS solutions, MSP solutions or both. We also asked them how they help organizations to decide the best order of operations when the decision is made to engage both VMS technology and MSP services. Here&rsquo;s what they said.&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div> <h2>VMS Considerations</h2> </div> <div>Yvonne McAteer is the Senior Vice President of Sales and Strategy at <a href="http://www.nextsource.com/msp-vms" target="_blank">nextSource</a>. Here&rsquo;s how she helps organizations decide if a VMS is the best option for addressing workforce management challenges.&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;&ldquo;There are a number of important questions to pose to the customer. For example, any change management or technology initiatives they mention will often help to clarify whether or not VMS makes sense for the organization.&rdquo; &nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>McAteer shared the top four most salient questions she poses to organizations considering deploying a VMS solution. &nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <ol> <li>Does this tie with the organization&rsquo;s broad strategy, such as bringing speed and agility to the workforce, reducing organizational risk or improving financial performance? &nbsp;</li> <li>Does the organization possess the internal expertise necessary to determine and articulate the workflows and business processes necessary to properly configure a VMS solution? &nbsp;</li> <li>Do you have the internal resources needed to manage a contingent workforce? &nbsp;</li> <li>Are you prepared to align bill rates with suppliers in such a way as to avoid having to revisit them again shortly if the organization intends to field an MSP solution after deploying VMS? &nbsp;</li> </ol> <div>&ldquo;These are mission-critical considerations,&rdquo; said McAteer, noting that typically, it is the larger organization that is more readily equipped to embark on a VMS initiative because they often already have tighter, more mature controls over business processes related to workforce management. Automation enabled by VMS tools is heavily reliant on proper configuration of the software to address workflows that are already proven effective. Whereas smaller organizations may not have an inherently clear set of existing policies and practices that can be easily automated. In the absence of such clarity, there is a higher likelihood that simply deploying a VMS tool will not automatically result in effective utilization of VMS tools.&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Similarly, it is somewhat pre-requisite for an organization to have sufficient internal resources available to dedicate to the implementation and management of a contingent workforce. Without the basic management infrastructure in place, implementing a VMS may be putting the cart in front of the horse. The existence of internal workforce management resources also supports the organization&rsquo;s ability to prepare the above-mentioned processes and workflows for staffing supplier management.&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>&ldquo;The last of the three questions are geared toward an organization that may also be considering adding MSP services to their contingent workforce mix at some point,&rdquo; said McAteer. She adds, &ldquo;It is important to consider the future state so that when negotiating bill rates with suppliers as part of your VMS implementation room is left to absorb the cost of an MSP program deployment at a later date, if the intent is to deploy a supplier-funded model.&rdquo; &nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div> <h2>MSP Considerations</h2> </div> <div>When it comes to considering an MSP solution, nextSource&rsquo;s Director of Business Development Joe Olstadt offers three key questions an organization must address:&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <ol> <li>Do you truly have a well-conceived contingent workforce management policy in effect?</li> <li>Is contingent labor being used strategically or in an ad-hoc manner? &nbsp;</li> <li>How effectively does your organization balance access to talent versus cost savings?&nbsp;</li> </ol> <div>Joe advises, &ldquo;It is often a good idea to craft contingent workforce management policies that work in alignment with your organization&rsquo;s full-time talent acquisition process and hiring strategy. Otherwise, an MSP might operate at odds with your HR and talent acquisition departments and that is a recipe for failure. Having a policy in place improves the probability of success with an MSP solution.&rdquo;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>&ldquo;How contingent labor is currently being utilized is also a highly important consideration,&rdquo; says Olstadt. For those already applying a strategic approach to contingent labor usage, Joe suggests, &ldquo;it may be sufficient to simply &lsquo;lift and shift&rsquo; existing contingent labor management processes over to a new MSP partner. However, if a company is only addressing the practice in an ad-hoc fashion more significant re-engineering of workforce management processes may be required to derive the maximum benefit from the application of an MSP to the tasks associated with sourcing and managing a contingent workforce.&rdquo; &nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Olstadt counsels the majority of organizations opting to engage MSP solutions to consider re-engineering processes for smoother adoption and better results. But he cautions that this level of change requires a strong focus on change management expertise. &nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>To answer the third question regarding the balance between access to talent and cost savings, Olstadt notes, &ldquo;Organizations should look to its top three or four strategic drivers to determine which consideration should be the priority. You don&rsquo;t want to be hashing this issue out during implementation. You should clearly understand the drivers at play before implementation so that an MSP can hit the ground running with clearly enunciated priorities.&rdquo; Many MSP providers have tools that can help you identify your priorities. &nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <h2><span data-contrast="auto" xml:lang="EN-US">The&nbsp;</span><span data-contrast="auto" xml:lang="EN-US">c</span><span data-contrast="auto" xml:lang="EN-US">hicken or the&nbsp;</span><span data-contrast="auto" xml:lang="EN-US">e</span><span data-contrast="auto" xml:lang="EN-US">gg?</span></h2> <div>For many organizations, it makes sense to employ the centralization and automation of a VMS technology alongside the purchasing power and compliance capabilities of an MSP service begging the perennial question: which project to deploy first?&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Both McAteer and Olstadt seemed to agree that there is no hard and fast rule dictating the &ldquo;best&rdquo; order to deploy these two complementary solutions. Making the decision of which comes first for any given organization will rely on the specific answers developed to the numerous questions posed in each of the assessments detailed above. However, deploying them in tandem decreases implementation time and enables an organization to have both sets of experts involved in design, configuration and launch. &nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Ultimately, the comparative size of the organization plays a significant role in the decision-making. Typically, larger organizations tend to stand up a VMS first and then, later, an MSP. This is because larger companies characteristically possess greater levels of resources&mdash;both in terms of IT support and in terms of existing process, policy and personnel dedicated to workforce management. This means the underlying infrastructure needed to successfully determine the correct VMS workflows and configurations is already in place and the larger organization can more effectively shoulder the burden of standing up a VMS while retaining stronger control over contingent workforce management. Frequently, once implemented, the VMS provides much more penetrating views into drivers of performance, compliance and a host of other KPIs that the large organization can then use to weigh whether or not an MSP arrangement will drive additional operational benefits.&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>For the small and midsize business (SMB) organization without the same levels of internal resources, engaging an MSP first is often more appropriate. Typically more interested in reducing the workloads of their internal resources, SMBs find that MSP engagements deliver added value via the expertise they bring in re-engineering processes and fostering strong, effective change management practices helping drive positive results. With more standardized and well-controlled workforce management operations guided by an MSP, the SMB organization can then take the next steps in partnership with their MSP in selecting and standing up the most appropriate VMS solution. In fact, according to the Staffing Industry Analysts, MSPs can absorb as much as 62% of the workload associated with deploying a VMS platform. &nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Ultimately though, the decision of &ldquo;which comes first&rdquo; does not adhere in a hard and fast sense to the large company/small company distinction laid out above. There are many variables to consider, regardless of the size of the organization. For just one example, consider that a company of any size that aligns bill rates with their suppliers to account for a new VMS fee would then need to renegotiate with the suppliers again six to 12 months later if/when they elected to layer in new MSP services. Is this level of disruption to be avoided or endured? Other considerations lean toward the cultural. Does your culture emphasize internal control or does it work better culturally when your sourcing managers sit close to your hiring managers? &nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>In the end, there are so many variables to weigh when making this decision that it is definitely advisable to engage some consultative expertise from a workforce management consultancy.</div> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/contingent-workforce" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Contingent Workforce</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/talent-management" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Talent Management</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/vendor-management-system-vms" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Vendor Management System (VMS)</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/managed-service-provider-msp" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Managed Service Provider (MSP)</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/workforce-management" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Workforce Management</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/future-of-work" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Future of Work</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-addthis field-type-addthis field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><div class="addthis_toolbox addthis_default_style " addthis:title="Weighing VMS and MSP deployment options? Experts share their secrets! - Future of Sourcing" addthis:url="https://futureofsourcing.com/weighing-vms-and-msp-deployment-options-experts-share-their-secrets"><a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_linkedin"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_facebook"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_twitter"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_googleplus"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_pinterest_share"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_reddit"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_email"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_print"></a> </div> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-region field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Region:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/regions/global" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Global</a></div></div></div> Tue, 27 Aug 2019 22:53:53 +0000 Yvonne McAteer 1559 at https://futureofsourcing.com https://futureofsourcing.com/weighing-vms-and-msp-deployment-options-experts-share-their-secrets#comments Employee Immobility: Getting Talent to Move in a Tightening Market https://futureofsourcing.com/employee-immobility-getting-talent-to-move-in-a-tightening-market <div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/articles/Employee_Immobility.jpg"><a href="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/articles/Employee_Immobility.jpg" title="Employee Immobility: Getting Talent to Move in a Tightening Market" class="colorbox" rel="gallery-node-1426-61Oq2GMZSMg"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/styles/juicebox_medium/public/articles/Employee_Immobility.jpg?itok=XUDP7JxW" width="624" height="325" alt="" title="" /></a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"> <p>Today&rsquo;s labor market is tight. At the start of 2019, the U.S. economy had seen the longest run of job growth since 1969 and the current unemployment rate is still holding steady at about four percent. Year-over-year wage growth is also the strongest it&rsquo;s been in a decade. The robust economy has shaped an ideal market for employees, where the demand to fill open positions is outpacing the supply of talent. You&rsquo;d think employees would look at this as an opportunity to shop their talent to the highest bidder, right? But are workers actually looking to move on?</p> <p>In an effort to find out more about the economy&rsquo;s impact on employee mobility, Workforce Logiq surveyed working consumers across the United States for the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.workforcelogiq.com/white-papers/workforce-logiq-2019-employee-fear-mobility-index/" target="_blank">2019 Employee Fear and Mobility Index</a>. Surprisingly, the proprietary research found that employees are not currently planning to seek out new opportunities, regardless of the option to pursue better pay or new responsibilities in this highly attractive job market. According to the survey, 72 percent of all workers plan to stay in their current roles for the next year. Unfortunately for procurement, HR teams and hiring managers, the tight labor market may become even tighter.</p> <p><strong>Employees Fear Economic Downturn&nbsp;</strong></p> <p>Despite strong economic and employment indicators, today&rsquo;s headlines are a whiplash of bear vs. bull market sentiments &ndash; not to mention a global economic narrative that is driving uncertainty, doubt and fear in the work environment. Our survey results highlight that employees are already behaving as if in recession mode, hunkering down to prepare for stagnant wages and fewer promotions and raises. In fact, 57 percent of all workers believe the economy is going to get worse in the next 12 to 24 months. Of these respondents, 45 percent expect wage stagnation to be the main outcome of an economic downturn.</p> <p>The Workforce Logiq study found that the top motivator for workers staying in their current role was job security, followed by concerns that they would receive lower compensation elsewhere. While this might seem surprising given the strength of the labor market, the fear of last in/first out during an economic downturn had an impact on the perception of their actual long-term compensation with a potential job move.</p> <p>Another interesting discovery &ndash; respondents noted that finding the time or resources to look for a new job was not an issue (aggregate rank score of 2.56 out of 10). This suggests that while employees have the means to find new opportunities, they are intentionally holding on to their current roles. In fact, 79 percent of total survey respondents said they had not changed jobs within the past 12 months. Why? Fear, uncertainty and doubt.&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Overcoming Employee Uncertainty to Win Talent</strong></p> <p>Fear of change is a big hurdle for procurement and HR teams to overcome when trying to win talent in today&rsquo;s recruiting environment. Conveying confidence in business performance and communicating long term financial and job security are all important recruiting brand messages with which to find, engage, convince and ultimately win the right candidates.</p> <p>Organizations must reinforce this message of confidence even before they begin hiring for specific roles. <a href="https://futureofsourcing.com/the-introduction-of-social-media-recruiting" target="_blank">Engaging with their&nbsp;<em>talent communities</em></a>&ndash; or pipeline of pre-qualified and engaged prospective candidates &ndash; means their recruiting targets can interact with their brand and understand the organization&rsquo;s culture and expectations in advance of the screening process. That leads to higher engagement of the right candidates more likely to take an offer &ndash; and stay.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>In addition, procurement and HR teams should also take advantage of the advances in <a href="https://futureofsourcing.com/latecomers-beware-how-artificial-intelligence-spawns-the-next-largest-divide" target="_blank">workforce management technologies and artificial intelligence (AI)</a>, which have the potential to give enterprises a recruiting edge by streamlining processes, increasing visibility and providing organizations with the insights they need to make the right hiring choices&mdash;quickly. For example, AI-enabled solutions can efficiently short-list candidates by matching CV content with the hard and soft skills of the job requisition, including cultural fit and the likelihood to stick and stay. Then, an HR professional can review the small pool of candidate matches to see who is most likely to meet job expectations, drastically cutting down time-to-hire and new hire attrition.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>Making the wrong decision is costly: The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) estimates that on average it costs a company six to nine months of an employee&rsquo;s salary to replace him or her. In today&rsquo;s tight labor market, it&rsquo;s more important than ever to find the right candidates who are willing to move and are right for the job.&nbsp;&nbsp;Moving smartly is just as important as moving quickly.&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Growing the Contingent Workforce</strong></p> <p>An additional strategy in an ever-tightening employment market is for procurement and HR teams to leverage a more flexible&nbsp;<em>on-demand&nbsp;</em>capacity &ndash; with contingent workers. Our study found that contingent workers see themselves as freelancing more or otherwise making changes to their employment status when compared to full time workers. Overwhelmingly, full-time workers have no plans to change their status &ndash; 70 percent versus contingent&rsquo;s 37 percent. This signals that contingent and gig workers are more open to seeking other opportunities.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>While contingent labor positions provide a critical edge for organizations by opening up the talent pool to additional candidates with specialized skill sets, they can also bring higher levels of complexity in sourcing and HR management. However, with procurement&rsquo;s expertise in supplier management, contract and budgeting&mdash;combined with HR&rsquo;s employment policies, recruiting and performance management know-how&mdash;the two departments together can extract the most value out of alternative workforce hiring.&nbsp;</p> <p>With the future of the job market uncertain and fear impacting employees&rsquo; willingness to seek new opportunities, the one thing we know for sure is that organizations will need to develop creative recruiting strategies to attract the best talent. Organizations that implement the right AI-enabled technology, build and nurture a talent pipeline and are open to hiring contingent workers will have a leg up on their competition to fill open positions with high-quality candidates. &nbsp;</p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/talent-management" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Talent Management</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/contingent-workforce" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Contingent Workforce</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/talent-acquisition" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Talent Acquisition</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/human-resources" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Human Resources</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/workforce-management" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Workforce Management</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-addthis field-type-addthis field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><div class="addthis_toolbox addthis_default_style " addthis:title="Employee Immobility: Getting Talent to Move in a Tightening Market - Future of Sourcing" addthis:url="https://futureofsourcing.com/employee-immobility-getting-talent-to-move-in-a-tightening-market"><a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_linkedin"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_facebook"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_twitter"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_googleplus"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_pinterest_share"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_reddit"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_email"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_print"></a> </div> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-region field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Region:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/regions/global" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Global</a></div></div></div> Tue, 23 Apr 2019 23:50:12 +0000 Jim Burke 1426 at https://futureofsourcing.com https://futureofsourcing.com/employee-immobility-getting-talent-to-move-in-a-tightening-market#comments Talent Procurement Teams Take Note: The Future of Hiring with AI https://futureofsourcing.com/talent-procurement-teams-take-note-the-future-of-hiring-with-ai <div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/articles/talent_procurement_future_hiring.jpg"><a href="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/articles/talent_procurement_future_hiring.jpg" title="hiring with artificial intelligence" class="colorbox" rel="gallery-node-1319-61Oq2GMZSMg"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/styles/juicebox_medium/public/articles/talent_procurement_future_hiring.jpg?itok=i3feeHR0" width="624" height="325" alt="hiring with artificial intelligence" title="" /></a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"> <div>The job market is booming &ndash; the number of open jobs exceeds the number of Americans who are unemployed. In October, the U.S. Department of Labor reported job growth of 250,000, locking in a <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/02/business/economy/jobs-report.html" target="_blank">3.7 percent unemployment rate &ndash; the lowest since 1969</a>. Due to America&rsquo;s growing economy, thousands of companies across the country are prospering and looking for strong talent. This makes it a job seeker&rsquo;s market but leaves organizations in a tight spot since there&rsquo;s not enough talent to fill demand. It&rsquo;s a quandary: What is the best way to find employees for the job, as quickly as possible, when they may not exist?&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Thankfully, technology is advancing faster than ever and changing the game for the talent supply chain, with one of the biggest disruptors being artificial intelligence (AI). While there&rsquo;s hesitation from some that emerging technology like AI will threaten jobs, the advancements are actually contributing to job growth. With the power of advanced tools, it is much easier to find new, qualified talent to meet demand and reach candidates with specialized, unique skillsets who might otherwise be hidden from view.&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><strong>AI: The Game Changer in Workforce Management &nbsp;</strong></div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>AI is especially disruptive for the contingent workforce sector, which includes freelance and contractual work. As an area of talent procurement with its own set of rules, finding the right candidate for specific short-term jobs or &ldquo;gigs&rdquo; can be difficult and time consuming. Paperwork overload, team bandwidth issues, process inefficiencies, compliance and regulatory consideration and costs all challenge the talent procurement process. AI is turning this process on its head, making it much more proactive and prescriptive. &nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Before emerging technologies like AI, we could only use data to understand what happened in the past. Now, analytics have become more predictive and provide educated forecasts to help shape the future and aid in forward-looking, strategic decision-making. According to a <a href="https://www.kornferry.com/press/korn-ferry-global-survey-artificial-intelligence-reshaping-the-role-of-the-recruiter" target="_blank">Korn Ferry study</a>, 63 percent of talent acquisition professionals say AI and big data have changed the way they recruit, and 69 percent say that using AI as a sourcing tool has garnered higher-quality candidates. To bring in the right candidates, we need easier ways to find, filter, interview and vet candidates &ndash; and that&rsquo;s exactly where AI comes into play.&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><strong>AI&rsquo;s Ability to Find the &ldquo;Perfect&rdquo; Match&nbsp;</strong></div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>The problem with the labor market today is not that the talent doesn&rsquo;t exist, it&rsquo;s that we aren&rsquo;t using the right tools to find the best candidates. In a tight labor market, the pool of candidates has shrunk. Furthermore, job seekers are using different tactics and resources (such as freelance job boards) to search for jobs, which requires companies to change the way they find and source candidates. While these may be obstacles for employers, today&rsquo;s modern workforce allows for new growth opportunities. The influx of digital natives expands the geographic pool to employees who can work remotely from anywhere in the world. AI has the power to find these employees who were once considered nonexistent and go beyond a candidate&rsquo;s résumé to determine if they are the right person for the job. &nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>For example, AI is now empowering hiring managers to make smarter and faster hiring decisions by using &ldquo;match&rdquo; algorithms to find the most qualified candidate(s) on a variety of hard and soft skills. So, what does this mean? HR managers can now prioritize their time reviewing candidates that AI finds, rather than spend countless hours trying to find the right candidates by sorting through all the noise of scrambled résumés and CVs. Not only will they be able to sort through résumés faster, but they&rsquo;ll find better qualified candidates to interview faster, ultimately having an edge in the race for talent. &nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Let&rsquo;s say, hypothetically, a leading tech company is looking for a Senior Network Technician for a year-long project. Because jobs are so specialized and everyone in IT wants to work with this company, even the most qualified of candidates get lost in the sheer volume of applicants and résumés. How can the company find the right person? Using predictive workforce management AI, a candidate&rsquo;s CV can be converted into a searchable record to leverage semantic search technology and more effectively match the meaning of the candidate&#39;s content with the intent of the job requisition. This means that candidate matching can include both fact-based requirements, such as years of experience and education, as well as softer characteristics, such as cultural fit. From this, a percentage match score can be calculated and the top candidates identified and passed on to HR or procurement for human review. Using predictive analytics in this way can save a great deal of time and energy and ultimately improve the overall quality of candidates sent to hiring managers for consideration. &nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>What&rsquo;s more, AI can eliminate much of the tedious work that HR managers do and free up time for them to interpret and act on the insights it reveals. By helping employers quickly analyze and interpret data to identify top candidates, AI gives hiring managers and procurement leaders time back to focus on more strategic work &ndash; like implementing employee engagement initiatives and ensuring that onboarding and training for new hires is effective. &nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><strong>What Does the Future Hold?&nbsp;</strong></div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>The future is bright for workforce management, with AI poised at the beginning of what&rsquo;s to come. By using AI to drive the workforce management process, companies can get more work done and focus their time on pressing issues to drive bottom-line results and ultimately position the company for success. With technology advancing faster than ever before, AI is already changing the way workforce management is executed and organized. &nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>In the grand scheme of things, everyone wants the best talent they can find&hellip;but they also want an easy and efficient way to find them, especially in today&rsquo;s tight labor market. With the use of sophisticated technology, such as AI, your organization can have an advantage in procuring truly qualified candidates &nbsp;to further advance your business objectives.</div> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/human-resources-hr" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Human Resources (HR)</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/artificial-intelligence-ai" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Artificial Intelligence (AI)</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/innovation" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Innovation</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/talent-acquisition" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Talent Acquisition</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/workforce-management" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Workforce Management</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/digital-technology" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Digital Technology</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-addthis field-type-addthis field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><div class="addthis_toolbox addthis_default_style " addthis:title="Talent Procurement Teams Take Note: The Future of Hiring with AI - Future of Sourcing" addthis:url="https://futureofsourcing.com/talent-procurement-teams-take-note-the-future-of-hiring-with-ai"><a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_linkedin"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_facebook"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_twitter"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_googleplus"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_pinterest_share"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_reddit"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_email"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_print"></a> </div> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-region field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Region:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/regions/global" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Global</a></div></div></div> Thu, 22 Nov 2018 21:41:16 +0000 David Trachtenberg 1319 at https://futureofsourcing.com https://futureofsourcing.com/talent-procurement-teams-take-note-the-future-of-hiring-with-ai#comments Gearing Up for the Fifth Industrial Revolution – a Glass Half Full https://futureofsourcing.com/gearing-up-for-the-fifth-industrial-revolution-a-glass-half-full <div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/articles/Robot%20Education.jpg"><a href="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/articles/Robot%20Education.jpg" title="Gearing Up for the Fifth Industrial Revolution – a Glass Half Full" class="colorbox" rel="gallery-node-1077-61Oq2GMZSMg"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/styles/juicebox_medium/public/articles/Robot%20Education.jpg?itok=nYD60jV2" width="624" height="325" alt="" title="" /></a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"> <p>Two years ago, the World Economic Forum (WEF) published its Future of Jobs report &ndash; exploring employment, skills and workforces in the Fourth Industrial Revolution. This sparked debate &ndash; and growing concern &ndash; around a changing global employment landscape as the result of disruptive technologies, studded with widening skill gaps, new jobs and job displacement.&nbsp;</p> <p><em>&ldquo;The Fourth Industrial Revolution, combined with other socio-economic and demographic changes, will transform labour markets in the next five years, leading to a net loss of over 5 million jobs in 15 major developed and emerging economies.&rdquo;&nbsp;</em></p> <p style="text-align: right;"><span style="text-align: right;">-WEF Future of Jobs report, Jan 2016</span><span style="text-align: right;">&nbsp;</span></p> <p>Recently, at a London-based robotics event, attendees were asked the same question that the WEF did: did your job exist when you were in primary school? The 67% &lsquo;no&rsquo; response was hardly a surprise &ndash; the job landscape is evolving constantly, so it&rsquo;s naïve to expect to be on a career path set during our early school years.&nbsp;</p> <p>Headlines of this type are often strongly associated with ideas of robots replacing humans in every profession &ndash; although clearly there are always roles more suited to humans and their capacity for empathy. But rather than accepting this pessimism as truth, let&rsquo;s embrace the new generation of jobs that automation will offer us.&nbsp;</p> <p>We grumble at the fact that our current careers may not have been mapped out for us at infant school, instead of celebrating the fact that we somehow emerged prepared for the jobs we have today. To ease our fear, it might help to recognise that tomorrow&rsquo;s workforce is more than capable of taking the same path if we guide them wisely: the fact that government is now backing education initiatives that will support children in their future professional lives is a leap in the right direction.&nbsp;</p> <p>Last year, a group of liberated educators took steps to evolve the curriculum so that children are prepared for a future with automation - the creation of new qualifications and courses dedicated to human centric skills such as leadership and collaboration was evidence of this.&nbsp;</p> <p>It&rsquo;s refreshing to hear that 2018 is set to see government beginning to back educational initiatives with cyber skills training; hopefully the next step is more government funding surrounding training for the jobs students will need in the age of increasing automation.&nbsp;</p> <p>In addition, we&rsquo;ll need to address the current gap of skills needed for robotics and Artifical Intelligence (AI) by investing in software development, systems design, engineering, programming and data science amongst other areas, to ensure workforces of today &ndash; and tomorrow &ndash; are skilled to take charge in the robotics world. Taking into consideration the hole in numbers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) subjects currently in university, we have a five-year lag in students moving into this area.&nbsp;</p> <p>It&rsquo;s time for government to get smarter when it comes to incentivising students in this direction &ndash; this doesn&rsquo;t necessarily require radical thinking. How about reducing tuition fees for STEM subjects as a start, and creating conversion routes from other subjects?&nbsp;</p> <p>Until then, we must focus on educating students in a way that will help them collaborate with AI in the years to come. The essence of roles that will be filled by children currently in primary school will be their humanity. Curriculum must continue evolving so that the members of the future&rsquo;s workforce leave school with skills that focus on adaptability, collaboration and resilience. Instead of focusing only on the retention of facts, it&rsquo;s time to teach how to question these facts.&nbsp;</p> <p>If we can build on current momentum and continue to bridge the gaps to encourage new &lsquo;age of automation&rsquo; careers, headlines in 2018 and beyond might look more optimistic, pointing towards a future where robots and humans work collaboratively to deliver improved services and bright new opportunities. It&rsquo;s up to us to decide how full &ndash; or empty &ndash; the glass looks when it comes to the future of jobs.</p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/science" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Science</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/technology" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Technology</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/engineering-and-mathematics-stem" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Engineering and Mathematics (STEM)</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/artificial-intelligence-ai" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Artificial Intelligence (AI)</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/workforce-management" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Workforce Management</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/education" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Education</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/innovation-technology-it" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Innovation Technology (IT)</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-addthis field-type-addthis field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><div class="addthis_toolbox addthis_default_style " addthis:title="Gearing Up for the Fifth Industrial Revolution &amp;ndash; a Glass Half Full - Future of Sourcing" addthis:url="https://futureofsourcing.com/gearing-up-for-the-fifth-industrial-revolution-a-glass-half-full"><a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_linkedin"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_facebook"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_twitter"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_googleplus"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_pinterest_share"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_reddit"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_email"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_print"></a> </div> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-region field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Region:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/regions/global" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Global</a></div></div></div> Fri, 26 Jan 2018 20:16:18 +0000 Kit Cox 1077 at https://futureofsourcing.com https://futureofsourcing.com/gearing-up-for-the-fifth-industrial-revolution-a-glass-half-full#comments Partners or pawns? (Part 2) https://futureofsourcing.com/node/746 <div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"> <p><em>(To read the first part of this article,&nbsp;<a href="http://outsourcemag.com/partners-or-pawns/" target="_blank">click here</a>.)</em></p> <p>Almost a week had passed since my meeting with Jeanette and her team, and I was still reeling from the conversation. It was just so hard to comprehend how a large company can afford to alienate its supplier community. Just as I was about to hit replay on the entire situation, the phone rang.</p> <p>&ldquo;Good morning,&rdquo; I said.</p> <p>&ldquo;Hey there, Dean. It&rsquo;s Tino. How have you been?&rdquo;</p> <p>&ldquo;Doing well. I was up visiting your colleague Jeanette last week.&rdquo;</p> <p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s a very sad situation. I spoke to her several weeks back, and she wasn&rsquo;t doing very well,&rdquo; Tino said.</p> <p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think she&rsquo;s doing much better at the moment either.&rdquo;</p> <p>Tino and Jeanette both worked for Wilkinson Solutions as site managers. Jeanette&rsquo;s customer was one of the big three out of Detroit, whereas Tino&rsquo;s customer was one of the Japanese transplants.</p> <p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m calling to see if you are going to be in the neighborhood anytime soon,&rdquo; Tino said.</p> <p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll be in your area the week after next. What&rsquo;s up?&rdquo; I asked.</p> <p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve got a great story to share with you, or better yet to show you, if you can spare me an hour or so on your next trip,&rdquo; Tino responded.</p> <p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;d be great. From the sound of your voice, it must be pretty exciting.&rdquo;</p> <p>&ldquo;Very exciting. My team and I have become true believers in the 3Ps that you continually preach,&rdquo; Tino stated.</p> <p>&ldquo;Preach? I prefer the words &lsquo;convey passionately,&rsquo; if you don&rsquo;t mind, Tino.&rdquo;</p> <p>&ldquo;Keep your shirt on, Dean. You know what I mean,&rdquo; Tino exclaimed.</p> <p>I did know what he meant. Tino and his team had been following the 3P Principles, focusing on understanding the purpose for why his customer outsourced their work, then aligning their processes to that purpose, and engaging their people to deliver on the purpose through those processes. Hence the 3Ps: a simple method to ensure an inside-outsourcing service provider is aligned with its customer&rsquo;s needs. Something else also struck me as I thought about Jeanette, as she was also a huge proponent of using the 3Ps. In order for the 3P principle to work, you need to be a partner with your customer and not a pawn of your customer.</p> <p>&ldquo;Tino, I will see you the week after next.&rdquo;</p> <p>&ldquo;Sound goods. I will inform the team you&rsquo;re dropping by,&rdquo; Tino replied, and the call ended.</p> <p>Tino met me in the lobby of the plant with Steve, the area manager for paint. Tino and his team provided services in the paint shop, weld shop, general assembly, and plastic shops. The services included general cleaning, industrial cleaning, technical cleaning and some light maintenance. Tino and his team&rsquo;s services were absolutely critical to plant production. Any misstep, and the plant lost production time.</p> <p>&ldquo;Dean, we know you are tight on time, so we&rsquo;re going to head directly to the paint shop,&rdquo; Steve said.</p> <p>&ldquo;What are we going to see?&rdquo; I asked.</p> <p>&ldquo;Last year we met with the plant management team after our annual review to better understand some of their issues and concerns, and to see where we could be of support. Our customer&rsquo;s paint shop team was struggling with their jig program,&rdquo; Tino explained.</p> <p>&ldquo;Jig program?&rdquo; I asked.</p> <p>&ldquo;You remember. All of the metal devices they use to hold open doors, trunk lids, hoods, and gas lids during the painting process,&rdquo; Steve replied.</p> <p>&ldquo;Yes, and if I recall correctly, the jigs are a major source of contamination if they are not cleaned well and frequently,&rdquo; I said.</p> <p>&ldquo;The plant had been spending north of four million dollars on the program, and the jigs had to be sent offsite for cleaning,&rdquo; Steve stated.</p> <p>&ldquo;And that resulted in damage to many of the jigs and a loss of inventory,&rdquo; Tino added.</p> <p>&ldquo;So here is the exciting part,&rdquo; Steve said, pointing to a production line with a dip tank.</p> <p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;d been experimenting with a chemical which actually melts the old paint off the jig, and, with a low pressure rinse, restores the jig to a like-new condition,&rdquo; Tino explained.</p> <p>&ldquo;Look at these two jigs before and after,&rdquo; Steve said, pointing to two jigs on the quality inspection table.</p> <p>&ldquo;Impressive,&rdquo; I said.</p> <p>Tino and Steve went on to share how they had approached their customer with this new idea. Hand-in-hand with the customer&rsquo;s engineering group, a plan was put together and a cost analysis was done. This idea, as presented by Tino and Steve, was going to save the plant two million dollars a year while increasing the frequency of cleaning &ndash; higher performance at a lower cost.</p> <p>&ldquo;Great story, and also a great example of what happens when you implement the 3Ps,&rdquo; I said, looking over the cleaned jigs.</p> <p>&ldquo;The paint shop guys are ecstatic,&rdquo; Steve said.</p> <p>&ldquo;How did purchasing react?&rdquo; I asked curiously, still troubled by what Jeanette had faced over the past 12 months.</p> <p>&ldquo;We prepared a proposal to provide the services and presented it to them, along with a timeline for implementing and ramping up the services,&rdquo; Tino said.</p> <p>&ldquo;After the presentation they told us to go ahead, thanked us numerous times for bringing them the idea, and asked us to provide a quarterly update of our progress,&rdquo; Steve added.</p> <p>&ldquo;So you were given the work without going out for bid?&rdquo; I asked.</p> <p>&ldquo;Absolutely. Purchasing saw it as a way to increase our revenue and allow us to move some of our team into these newer higher-paid positions,&rdquo; Tino explained.</p> <p>&ldquo;Amazing,&rdquo; I said.</p> <p>&ldquo;It is a win/win for both us and them,&rdquo; Tino stated.</p> <p>&ldquo;Even better, it is a win/win/win for the paint shop, purchasing, and you guys,&rdquo; I said.</p> <p>&ldquo;Well?&rdquo; Tino asked.</p> <p>&ldquo;Guys, very impressive. A great story of what happens when you abide by the 3Ps, and your customer treats you like a partner,&rdquo; I said.</p> <p>As I drove from the plant, my mind wandered to Dickens&rsquo; story&nbsp;<em>A Tale of Two Cities</em>. In this situation, the story could be called &lsquo;A Tale of Two Customers&rsquo;, where one group treats their inside-outsourcing service providers with gratitude and dignity, and the other treats their providers like pawns. It doesn&rsquo;t take a genius to understand which is the better route to go.</p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/facilities-management" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Facilities Management</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/service-provider-management" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Service Provider Management</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/manufacturing" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Manufacturing</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/strategy" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Strategy</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/workforce-management" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Workforce Management</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-addthis field-type-addthis field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><div class="addthis_toolbox addthis_default_style " addthis:title="Partners or pawns? (Part 2) - Future of Sourcing" addthis:url="https://futureofsourcing.com/node/746"><a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_linkedin"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_facebook"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_twitter"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_googleplus"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_pinterest_share"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_reddit"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_email"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_print"></a> </div> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-region field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Region:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/regions/global" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Global</a></div></div></div> Mon, 25 Jul 2016 16:38:49 +0000 Damian Scallon 746 at https://futureofsourcing.com Change your story to change your culture... https://futureofsourcing.com/node/862 <div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/articles/Robin-Schlee-X-Oct-2015-1-420x215.jpg"><a href="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/articles/Robin-Schlee-X-Oct-2015-1-420x215.jpg" title="Change your story to change your culture..." class="colorbox" rel="gallery-node-862-61Oq2GMZSMg"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/styles/juicebox_medium/public/articles/Robin-Schlee-X-Oct-2015-1-420x215.jpg?itok=S_f9HXqK" width="420" height="215" alt="" title="" /></a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"> <p>Pulling into the snowy parking lot and contemplating today&rsquo;s meeting, my mind wandered to a line from Michael Margolis, the CEO of Get Storied, &ldquo;If you want to understand the culture, listen to the stories; if you want to change the culture, change the stories.&rdquo; Carl, the site manager of Excel, the inside-outsourcing service provider at this motorcycle plant, had called a few weeks back and enticed me to visit by stating, &ldquo;I have a great story for you.&rdquo;</p> <p>It was 5 a.m. as I stepped out of my car and headed to the employee entrance. I fell in line with dozens of others, all bundled up and walking in the same direction. As the groups passed through the door, more than half headed to a bank of time clocks for the plant&rsquo;s hourly employees on the left of the aisle, while the balance headed for time clocks on the right where Carl was posted, greeting his team members.</p> <p>&ldquo;Good morning, Dean. It&rsquo;s great to see you again,&rdquo; Carl said, shaking my hand.</p> <p>&ldquo;Same to you, Carl. I apologise for being early. I was not sure how the driving would be, so I set out early,&rdquo; I said. Carl smiled warmly, and asked if I wouldn&rsquo;t mind waiting for about fifteen minutes until he finished up.</p> <p>&ldquo;Be glad to,&rdquo; I responded, and stepped down the aisle a few feet to a large white board entitled &ldquo;Site Operating Plan,&rdquo; and bearing Excel&rsquo;s logo in the top right hand corner. I started looking over the board, but found my attention drawn back to Carl as he continued to greet everyone on his team as they clocked in. What struck me was how many of the team members lit up when they saw him, asking him how he was doing and how the plant ran last night. In turn, he responded to each using their name. With each brief interaction, Carl let the team member know he&rsquo;d be sure to catch up with them later during his plant tour or over lunch. What really struck me was the genuine level of connectivity between Carl and his team. I was also amazed how he knew each person by name. Some were easy like Bill and Mary, while others more complex like Guadalupe and Alejandro. I am guessing he greeted better than 80 to 100 people, his entire first shift team.</p> <p>As the last of Carl&rsquo;s team arrived, he finished up and headed towards me. &ldquo;Dean, sorry for the delay. Let&rsquo;s get some coffee and make our way back here to the board,&rdquo; Carl stated, pointing towards the canteen.</p> <p>&ldquo;That was a very intriguing event for me to witness,&rdquo; I said to Carl.</p> <p>&ldquo;Actually, the fact you got her early and saw our start of shift ritual will really help our discussion this morning,&rdquo; Carl said.</p> <p>As we drank our coffee standing by the Site Operating Plan board, Carl reflected back to my last visit some two and a half years earlier. Carl, his team, and his contract had been in trouble. His customer, who was initially thrilled with their services, was viewing them as run of the mill. Carl had done a great job of getting things like schedules, standardised work, layered inspections and counter-measures all in place, and routinely performed contracted services. Like many customers who forget the past, his customer was more interested in what had been done lately.</p> <p>&ldquo;When you were here two and a half years ago, you facilitated my management team through a change in mindset. You walked us through purpose, and had us identify reasons for our customer&rsquo;s desire to outsource by having us define their needs. You then held up a mirror, forcing us to assess our operating processes and their alignment with our customer&rsquo;s needs, followed by a deep dive into our people only to discover how disengaged and misaligned our team was with our customer&rsquo;s needs,&rdquo; Carl stated matter-of-factly.</p> <p>&ldquo;Yes, I recall the sessions well. From there we developed strategic action items your team needed to undertake to reposition yourselves in the eyes of your customer, and to re-engage the team,&rdquo; I said, hoping he would agree.</p> <p>&ldquo;Absolutely, and we hit the ground running. Within three months the plant manager, production manager, and personnel manager all commented on the positive changes,&rdquo; Carl said to my relief. The one thing I detested in life was wasting my time.</p> <p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s a relief. I was a bit worried we&rsquo;d wasted our time,&rdquo; I said, sipping my coffee.</p> <p>&ldquo;Absolutely not, but the story gets even better. Wait until I show you the results.&rdquo;</p> <p>As I turned to look at the board, Carl pointed out that the data on the board was set up on a rolling monthly basis, allowing teams to see how they progressed on a month-to-month basis. What he wanted to show me was data trends going back two and a half years, to just before our sessions.</p> <p>As we walked towards the team conference room, I pointed out to Carl that his performance data was impressive, and his team and customer should be feeling very good.</p> <p>&ldquo;They are. Everyone is very pleased, but the reason I talked you into the trip is to show you something we discovered,&rdquo; Carl said, opening the door of the conference room.</p> <p>&ldquo;Good morning, Miguel. How have you been?&rdquo; I asked, walking over to shake his hand. Miguel was the onsite business analyst, a very sharp guy with a great affection for turning data into useful information.</p> <p>&ldquo;Great to see you as well. I&rsquo;m glad Carl convinced you to make the trip north. We have a very interesting story for you,&rdquo; Miguel said, striking the keyboard on his tablet, making the wall screen behind him come to life.</p> <p>For the next forty-five minutes, Miguel and Carl walked through their key performance indicators, starting from the month prior to our sessions some two and a half years ago up to the current month. The results were impressive. Safety, morale, participation, absenteeism, turnover, idea generation, profit, cost savings, elimination of redundant non-valued activities, and so on, were all in a steady positive trend.</p> <p>&ldquo;Do you notice anything?&rdquo; Miguel asked with a knowing smile.</p> <p>&ldquo;Actually two things. The first is the uptick a couple of months after we completed the sessions setting the direction for the site to follow. The second is extremely obvious, but I can&rsquo;t figure it out.&rdquo;</p> <p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s the second uptick that has you confused isn&rsquo;t it?&rdquo; Carl excitedly blurted out.</p> <p>&ldquo;Definitely, and the size of the uptick,&rdquo; I stated with a puzzled look.</p> <p>&ldquo;The second uptick began around 30 days after we adopted the start of shift ritual you witnessed this morning,&rdquo; Miguel said.</p> <p>&ldquo;What you witnessed this morning we do at the start of every shift, including weekends,&rdquo; Carl said with a broad smile.</p> <p>&ldquo;Okay. I am guessing now is when you tell me the story?&rdquo; I asked.</p> <p>Miguel and Carl walked me though a series of &ldquo;aha&rdquo; moments that led them to adopt the start of shift ritual. Carl, on one of his routine floor walks, had checked in on Ann, a team member cleaning the women&rsquo;s restroom. He congratulated Ann on the work and asked for any ideas to improve how the work was done. Ann gave Carl some feedback, resulting in Carl spending more time with Ann to discuss implementing her ideas. This type of interaction for Carl was pretty normal. He was an excellent leader who always sought ideas from his people. What made this interaction unique was Ann telling Carl how great it was to finally get to know him. During their discussions, Carl shared with Ann a bit about his family, and it turned out both Carl and Ann had seniors at the same high school in town. Over lunch, Carl shared the interaction with Miguel, who commented on how great it would be if they could achieve that same level of interaction with all of their team members.</p> <p>The following week, Miguel read an article on how we individually process 50,000 thoughts a day, many of which are replayed over and over. The article stated that thoughts lead us to how we think about the day and how we will act. Again over lunch, Miguel shared the article with Carl who was still percolating on his interaction with Ann. Miguel and Carl, both of whom enjoy philosophising, brought Abraham Maslow into the lunch conversation, recalling and discussing the hierarchy of needs &ndash; our collective need for love and belonging, our need for self-esteem, and our need for self-actualisation.</p> <p>&ldquo;At that point, the light bulb turned on for us,&rdquo; Miguel said.</p> <p>&ldquo;How so?&rdquo; I asked, completely enticed with the story and trying to predict where it was going.</p> <p>&ldquo;As we spoke, the discussion about Ann came up, as did a dozen or so other team member interactions. Taking notes as we talked, we discovered a thread woven through each that Ann had pointed out. In each interaction, we allowed our team member to really get to know us, and we in turn got to know them,&rdquo; Carl said, the smile not leaving his face even for an instant.</p> <p>&ldquo;Armed with this mini-epiphany, our management team met over beer one Saturday, and within a few hours put together the start of shift ritual. The uptick you see in those graphs is a direct result of that initiative. Did you note how the uptick spanned about two and half months?&rdquo; Miguel inquired, flipping back to a few previous charts.</p> <p>&ldquo;Yes, now you point it out, it is very obvious.&rdquo;</p> <p>&ldquo;That was how long it took for us to get comfortable standing at the time clocks, and, I&rsquo;m embarrassed to admit, to know each team member by name. It was extremely difficult at the start, but thanks to Miguel who monitored the KPIs that told us we were gaining ground, we all stuck to it. Today, some sixteen months later, it&rsquo;s just who we are,&rdquo; Carl declared, this time with a very serious look on his face.</p> <p>&ldquo;Dean, when you left, we quickly implemented strategic actions and made measurable progress, but something was always missing: a genuine feeling of being one team, all 300 of us,&rdquo; Miguel stated.</p> <p>&ldquo;As a result of our lunch conversations and happy hour meetings, we realised our team recognition was overly formal. It needed to become more genuine. We felt by greeting each team member we were saying, &lsquo;you are important, you are an individual, and your contribution counts&rsquo;. The thirty-second interaction each day shows each team member how they belong to something and are appreciated. It triggers how they view their day and how they act,&rdquo; Carl said, the smile returning to his face.</p> <p>&ldquo;So simple to grasp, but I must applaud your discipline to stick with it. I can only imagine the first few weeks as your team viewed you with skepticism,&rdquo; I said.</p> <p>&ldquo;Actually, the first month was tough. The logistics, getting in earlier, making sure each shift&rsquo;s start was covered by one our site management team, the embarrassment of not knowing names, and further embarrassment of not remembering them day after day. All of a sudden, though, it just clicked,&rdquo; said Carl, refilling everyone&rsquo;s cup with coffee.</p> <p>&ldquo;Let me show you this graph. To me it&rsquo;s the clincher,&rdquo; Miguel said, flipping through his charts. &ldquo;Our site has grown by 23% as a result of our teams&rsquo; efforts. Our customer also abandoned its plan to dual source our work and use our competition to motivate us.&rdquo;</p> <p>&ldquo;That is excellent, Miguel. What a great story. By feeding the minds of your team with genuine thoughts of respect and appreciation, you trigger your team members&rsquo; actions, and, due to your persistence and discipline, those actions become habits, and those habits become your brand.&rdquo;</p> <p>&ldquo;Eloquently put, Dean,&rdquo; Carl said, again smiling ear to ear.</p> <p>&ldquo;Now our finale,&rdquo; Miguel said, also smiling ear to ear.</p> <p>With that Miguel popped up the final slide that showed how the team organisation was flatter even with the increased revenue because the ratio of team member to management personnel had improved by over 37%. The team members with their newly attained attitude towards work allowed them greater autonomy and self-esteem.</p> <p>Driving back to the airport, the words from Michael Margolis once again ran through my mind, &ldquo;If you want to understand the culture, listen to the stories; if you want to change the culture, change the stories.&rdquo; Carl and Miguel changed the stories in the minds of each team member. Simply by greeting them at the start of each shift with a tone of genuine concern and appreciation, team members stopped seeing themselves as low-cost labour. They knew they were important and valuable members of the team.</p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/strategy" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Strategy</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/workforce-management" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Workforce Management</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/manufacturing" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Manufacturing</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/leadership" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Leadership</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/business-management" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Business Management</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-addthis field-type-addthis field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><div class="addthis_toolbox addthis_default_style " addthis:title="Change your story to change your culture... - Future of Sourcing" addthis:url="https://futureofsourcing.com/node/862"><a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_linkedin"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_facebook"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_twitter"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_googleplus"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_pinterest_share"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_reddit"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_email"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_print"></a> </div> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-region field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Region:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/regions/europemiddle-eastafrica" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Europe/Middle East/Africa</a></div></div></div> Mon, 01 Feb 2016 17:40:10 +0000 Damian Scallon 862 at https://futureofsourcing.com Nearshoring in Europe to increase customer experience https://futureofsourcing.com/node/858 <div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/articles/ISG-Nov-2014-1.jpg"><a href="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/articles/ISG-Nov-2014-1.jpg" title="Nearshoring in Europe to increase customer experience" class="colorbox" rel="gallery-node-858-61Oq2GMZSMg"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://futureofsourcing.com/sites/default/files/styles/juicebox_medium/public/articles/ISG-Nov-2014-1.jpg?itok=CVhEZCdm" width="624" height="325" alt="" title="" /></a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"> <p>There is a significant shift in customer experience management in Europe as more brands shun traditional offshoring destinations in favour of customer contact centres closer to their customers. In an increasingly competitive global market, organisations are seeking to boost revenue and profits by strengthening customer relationships and using customer service to gain competitive advantage. As a result, there is a greater desire from brands for their customer service operations to be in closer proximity to the consumer due, in part, to the effect of culture, time difference and language as customer experience continues to play an increasingly important role in business success.</p> <p>This shift towards a customer experience focus is seeing Europe, a large and diverse area, slowly turn to nearshoring. Europe is known for its high proportion of highly-skilled, second- and multi-language personnel and while there are cultural similarities between markets, there are also interesting dynamics which determine how customers approach their customer experience management. For example, a number of Sitel&rsquo;s assignments blend teams from the Nordics and the UK as customers look to maximise efficiency and cover a broad spread of languages, whereas others may look to mixing on-, near- and offshore destinations, particularly if the customer journey involves a broad mix of frontline contact and back office processing.</p> <p><strong>Customer journey as a driver for nearshoring</strong></p> <p>Nearshoring is becoming increasingly important as an efficiency driver and ultimately, a vehicle for better customer experiences. While in the past the established wisdom was an unrelenting focus on cost, recent times have seen a shift to considering how brands can improve the entire customer journey.</p> <p>In the customer journey context, questions for businesses now centre on how best to deliver an exceptional and seamless customer experience. Operationally, it means deconstructing the journey into steps and looking at the best way to solve a customer issue in the fewest possible steps. This shift in focus will also change the tone of the brand&rsquo;s relationship with the customer since achieving customer experience objectives requires a strong partnership with any external customer care providers and clear metrics.</p> <p>However, it is not as simple as a blanket shift of contact centres closer to the consumer, or a complete swing away from offshore to nearshore. It is advisable for any business looking at nearshoring to map out the entire customer journey before issuing an RFP for a nearshoring programme as it&rsquo;ll be vital to look at all the channels customers interact with the business prior to determining the programme.</p> <p>The traditional approach to engaging an external expert for customer care focused on mapping contact channels like voice, and functions such as recordkeeping, to locations according to cost. But with social channels becoming increasingly important, customers now expect a response from a brand within minutes, they want to speak with informed experts outside of office hours and they want fast issue resolution. This change in customer expectation is slowly reducing the emphasis on cost and increasing the emphasis on customer service. Brands are recognising that a good customer experience builds brand affinity, customer loyalty and, inevitably, increases revenue.</p> <p><strong>Who, what and where?</strong></p> <p>Interest in nearshoring is on the rise in organisations from across the full spectrum of industry sectors. All companies that require added value services for their customers, whether in technical support, customer care or sales, in one or multi-language engagements can benefit from a nearshoring programme. However, in the current market, nearshoring is proving most popular with verticals such as retail and telecommunications as brands in these markets are generally high-profile consumer brands and are supporting customers who expect fast, accurate and any-time responses. They offer products and services which may require technical support capabilities and customers aren&rsquo;t shy about heading online to voice discontent when they&rsquo;re not happy. Given these characteristics, understanding the customer journey is vital for these brands because customer experience tends to be a key differentiator in the marketplace.</p> <p>Whilst local market dynamics across Europe help to determine destinations for clients looking at nearshoring, as a general rule, customer managers should work with their external partner to map contact touchpoints to location based on the customer journey rather than the other way round. In this context, the UK is proving popular as a destination, particularly for Nordic brands, where cultural fit, time zones, languages and cost are important. We&rsquo;re also seeing a lot of interest in European destinations like Lisbon and Bulgaria given the high proportion of multilingual personnel and robust infrastructure in these markets.</p> <p><strong>Customer experience is king</strong></p> <p>As customer expectations change across Europe and consumers demand rapid resolution of customer service queries, brands will be compelled to place more stock in providing a seamless customer experience across the entire customer journey. The availability of an educated and skilled workforce afforded by nearshoring in Europe, in addition to the multilingual capabilities, will see nearshoring continue to gain in prominence across Europe in 2016. In addition, nearshoring will prove to be an ideal support solution for brands that require a combination of locations to cover the full range of functions they may require. All this means that organisations seeking competitive advantage through superior customer service in the future must start considering their nearshoring programme today.</p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/tech-support" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Tech Support</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/nearshoring" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Nearshoring</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/offshoring" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Offshoring</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/transformation" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Transformation</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/innovation" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Innovation</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/tags/workforce-management" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Workforce Management</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-addthis field-type-addthis field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><div class="addthis_toolbox addthis_default_style " addthis:title="Nearshoring in Europe to increase customer experience - Future of Sourcing" addthis:url="https://futureofsourcing.com/node/858"><a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_linkedin"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_facebook"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_twitter"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_googleplus"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_pinterest_share"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_reddit"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_email"></a> <a href="https://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300" class="addthis_button_print"></a> </div> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-region field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Region:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/regions/europemiddle-eastafrica" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Europe/Middle East/Africa</a></div></div></div> Thu, 28 Jan 2016 17:56:58 +0000 Karl Brough 858 at https://futureofsourcing.com https://futureofsourcing.com/node/858#comments