Whether your company is small or large, there are few things that are more important than finding and hiring the very best talent to work for you. This is especially true in the highly competitive tech industry, where you must compete with a plethora of other great businesses for your potential employees as well as your clients and customers. This can mean that sometimes, when you are busy focusing on your company’s main aims, hiring is something that you do not have the extra time, money, or resources to focus on. That is why, when it comes to recruiting, many companies turn to a staffing agency.
But what is a staffing agency? If you have ever been in the position of having to hire a large amount of employees at one time, seasonal employees, or freelance employees, you know what a time consuming struggle it can be. Staffing agencies can offer fast hiring in areas where you need a lot of full time employees quickly, may not need long term employees, or just need freelancers. Basically, they take care of all of your recruiting needs, so that you can focus on other things. All with reduced risk by covering your legal responsibilities.
But how do you know that you are choosing a good staffing agency for your tech company? Here are four things to look for.
Reputation
The phrase “your reputation precedes you” is not a common one for no reason. A good reputation is a great indication that the staffing company that you are considering is a quality one. Do your research online, making sure that the company has good reviews from past clients. Furthermore, it might be a good idea to check out previous clients, and even reaching out to them to see if their experience matches up with the ones that you are reading about.
You should also make sure that the company in question carries all the right insurances, including workers’ compensation insurance, and that they take pride in the employees that they send you, making sure that they have all of the proper reference checks and credentials.
Size
While it may seem superficial, size is an important thing to look at when choosing an agency. IT staffing agencies can have a wide range when it comes to breadth and depth of hiring pool. But you must be careful, however. Just because a company is a large staffing firm, that does not mean that they have candidates of good quality. And as you know, quality is just as—if not more—important than quantity when it comes to hiring. Check to see how much experience their candidates typically have, and what sort of specialized skills and credentials they possess.
Process
When you look at their pool of candidates, you should also be inquiring about their process. Look into how they identify, recruit, and place top candidates. You should also see what sort of procedures are in place in case a placement doesn’t work out. Try to get to know their process inside out, so that you can be aware of any holes that may become future problems.
Area of Expertise
For a tech company, it is also worth looking into specialized staffing firms. These could be a better option for your situation, as tech staffing agencies would know the industry and potential candidates much better, allowing for a more thorough and specialized hiring process. They will be more tuned in to your specific needs, and able to focus more on targeting the right skills, based on their experience in the tech industry.
The most important thing to remember when selecting a staffing agency—and indeed when working with any kind of outsourcing—is that they should always be adding value to your company. Weigh up the pros and cons before taking anyone on, and make sure that the value that they bring in is equal to, or more than, the time and money that you are expending. If you do this, looking for these four aspects, you should find that you will have the perfect fit for your company in no time. Then you will be able to spend more time focusing on making your business a great and successful one.
