T : 1-800-447-0515
T : 1-800-447-0515
Managing a staffing company is a complex endeavor. Every recruiting executive believes that they have the right structure in place to promote employee happiness and a thriving workplace culture. Too often, however, recruiters are judged solely by highly scrutinized metrics. This happens because management believes that they’re implementing what they’ve learned over the years to be effective. I, myself, was trained in a metrics-centric environment that focused on driving corporate behavior based solely on examining numbers. That being said, I’ve come to realize over the years that these techniques do nothing to develop teamwork or promote a workplace atmosphere built around, and for, free-thinking problem solvers.
There’s no doubt that metrics measurement is a big part of what staffing companies need to focus on. Numbers act as a dashboard for the production of one’s staff, but the metrics themselves don’t drive the behavior of teams and they certainly won’t positively influence the culture of your company.
Today, most staffing companies measure and manage metrics weekly. Employees not hitting their numbers are put on notice and often exit an organization shortly thereafter. This creates an environment of fear and distrust. In short, this style of management says, “We don’t trust our professional staff to be professionals.” If we are constantly riding the backs of team members about calls, submittals, starts, etc…, employee happiness and workplace culture will suffer.
The staffing industry has remained stale when it comes to metrics management. It continues to hold personnel to a “Boiler Room” mentality, and this has always amazed me. The staffing industry, like every other industry, is looking for the best and brightest people to join their organizations. However, we provide little to no value in terms of employee development, career advancement and job satisfaction. This sort of thinking creates a negative stigma within the staffing industry; making it harder for companies to attract top-tier talent.
It’s unfortunate that most staffing organizations are not asking recruiting professionals to be problems solvers or independent thinkers. Often times, companies simply manage numbers, not people.
I live by an old quote that’s truly applicable in every aspect of life. “Do what you’ve always done and don’t be shocked when you get what you’ve always gotten.”
At STS Technical Services, we manage our recruiting teams differently than most. Sure, we measure metrics because it’s important to gauge the output of our organization, but we also work hard to create a culture that promotes employee development, independent thinking and creative solutions.
STS recruiters are tasked to solve problems, and our sales people are taught to engage clients in fresh-thinking ways. So rather than be all about the numbers, we focus on servicing our staff, our contractors and our customers to the best of our ability by providing them with unique, turn-key solutions that complement their needs. This leads to increased employee happiness, repeat business and a more productive workplace culture.
The end goal for us isn’t to generate as many submittals as possible but rather to empower our staff to think outside of the box and work together.
I’m sure there are a lot of hiring professionals reading this who can relate to the metrics problem plaguing our industry. It is an unfortunate truth, and often times clients view staffing companies as a necessary evil.
Early in my career I decided that, if given the opportunity, I would change this paradigm, and I’m happy to report that we are doing that at STS… one successful new hire at a time.
STS Technical Services is a staffing company unlike any other. If you’re a recruiting professional looking for a different way to grow your career, or maybe you’re a client who wants to benefit from our culture of encouragement and idea sharing, please feel free to give us a call at 1-800-447-0515. We’d love to work with you and show you just how different we are and how effective we can be!