Are you old enough to remember sitting at your desk with a telephone, stack of resumes and a call log? If so, you have my sympathies – that means you’ve lived through the worst of staffing and recruiting. Thankfully, technology has automated and streamlined our jobs almost to the point of being unrecognizable. Now, we can track all of our email activity and update records in real time, connect with candidates anytime, anywhere and on any device, and pre-populate data fields with resume parsing. Easy, right?
Yes, the wide range of technology solutions for the staffing sector means you can spend more time managing tech instead of job orders. Steve Jobs said, “Tools are just tools. They either work, or they don’t work.” Steve was a really smart guy, but that statement seems too “hammer – nail” to me. That said, is it ever possible to have too much technology?
A lot of heads of talent acquisition are asking that same question. Their tech stacks are bloated, and they have solutions for their solutions. By some estimates, talent acquisition decision-makers rely on 10 or more different tools. At the same time, they say they really don’t have clear candidate insights.
PREMIUM CONTENT: Global Staffing Market Forecast May 2022
This is where staffing firms shine. Relying on them to make the technology investments means their customers can rest easy that they have both the strategic and tactical fully covered. Consider MeeDerby, an executive search firm that has completed more than 2,500 searches for hundreds of companies. They are a women-led and -owned company with an eye on diversity recruiting. A Bullhorn customer for 18 years, they’ve cautiously added new technology to their tech stack while sticking to what makes them successful: using tech to structure interviews, resurface silver medalists and support data-driven decisions.
Hiring needs fluctuate, which is why augmenting with — or outsourcing entirely to — a trusted staffing partner makes sense. When a business vets its staffing agency provider, requesting insights into their tech stack can ensure access to the most technologically advanced solutions. Having such a partner at the ready — one that understands the importance of technology and how it reduces time to fill and improves quality of hire — means HR and TA departments can focus their precious resources elsewhere such as resource management.
There’s one other thing to consider. Working with a staffing firm that has invested in technology delights procurement and IT departments. Not only does it means you’re receiving all the benefits of TA tech without the headaches, you don’t have to run the gauntlet with procurement or beg IT for resources to support your own tech stack.
