Adams & Garth Blog

Have too much overhead? Looking to enhance your workforce flexibility? Can’t find employees with the right skills? Experiencing a high rate of turnover?

These problems sound familiar to most experienced managers. But there is a solution – and it comes in the form of working with a reputable Central Virginia staffing agency. Here’s how:

Problem #1: Too much overhead.
Solution: Consider using temporary employees.

Temporary employees allow you to convert fixed expenses to variable expenses since you only pay for temporary employees on an as-needed basis. In addition to helping you cover seasonal peaks and high demand periods, temporary workers can also help you to eliminate overtime – saving you money in the process. Plus, with a temporary workforce, you don’t have to worry about paying out benefits, such as health insurance and vacation time, since temporary employees work for the staffing company, not for you.

Problem #2: Need more flexibility.
Solution: Flexible staffing can help you meet fluctuating demands.

There are probably many times during the year when you feel either overstaffed or understaffed. When demand fluctuates, your workforce should too. With flexible staffing, you can use temporary employees to help you complete big projects, handle a peak in demand, or cover sick leaves, all without having to hire full-time staff. Then, once your need is filled, you can simply release the temporary employees.

Problem #3: Can’t find the right fit employees.
Solution: Develop a better network.

Many temporary staffing agencies like Adams & Garth have developed a network of professionals who are top performers. As a result, a staffing firm like ours can give you access to a pool of talent that has the skills and experience you’re looking for.

Problem #4: Experiencing too much turnover.
Solution: Work with a staffing agency to search deeper.

Hiring the wrong person is a painful mistake to make. But when you work with a reputable staffing agency, one that knows how to properly source and screen high quality candidates, you’ll end up with a skilled and dependable employee. In addition, you’ll also have more time and energy to focus on your core competencies, rather than posting job advertisements, screening resumes, and interviewing candidates.

Problem #5: Too small to hire an HR person, too big to do it yourself.
Solution: Outsource your HR function to a staffing agency.

Human Resources is an increasingly complex and critical function, but many companies don’t have a need for a full-time HR manager or HR department. The good news is that many staffing agencies, like Adams & Garth, provide an extensive range of HR services. As a result, you can get the HR support and expertise you need – when you need it – without having to hire a full-time HR professional.

By working with an experienced Central Virginia staffing agency, you can overcome these common business problems, as well as a host of others. Learn more today about our staffing and HR services and how we can help you.

Determining the right amount of staff for a fluctuating workflow can be difficult. You don’t want to hire too many employees and not have enough work for everyone. Nor do you want to hamper productivity by having too few employees on staff.

So how do you know when it’s time to hire again? Here are some questions to ask yourself:

• Are employees calling in sick more and more?
If there’s been a recent rise in sick time at your company, it may be caused be an overworked workforce. Your employees may be doing too much with too little.

• Are employees taking advantage of vacation time?
On the flip side, when employees are not taking the time off they’re due, this could also be a sign of an overworked staff. They may feel like there’s simply too much to do, so they can’t take time off.

• How many times over the past couple of months have you missed deadlines?
If deadlines are missed on a daily or weekly basis, then that may be a sign you’re understaffed.

• Are overtime costs consistently on the rise?
If your overtime costs are going up on a regular basis, then you may be understaffed. You simply do not have a large enough workforce to meet the needs of your workflow.

• Have you turned down new opportunities because you don’t have enough people?
You’ll lose your competitive edge without the right people with the right skills in place.

• Are you using temporary or contract workers a lot?
If you’re using temporary employers in the same departments to perform the same tasks over and over, it may be a sign you need to hire a full-time employee to fill that role.

• Are you following your business plan?
You created a business plan for a reason. But if you’re not following through with it, it may be due to lack of time and resources.

Now that you’ve asked yourself these questions, you should have a better idea about whether or not to hire. If you have questions – or are looking to hire additional full-time or temporary staff – please contact Adams & Garth. As one of Staunton’s leading employment agencies, we can source, screen, and hire, so you can focus on other priorities, like running your company.

Laying off employees is never a welcome proposition. Not only does it mean that things are not going well at your company, but you also have to actually sit down face-to-face with your employees and let them go – no easy task.

So is there any way to avoid laying off employees? Here are some tips you may want to consider first:

Reduce the number of hours worked.
Consider creating four-day work weeks in order to reduce hours and salary, or ask your employees to trade in some of their pay for additional time off.

Institute a temporary pay cut.
Though most employees will protest, if it’s between a pay cut and a job loss, most will take the cut.

Allow attrition.
When an employee quits or retires from the company, don’t fill their position. Instead, assign their job duties to remaining employees at your company.

Encourage leaves of absence.
Allow employees to take leaves of absence with full benefits for a specified time period. However, make sure you promise them that they will have a job when they return, though it may not be the same position with the same salary.

Put a cap on overtime.
Put a limit on the amount of overtime employees are allowed to work. If you need employees to work a lot of overtime, consider bringing in some temporary employees instead. It may cost you less in the long run.

Offer an early retirement package.
Create and offer a retirement package to those employees who qualify.

Place a freeze on hiring.
Even if you’re going through a temporary increase in demand, don’t hire more staff until your company’s situation has truly stabilized. If you need extra help for a period of time, then consider bringing in some temporary employees.

Offer a shared ownership package.
Offer your employees the ability to trade pay for company stock.

Encourage job sharing.
Let some of your full-time employees convert to part-time employees and share certain job roles.

Use temporary staffing.
Meet a rise in demand without hiring more core staff or paying overtime by using temporary staffing.

At Adams & Garth, we’ve helped many companies throughout Charlottesville and Central Virginia to avoid laying off full-time employees through the use of strategic, temporary staffing. If your company is currently in a position where lay offs seem imminent, please contact us. We may be able to help.

Could your business benefit from a more flexible workforce? For many Central Virginia companies, the answer is a resounding “yes.”

The fact of the matter is that using temporary employees is a great way to improve productivity, manage increases in workload, and cover for any sick or vacation time that your full-time employees may take – all without increasing your fixed expenses.

So how can you maximize the efficiency and productivity of your temporary employees? The following tips can help:

Tip #1: Determine the required skills.
Meet with managers and those who will be working with the temporary employee to determine which skills are ideal for the position you are trying to fill. You’ll also want to develop a list of duties and responsibilities for the temporary employee. This information will help your staffing agency find the best possible person for you.

Tip #2: Work with a staffing agency that has experience in your industry.
Not only will an experienced staffing agency know where to look to find the right person, but they will also be able to help you determine things like an appropriate pay rate for a particular position.

Tip #3: Prepare an orientation guide.
Include information such as working hours, breaks and lunch schedules, any safety regulations or company rules, and contact information for direct supervisors. You may also want to assign a core staff member or supervisor to help orient the temporary employee.

Tip #4: Use any orientation information provided by your staffing agency.
Many staffing agencies can offer some insightful guidance on how to best bring temporary employees up to speed so they can hit the ground running.

Tip #5: Open the lines of communication.
Encourage the temporary employee to ask questions and make sure they know who to direct those questions to – whether it’s you or one of your managers.

Tip #6: Monitor progress regularly.
Be sure to monitor the progress of your temporary employee frequently to ensure they’re on top of the job.

Bringing a temporary employee on board at your company can offer a host of benefits – as long as that employee is managed properly. And you never know. They may even become a great candidate for a full-time opening.

If you’re interested in hiring temporary employees or just want to learn more about how temporary employees can help your company, contact Adams & Garth. As Central Virginia’s leading staffing agency, we can deliver the flexible staff you need without increasing your permanent workforce. You can learn more about our temporary staffing services here.

Today, good staffing agencies do much more than find warm bodies to fill positions on short notice. In fact, good staffing agencies use flexible staffing to help companies become, well….flexible, allowing them to take on new opportunities and build profitability.

So, what exactly is flexible staffing?

Flexible staffing simply means analyzing the fluctuating levels of a company’s workload and creating a flexible workforce to match it.

When you have a big new project or an increase in demand for your product or service, you can hire a flexible workforce to meet that need. On the flip side, when demand dips, temporary employees can be easily released and you only have to meet payroll for your core group of permanent employees.

How can flexible staffing help you?

There are a variety of benefits associated with flexible staffing, including the ability to:

• Eliminate overtime costs.
By using temporary employees, you can reduce or even completely eliminate the amount of overtime your permanent employees work.

• Limit benefit costs.
Temporary employees receive benefits from the temporary staffing agency—not from your company.

• Avoid losing customers due to backlogs.
When demand increases, it can be hard to keep up. But with flexible staffing, you’ll be able to match your workforce to your workload.

• Enjoy guaranteed performance.
If a temporary employee isn’t working out, simply let the staffing agency know and they will replace that individual.

• Convert fixed expenses to variable.
You can minimize the number of permanent workers you employ to the level necessary to sustain your core volume of work. Then hire temporary workers as needed.

• Access specialized skills, when you need them.
If you require a very specific skill set for a project, let your staffing agency know. They will be able to find the individual with the specialized skills you need.

• Reduce unemployment claims.
Temporary employees work for the staffing agency. So an unemployment claim from an individual working for you temporarily would not impact your company.

Don’t think of your staffing agency as simply someplace you call to fill a short-term vacancy. Think of it as a service provider who can help you reduce labor costs as well as increase your firm’s profitability through flexible staffing.

Interested in learning more about how flexible staffing can help your organization? Discover more about our flexible staffing solutions or Contact Adams & Garth today.