Monday, March 30, 2009
Monday, March 23, 2009
Tip of the Month: Partner up with Your Supplier for Better Results
Using a staffing supplier to provide personnel is not like ordering a pizza over the phone. It just isn't realistic to dial up a service, tell them what you want, and be happy with what's delivered 100% of the time.
So, how can you improve the odds of getting high quality temps when you need them? Consider the following:
1. Pre-plan - Before you place that order take a few minutes to define your specific needs. Have a detailed job description ready that includes such things as physical requirements, skill levels, experience and the work environment. Be prepared to answer questions about shift hours, safety equipment required, length of assignment, etc.
The point to remember is that the higher the quality of detail you provide your supplier about the job to be filled the better the job they can do in meeting your expectations. Your supplier often times can provide you a checklist of information they need to fill an order.
2. Team up with your staffing office - View the office of the staffing provider filling your needs as an extension of your own office. . . not as a separate entity. Get to know your staffing reps by visiting their office and by having them visit you to gain first hand observations of your jobs and facility. Arranging for your front line supervisors to interact with your supplier's staff also can be beneficial.
Develop a working relationship with more than one person at your supplier's office. By falling in love with one person has some advantages, having an entire office working for you is far more valuable in the long run.
3. Provide feedback - Define your expectations upfront with you supplier and don't be reluctant to let them know how they are doing.
Work with your staffing company to solve problems by identifying their causes. Too often the solution to fix bad temp experiences is to make a numbers game out of it, by ending assignments and throwing new bodies in the mix.
QC checks, exit interviews, performance reviews and communicating with temps are all feedback tools that can be utilized to make temps more productive.
4. Be realistic - Don't put your supplier in handcuffs and expect them to perform miracles. For example, heavy physical labor at minimum wage working 12-hour shifts in a hot dirty environment with no chance of permanent hire is not going to draw the cream of your staffing company's crop to your locations.
While these circumstances may be unavoidable, it is not realistic to expect low turnover, absenteeism, high quality job candidates etc. to be provided from your service.
5. Help your supplier succeed - To often when we're the customer we forget the "win - win" mentality needed for both parties to succeed.
Like your business, staffing suppliers need to make a profit to stay in business. Also like you, we have our own special set of circumstances, business practices, and needs to survive.
For example, cash flow is a big concern in the staffing industry. We pay the people working at your facility weekly, yet we extend credit terms as far out as 60 days. Paying your invoices on time is huge.
Keeping costs down is crucial to keeping your hourly bill rates at low as possible. So when we have an employee file a workers comp claim your help in our accident investigation can be the difference in the allowance of the claim.
Helping us get people paid correctly and timely can reduce turnover and absenteeism. So reporting hours worked is extremely important. You see the point.
6. Size matters - Using an independent supplier instead of a big national supplier has its definite pluses.
Smaller suppliers tend to emphasize customer service. We do things like personally deliver paychecks and bake pumpkin rolls. As owners we are personally accessible, even giving out our home phone numbers.
Flexibility is a big plus because we don't have all the bureaucratic levels present with the nationals.
The nationals try to be everything to all people, while the locals tend to specialize. Ryan Staffing, for example, provides clerical and light industrial personnel. . . .no rocket scientists or nuclear engineers. With the nationals you pay for services you don't often use.
Also we tend to be more involved in the community. The Ryan Bunch has donated nearly $300,000 to local charities.
So, the next time your Kelly or Manpower rep calls, ask them if they've been at it for 30 years like our VP-Sales!
In summing up, helping each other win by working together is the most productive relationship you can have with your staffing supplier.
So, how can you improve the odds of getting high quality temps when you need them? Consider the following:
1. Pre-plan - Before you place that order take a few minutes to define your specific needs. Have a detailed job description ready that includes such things as physical requirements, skill levels, experience and the work environment. Be prepared to answer questions about shift hours, safety equipment required, length of assignment, etc.
The point to remember is that the higher the quality of detail you provide your supplier about the job to be filled the better the job they can do in meeting your expectations. Your supplier often times can provide you a checklist of information they need to fill an order.
2. Team up with your staffing office - View the office of the staffing provider filling your needs as an extension of your own office. . . not as a separate entity. Get to know your staffing reps by visiting their office and by having them visit you to gain first hand observations of your jobs and facility. Arranging for your front line supervisors to interact with your supplier's staff also can be beneficial.
Develop a working relationship with more than one person at your supplier's office. By falling in love with one person has some advantages, having an entire office working for you is far more valuable in the long run.
3. Provide feedback - Define your expectations upfront with you supplier and don't be reluctant to let them know how they are doing.
Work with your staffing company to solve problems by identifying their causes. Too often the solution to fix bad temp experiences is to make a numbers game out of it, by ending assignments and throwing new bodies in the mix.
QC checks, exit interviews, performance reviews and communicating with temps are all feedback tools that can be utilized to make temps more productive.
4. Be realistic - Don't put your supplier in handcuffs and expect them to perform miracles. For example, heavy physical labor at minimum wage working 12-hour shifts in a hot dirty environment with no chance of permanent hire is not going to draw the cream of your staffing company's crop to your locations.
While these circumstances may be unavoidable, it is not realistic to expect low turnover, absenteeism, high quality job candidates etc. to be provided from your service.
5. Help your supplier succeed - To often when we're the customer we forget the "win - win" mentality needed for both parties to succeed.
Like your business, staffing suppliers need to make a profit to stay in business. Also like you, we have our own special set of circumstances, business practices, and needs to survive.
For example, cash flow is a big concern in the staffing industry. We pay the people working at your facility weekly, yet we extend credit terms as far out as 60 days. Paying your invoices on time is huge.
Keeping costs down is crucial to keeping your hourly bill rates at low as possible. So when we have an employee file a workers comp claim your help in our accident investigation can be the difference in the allowance of the claim.
Helping us get people paid correctly and timely can reduce turnover and absenteeism. So reporting hours worked is extremely important. You see the point.
6. Size matters - Using an independent supplier instead of a big national supplier has its definite pluses.
Smaller suppliers tend to emphasize customer service. We do things like personally deliver paychecks and bake pumpkin rolls. As owners we are personally accessible, even giving out our home phone numbers.
Flexibility is a big plus because we don't have all the bureaucratic levels present with the nationals.
The nationals try to be everything to all people, while the locals tend to specialize. Ryan Staffing, for example, provides clerical and light industrial personnel. . . .no rocket scientists or nuclear engineers. With the nationals you pay for services you don't often use.
Also we tend to be more involved in the community. The Ryan Bunch has donated nearly $300,000 to local charities.
So, the next time your Kelly or Manpower rep calls, ask them if they've been at it for 30 years like our VP-Sales!
In summing up, helping each other win by working together is the most productive relationship you can have with your staffing supplier.
Friday, March 13, 2009
Friday, March 6, 2009
Alzheimer's Benfit Danced for Good Cause
Alzheimer's is a progressive and fatal brain disease. As many as 5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer's disease.
The disease destroys brain cells, causing problems with memory, thinking and behavior severe enough to affect work, lifelong hobbies and social life. Alzheimer's gets worse over time, and it is fatal. Today, it is the sixth-leading cause of death in the United States.
The disease destroys brain cells, causing problems with memory, thinking and behavior severe enough to affect work, lifelong hobbies and social life. Alzheimer's gets worse over time, and it is fatal. Today, it is the sixth-leading cause of death in the United States.
All proceeds from "A Dance To Remember" went to the Greater East Ohio Area Chapter Alzheimer's Association which provides services to 17 counties in our area including Trumbull, Mahoning, Columbiana, Portage, Summit, Medina, Wayne, Stark, Holmes, Carroll, and Tuscarawas Counties, as well as fund research leading to new strategies for treatment, prevention and diagnosis of this devastating disease.
Programs and services include:
¨ 24 Hour Help Line - a telephone assistance service that provides information, literature, support services, and referral to specific association programs and/or community resources. Available 24 hours a day/seven days a week.
¨ Safe Return - a nationwide identification, support, and enrollment program that provides assistance when a person with Alzheimer's wanders and becomes lost.
¨ Family Meetings - a family-centered program that offers personalized guidance to families; helps families make informed choices as they cope with difficult issues.
¨ Support Groups - monthly support groups are offered in a variety of locations at different times to provide support to those dealing with the effects of Alzheimer's; groups are personalized to fit the needs of families, caregivers, and persons in the early stages of memory loss.
¨ Newsletter - a quarterly newsletter is distributed, free-of-charge, to families and health care professionals on our mailing list.
¨ Maintain Your Brain - programs designed to educate families and caregivers about Alzheimer's disease, as well as what can be done today to live a brain-healthy lifestyle.
¨ Educational Conference - offered annually to provide continuing education units to professionals.
¨ Speakers Bureau - speakers are available for presentations to community groups, civic and religious associations, clubs, and the general public.
A Dance To Remember was held at Kuzmans in Girard, Ohio with co -ponsors Kuzmans, The Kidney Group, R.L. Lipton, and The Windsor House. Almost 400 tickets were sold and well over 300 people filled the room with positive energy and danced the night away with Guest DJ Carl Severino and the band "Savoy". Advance Tickets were $5.00 and $10.00 at the door raising over $2000 for our local Alzheimer's Association.
If you or are loved one need help or are concerned about Alzheimer's, please visit their website at http://www.alz.org or call your local office (330) 533-3300 or 330.864.5646. And to those of you that supported our event we say "Thanks for sharing the night with us.. Thank you for your support in the battle against Alzheimer's".
Check out some pictures from the event!
Thursday, March 5, 2009
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