As the Bureau of Labor statistics show, the temporary staffing job sector is growing faster than most other job types.
Increasingly more evident is the shift companies are making to use a contingent workforce to support and accelerate corporate objectives. Your company is probably also making this adjustment.
One thing that hasn’t changed is that it takes months to find a customer, and only seconds to lose one. Read on to learn why you should treat temporary employees like you want them to treat customers.
As generations shift, younger workers are more comfortable with temporary work, short-term job tenure and the opportunity to work for many employers in short timespans – it’s not job hopping, like it was 25 years ago, now it’s called experience.
Older generations are no longer defining the sentiment in the workforce. The one-company career, pensions, and long-term employer loyalty – and the reciprocation of employers taking care of their people – are all but gone.
In the not so distant past, contingent workforce labor, both unskilled and skilled was not a well-respected career path, in general. The larger well recognized “professional sector” consisted of Kelly Girls in the 1940’s and Manpower White Glove Girls (yes, they had to wear white gloves to the secretarial job as a sign of “professionalism.”
(The obvious wrongness of these two campaigns of the last century aside is not the point.)
Today, entire industries depend on and thrive with contingent worker contribution.
Entire industries such as healthcare, finance, accounting and audit, legal services, information technology, engineering, manufacturing, hospitality are now evolving through a shift to a mixed full-time and contingent workforce.
The Point Is…
Contingent workforces are pervading every industry. They are closer and closer to your customers and ultimately effect how your brand image is perceived in the marketplace.
You want customers to have exceptional experiences with your product and services. Customer perceptions should reflect a difference in how you structure your organization.
The only way to ensure a consistent customer experience is to ensure that all employees (full-time internal staff, and contingent temporary workers) are treated as though they own the company.
As you ponder this point, consider that if you treat temporary workers as lesser workers than your full-time workers, you run the risk of the bad customer experiences and an eroding brand image.
Whether your contingent worker’s have direct or indirect contact with customers, this contact is inevitable. It will happen either through direct interfacing while providing a service, or through indirect experience of product quality.
The connection to make here is that your contingent workforce cannot be substandard itself, nor can it be treated substandard in your workplace and by your managers.
Your human resources people need to understand this dynamic, and the ultimate result it has on operational efficiency and effectiveness.
Your staffing agency needs to align with your human resources objectives for effective integration of contingent and full time workers to maximize your customer’s eventual experience.
Barton Staffing Solutions has been raising the bar for contingent workers, and service in the temporary staffing business. We work with companies that understand the connection between temporary employees and customer experience. If you are ready to take the next step, Barton Staffing Solutions is here, ready to help you achieve workforce goals and objectives. Call us today to learn how