How to Find Temporary Staffing
If you want to fill temporary or part-time roles with the best quality staff, then you have a challenge on your hands. The difficulties that many businesses are experiencing when hiring workers, and particularly short-term staff, have been widely reported, but there are some temporary staffing solutions out there that can help.
In this quick guide, we’re going to run through five of the best strategies, techniques and tools that you can use to find committed, passionate and talented temporary staff for your business.
5 Ways to Solve a Temporary Staffing Shortfall
1. Work with a specialist
When you need temporary staff in a hurry, then writing up a job ad, posting it on job boards and waiting for the applications to come in isn’t necessarily the answer. By working with a specialist temporary staffing solution, you can hire temporary staff when and where you need them, even at short notice.
As an example, a solution like Indeed Flex does much of the leg work for you. They can provide you with quick access to thousands of temporary staff almost immediately. Jobs can be posted 24/7 and a smart matching algorithm matches you up with workers who are the best fit for your business.
Giving job seekers the ability to communicate and apply by text can also be a benefit, as it makes it easier to respond quickly and allows them to apply at any time, wherever they are. Keeping the application process short and sweet will also help to boost your mobile response rates.
2. Leverage your social media
If you have an active presence on social media platforms, this could provide you with a direct route to finding temporary workers.
The benefit here is that potential applicants may already have some knowledge of your business and even be brand advocates, which is a big win for you. If your followers are not interested in applying for the position themselves, then they may still be happy to share your job ad and increase your reach.
3. Offer the right rate of pay right
When hiring temporary workers, offering a good rate of pay is very important if you want to attract the best candidates. Therefore, it’s vital that you do your research into industry pay rates for similar roles. That can be as easy as searching for temporary roles in your industry yourself and seeing what they are paying. If you want to hire the best staff, then you may have to pay a little more.
It’s also important to think about the other perks that you may be able to offer that your competitors can’t. For example:
Are free or subsidised meals provided?
Are there opportunities to earn bonuses?
Is there the potential for the job to turn into a longer term position for the right candidate?
If you do offer these types of perks, then make sure you communicate them very clearly.
4. Screen the candidates
Once you have plenty of applicants, the next step is to screen the candidates to find those that are genuinely passionate about the role and have the skills, experience and qualities to perform at a high level. The first stage of this process is to look for candidates with error-free CVs and applications, relevant experience and a good education. They should jump to the top of your list.
When speaking to your selected candidates, whether it’s over the phone or during an in-person interview, you should ask questions that determine their capability to handle the specific set of responsibilities they will have.
So, rather than asking broader, competency-based interview questions, such as:
“Describe a time when you had to overcome a challenge at work.”
Go for something related to the specific tasks they’ll be responsible for:
“What type of retail stores have you worked for before and do you have experience managing inventory.”
Passion is also an important quality when meeting temporary staffing requirements. You want someone who will get involved and is excited about the opportunity, not a candidate who will do as little as they can to get by.
Questions to ask include:
Are you passionate about this industry?
What are your future goals?
How are you going to achieve them?
Once you have found a passionate and committed candidate with a genuine interest in your field, you should also carry out the relevant DBS checks to reduce the risks associated with a bad hire.
5. Train them properly
Of course, when training temporary staff, the amount of training you provide must be proportionate to the length of the role. However, there’s nothing more demotivating for a new starter, whether they’re with you for a few days or a few months, than to not have the knowledge to be able to do the job they’ve been hired for.
Providing them with detailed training guides, using the buddy system and allowing them to shadow a more experienced worker until they feel confident will set them up for success.
Get Ready to Compete
With UK job vacancies on the rise, particularly in fields such as hospitality, retail and admin and clerical work, you may have to compete for the best candidates. However, by following these five steps, you’ll be able to hire the talent you need.
