Create an Agile Workforce Using Independent Professional Talent

Workforce optimization: it’s something every enterprise strives for. When your workforce is agile, flexible, and fluid, it is best able to meet the demands of your business. Companies that use independent contractors as part of their workforce strategy realize significant cost savings per engagement, as well as access to top talent and accelerated business outcomes. 

The Importance of Direct Sourcing in the Modern Business Model

In order to find and engage independent talent today, many enterprises use a direct sourcing strategy. Direct sourcing allows managers to find independent talent for open projects or roles using internal resources rather than relying on a third party like a staffing company to find talent for them. 

Direct sourcing is typically supported by some sort of technology like a marketplace platform. At a very basic level, these types of platforms act as a central hub where contractors can find projects and managers can find talent. And, depending on the technology, your platform may be able to do more than that. MBO’s platform, for example, matches candidates with projects using an algorithm.  

You can also build networks of known talent who have already worked with your company, which can make it easier and faster to deploy skilled workers when you need them. There is a lot of enterprise value creation to be found in direct sourcing. Companies can save 30-70% per engagement by going directly to talent. 

Learn more: Branded Talent Marketplaces are Changing the Way Agile Firms Find Top Talent 

Achieving Workforce Agility Using Independent Contractors

When you lower costs and have faster access to talent, you move faster. Independent contractors help companies to become more agile—increasing supply chain control and boosting overall efficiency. 

Independents are experts in their field and bring skills to the table that may not be present in your current workforce. These in-demand skills are often hard to find. Engaging an expert for a specific project and timeline is often more cost efficient than trying to find and hire a full-time employee with the same set of skills. This staffing flexibility gives managers much better control over employment costs without adding to company payroll. 

The modern workforce is changing and project-based work is more popular than ever before. Independent professional labor makes up 28% of top enterprise organizations’ labor base, with expected growth of 20% by 2023. With independent talent, companies can scale up and down based on market demand. This allows them to remain competitive and agile at a time of accelerating rate of change. 

Up next: What is Project-Based Staffing, and Why Does it Matter? 

Workforce Optimization and Cost Efficiency

While direct sourcing and independent talent engagement are great places to start, they are just part of the big picture. In order to realize full cost efficiency and automation, organizations must build a targeted enterprise engagement program. This program should manage the entire lifecycle: from sourcing, engagement, and payment to management and future re-engagement. 

A workforce optimization program helps to empower managers, reducing the time they would normally spend searching for and reviewing full-time candidates. It allows you to avoid the costly markups of third-party search firms, reduce time-consuming recruiting activities, and avoid the expense of training an employee. 

As your program grows and evolves, there are many ways you can scale and optimize your workforce. Set up analytics to achieve greater visibility into your workforce. Dig into the candidate experience to continue to attract top talent. Align your workforce plan to your business strategy. Or, create pools of curated talent that managers can quickly and easily deploy for upcoming projects.  

There are an endless number of possibilities when it comes to incorporating independent contractors into your workforce strategy. For more tips, check out our article: What Is Workforce Optimization and Why You Need It. 

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