The services of staff augmentation agencies provide a one-roof solution to firms that are in need of expert services across diverse industrial verticals. Sometimes it is beyond reach for most the firms in the corporate world to have all resources at hand especially when scaling new peaks in business feat. Usually, businesses find themselves in situations where they are short-staffed or there may be a deficiency in the expertise needed to keep things going. It is in such a scenario that staff augmentation steps in to bridge the prevailing skills gap at a fraction of proportionate costs.
In the last two decades, numerous businesses globally especially in the private sector have riveted towards remote hiring of expertise. Through signing competent and steadfast personnel, staff augmentation vendors have facilitated their clients by providing them with skilled technical resources to tackle specific errands. To find out more about staff augmentation, its benefits, and the best practices to make the most out of staff augmentation, read on!
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What is Staff Augmentation?
Staff augmentation is a flexible outsourcing strategy that enables you to hire skilled technical resources to complement your already existing team through hiring talent and expertise globally. This gives you the liberty of choosing from candidates that fit your requirements on either a short term for specific projects or long-term for strategic business goals.
Staff augmentation services are predominant in IT where experts, usually offshore, are hired based on their technological skillset on flexible terms, to enhance the business’s workforce. The client is in control of the personnel and the duties they are performing. Unlike other traditional outsourcing services, staff augmentation has the lowest risk associated with it. It has an appropriate selection process that combines the reliability of a full-time workforce with the flexibility of outsourcing in such a way that is less resource-intensive.
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Why choose staff augmentation
You have all the time and freedom to personally pick the expert and control them with a style you prefer. You have the time to do your core tasks since all administrative hassles are taken care of by the vendor.
First of all, the time spend on recruitment is reduced. The staffing agency is the one tasked with the full responsibility of planning and organizing the recruitment process from job advertisement, to shortlisting, to interviewing and vetting the candidates. If anything goes wrong within the process, it is none of your business.
In addition, you have access to world-class experts. This is easier with staff augmentation because you are not limited to the local but have access to a global skills pool who need lower training and development. Just define the task to be performed or the skillset required and the staffing agency will be on track to fill the gap with the requisite talent to up the speed of achieving your goal!
Similarly, staff augmentation gives you flexibility in scaling up or toning down your project. Through the discrete teams with flexible working hours and pay, you have the freedom to increase or reduce your human resource based on the needs of your specific strategic goal.
What are the best practices to make the most out of staff augmentation?
Staffing agencies are a pool of creative minds, researchers, and developers who can provide you with top-notch services towards developing your team, hiring the best resources on your behalf based on the most current global industrial needs. However, to get the work done for you, here are the best practices you should heed:
1. Find the right staffing agency
Keep in mind that your vendor is part of your team who shares your vision. A great vendor is your vital partner and to your goal. The vendor agency should have an intimate solid background of knowledge and expertise in your field of operation and if possible, on the product you deal with. Remember, your vendor becomes part of your brand, he should be proud to be associated with your firm… he should be vastly acquainted with the specific challenges you are dealing with and the specifics of the talent you are looking for.
2. Be clear about your specific talent needs
Clearly describe comprehensively the specific expertise and experience needed to fill the gap. Be very clear about what you need to be done and to what extent or the goal to be attained. The staffing agencies will use the information you provide to make the correct job description and ultimately source the proper talent. With the right communication, no energy will be wasted on the wrong route.
3. Set your expectations
Let the staffing agency clearly understand what is expected out of them. Set your expectations right from the beginning with a clear communication channel through which ideas, reviews, and corrective measures can be undertaken. This accelerates the speed towards achieving the set goals of your firm. More so, provide the drive behind your expectations in a way that the staffing agency can easily link them to the bigger goals of your firm as a whole.
4. Standardize performance measurement tools
Because staff augmentation involves third-party personnel involved in the key operations of your business, it is necessary to put in place a proper performance measurement tool. This will help you understand and achieve a review of the performance of the third party. This keeps in check performance as agreed by the staffing agency and the individual expert. In the long run, it is the best tool to determine if the expectations are being met and to which extent.
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Conclusion
Staff augmentation bridges the gap in businesses’ technical resources. It makes possible access to the best talent for specific performance of duties towards achieving the organization’s strategic objectives. You can enjoy benefits including but not limited to time-saving and access to world-class expert resources and flexibility in operations. However, to get the maximum benefit from staff augmentation, consider the best practices including finding the right vendor, being clear about your needs and expectations, setting the standard performance measurement tool among others.
Author Bio:
Sunny Chawla is a Managing Director at Alliance Recruitment Agency. He specializes in helping clients with international recruiting, staffing, HR services, and Careers advice service for overseas and international businesses.