Minimize Delay. Maximize Productivity.

IT managers are constantly under fire from various leaders to perform the most, using the least. And when a little extra help is required, a number of reasons sound off as to why that can’t happen. They revolve around the fact that finding and placing the right IT staff isn’t easy. However, developing a relationship with an IT staffing company, with skills in both mainstream and digital, can help ease your staffing struggles. To get the most from your engagement with a staff augmentation partner, review the following topics in your discussion:

• Business needs.

• Create a forecast of your staffing requirements, including your current project load, your expected new initiatives, and the current talent working within your organization

• Provide appropriate lead time for each job requisition

• Expectations of the staff augmentation partner.

• Response times and employee requisition lead times

• A clear (and detailed) list of requirements for every job order

• No under- or over-filling of positions

• Staff augmentation partner training.

• Teach the staff augmentation partner about your projects and objectives, as well as your time and budget constraints

• Educate the staff augmentation partner about your work environment, including people and personalities likely to succeed in such an environment

• IT staffing strategies.

• Look for opportunities in your workflow, to improve IT staffing efficiency by getting your key people working on the most important tasks

• Evaluate current and potential IT staffing issues, such as turnover, morale, and other staff problems

• Create strategies for the recruitment and training of IT talent under best and worst-case growth plans

• Expectations for candidate orientation and training.

• Candidate productivity maximization activities

• Type and quantity of quality control checks and follow-ups

• Business relationship.

• Develop a sound relationship with several recruiters you trust, to save time in ordering and increase the quality of service and candidates

• Establish a time and mode of communication – call, e-mail, form, etc.

Teaming up with a staff augmentation partner, however, provides IT managers with the operational leverage to work on their core competencies, all the while the staff augmentation partner takes on the hiring process to provide the most competent IT staff. With IT being the core factor of a competitive advantage, investing in an IT staff augmentation partner, that can effectively and efficiently deliver those lucrative “purple squirrels,” should be the goal of any IT manager.

Jonathan Best
Associate Account Executive