Business Issue
The acquisition of more than 70 new branches over the last decade meant one of the fastest growing companies in the data storage industry would need to find ways to manage changing talent needs. In the past, the company relied on third-party vendors to address local hiring requirements. Rapid expansion made vendor-based approach unsustainable. Many of the acquisitions were smaller shops whose managers were accustomed to controlling hiring decisions and whose existing employees were of widely varying quality. Lastly, many of the open roles are typically high turnover, difficult to fill positions such as drivers, customer service and warehouse staff. The client partnered with Talent Solutions RPO to create efficiencies across the hiring process, improve hire quality and deliver a more consistent brand experience across nearly 40 markets.
Solution
The Talent Solutions RPO model prioritized establishing buy-in and creating consistent communications processes. The solution includes a dedicated but flexible team led one full-time recruiter and two client management leads. In addition, when immediate hiring needs grow beyond a certain threshold, the model is scaled up to provide additional sourcing capacity whenever necessary.
The lead recruiter hosts a call each week with any local manager with an open position. This provides an opportunity to better understand unique concerns, as well as continuously update managers on status. As part of the effort to establish company-wide expectations, the team developed a webinar for newly acquired companies that covers common questions and concerns regarding corporate culture, hiring, the employee environment and HR processes. The RPO team also participates in the company’s operational meetings and conducts trainings for local hiring managers.
With considerable market competition for many of the roles being filled, the RPO team also works to leverage the company’s key brand assets in the recruiting process. For example, with CDL drivers in high demand, recruiters emphasize the family environment within the branch, the ability to spend time working in the office and team-building events, such as cookouts.
Results
The streamlined recruiting and hiring process has generated a range of positive results including:
- For non-exempt roles, the time for requisition-to-offer averages 30 days.
- 80 positions have been filled to date.
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Ongoing consulting services leverage the RPO team’s knowledge of local markets, legal and compliance, technology and communications, assets that were not available previously.