The point was that staffing and recruiting firms could actively partner with educational institutions or other skills development centers to help candidates develop the skills that customers want and need. In short, staffing firms could move from ‘finding a person that fits’ to ‘training persons that fit.’ By doing so, staffing firms could enter into four-way partnerships (candidates, customers, learning centers, themselves) to create a deep, well-qualified pool of candidates that in turn creates more and better opportunities for filling meaningful and profitable jobs.

So what kind of jobs? What kind of profit niches should you serve tomorrow?

That we are nowhere near a recovery from the recession that supposedly ended in 2009 is readily apparent. In fact, according to a massive, in-depth analysis and report from the McKinsey Global Institute, they believe that it will be about 2015 before employment reaches its pre-recession level. Even more sobering is their analysis that only under the most optimistic of conditions will the U.S. economy return to full employment before 2020 (four percent unemployment or less). You can download the report for yourself HERE.

With that gloomy assessment noted; there ARE a number of bright spots in the employment market of the future. These jobs require special education, skills, training, or certifications that make them highly sought after and very profitable for the staffing and recruiting firms who recruit aggressively and have access to (or develop for themselves) the appropriate talent pool.

In a recent article, Michael B. Sauter of 24/7 Wall St. (www.247wallst.com), reviewed the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ National Employment Matrix to determine the top ten high-growth, high-paying jobs through 2018. You can read the article HERE. These jobs could be the next niche you should explore recruiting and staffing for. They are (in order of least number of jobs to most number of jobs created):

1. Personal financial advisors, median income of $64,750
2. Dental hygienists, median income of $68,250
3. Civil engineers, median income of $77,650
4. Market research analysts, median income of $60,570
5. Computer systems analysts, median income of $77,740
6. Physicians and surgeons, median income of $123,500
7. Computer applications software engineers, median income of $94,180
8. Management analysts, median income of $78,160
9. Accountants and auditors, median income of $61,690
10. Registered nurses, median income of $64,690

Altogether, these ten job categories represent 1,729,800 new high-demand jobs that will be created over the next seven years. That is nearly 10 percent of the total number of jobs that McKinsey Global says the U.S. needs to create to get back to full employment. What’s more, with an average income for these positions of $76,768 per year, your potential gross profits are far better than that for many contract staffing positions.

While these job categories offer outstanding opportunities, to be a strong and successful staffing and recruiting firm in these niches requires an in-depth understanding of the candidates and customers. Equally important, you will need the staffing and recruiting software and systems in place to manage the recruiting, credentialing and placement of this well-educated and technically savvy group of candidates.

So, are you thinking that perhaps these niches are right for you? Are you willing to think beyond your current box of service offerings to develop the understanding, the skills, and yes, the talent pool needed to deliver these services to customers?

I always find it fascinating that so many are captured by the flashy functions a software application contains.  At times there seems to be little interest in the functions most used and needed.  These are what I call the “basics”.   For example, a prospect recently shared with me that they purchased a system that had really neat “bells and whistles”.  During the presentation they were very excited about the application they saw.  However, as they started to use the actual application they quickly realized that the basics of the system were not there.  They realized that features and functionality that they assumed would be standard were missing and frustrating for the staff to deal with.  Her specific example was the frustration in that system to simply fill a job order.  When a job order was filled, the system did not automatically change the job order to a filled status, nor did it change the employee/candidate to a working status.  The recruiters naturally would forget to make these changes and found themselves calling employees who were already working, and working on filling jobs that were already filled.

Another great example would be systems that have very little or no standard reports.  Many of these systems require that you customize the reports needed to run a staffing company.  This may not be a dynamic feature of staffing and recruiting software, but the reality is that they must have standard reports to provide you at least a starting point.

Several years ago, we conducted an unofficial survey internally.  Our sales team listed the top 5-10 selling features in the system (bells and whistles).  At the same time our consulting services team made the same lists.  They listed the top 5-10 items in the system that our existing customers used and liked about StaffSuite.  Something very interesting came out of the two lists….there was very little overlap.   In other words, the items that were key factors in selling the products, the bells and whistles, were not what users of the system later care as much about.

What it the lesson learned here?  I would say that from a sales standpoint when you are evaluating products, don’t be blinded by the “bells and whistles” of the system.  While they are neat and maybe even exciting, first evaluate what is needed to perform your jobs every day, what you need to run your business.  Guide the demo, don’t let the demo (and the bells and whistles) guide you!

Though the term “Master Report Group” may sound somewhat, shall we say… “elite”, the idea is simple. Exactly one master report group can exist for any given StaffSuite environment (contrasted with potentially many standard report groups), and its function is to merely indicate which supplemental reports should be generated from a StaffSuite billing process (e.g. Invoice Detail Register, Invoice A/R Register, Sales Tax Register, etc). The other function of the master report group is to tell the StaffSuite billing process to look at the company Billing screen to find out which report group should be used to generate the invoice report for that given company. In effect, we’re redirecting the billing process to now look at the company record where a control exists to specify which invoice format to use. The image below shows where this control is located:

The “Define” button allows acess to specify the invoice format to be used for this company. Pressing <Define> presents this view:

The Invoicing Format Overrides screen permits selections for regular Timesheet Billing (Type = Assignment) and Position Billing (Type = Position) processes. The Master Report Group does *not* apply to Timesheet Sales Adjustment processing. The column for “Report Group” allows selection of any regular report group that has been created (all except the master, of course – remember the Master Report Group isn’t an invoice format per se, but simply a method to tell StaffSuite to find the correct format to use on a company-by-company basis from the screen above).

One benefit from using a Master Report Group is that all invoices can be generated from a single billing process. Instead of processing group by group, as the method would be when using regular report groups, the single billing process creates different outputs of invoices automatically in the same process. This really becomes useful in a situation where a number of different invoice formats becomes necessary because of the desires of a customer’s client base, and/or in the situation where the number of formats has slowly increased over time, and the feasibility (or lack thereof) for running multiple billing process(es) makes the Master Report Group idea look attractive.

This concludes this series of posts for the StaffSuite invoicing process. Hopefully you’ll be able to take some of these ideas and put them into practice!

But the good news is, you have the ability to ‘do it yourself’ when it comes to data analysis and retrieval. In fact, you have several options available to you. And with a little practice, they can become powerful tools you can use every day.

One example in StaffSuite that is often overlooked, is the ability to run a search, and export your results. You can export them to Excel and use that data however you need. For simple searches, that’s a quick and easy way for you to get data yourself, and it’s really pretty simple by just right clicking the grid and choosing the option to ‘copy’, then open up Excel and paste in the data. If you find that you don’t have that option, just call us here at Bond Support, and we’ll be happy to help you get that option enabled.

The more complex searches can be handled by the robust Query Builder tool you have available by clicking the link in the top of your StaffSuite toolbar. Query builder is designed to allow you to easily select criteria for pulling complex queries of your data, and is divided into companies, employees, orders, etc. to keep it cleaner. And remember, in the Query Builder tool, the English tab has additional search criteria for you that opens up even more options–many users never take advantage of the potential in that tab.

If your data has to be in a specific format (maybe for a third party like a New Hire report), or just needs to look nice (maybe display summaries, or show numeric data in a chart) then you have access to Crystal Reports. We have tons of pre-written reports that handle most needs, from employee general information to in-depth sales analysis. And, for those who are so inclined, we offer training on customizing and writing your own Crystal Reports in StaffSuite. Contact Erica Ellis for more info on Crystal training opportunities.

Of course, we are always happy to assist you with your data analysis and reporting needs. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to call us here at 1-800-925-1519. Just remember the functionality you have available to you that allows you to ‘do it yourself’.

It is important that we understand the capabilities of the systems we invest in. These systems store the core of your business, your prospects, the people you are trying to put to work. You want to maximize that power. When you invest some time in learning the capabilities of your system, you can then examine the current processes you have in place. There may be features that have been implemented that could save loads of time for your people or prevent misdirected focus.

Do your processes need to be updated to incorporate how you wish to track data? By having your processes built to include utilizing the capabilities of your systems, this reinforces the expected behavior and drives efficiency. It is important to keep a well trained staff. Have you provided your staff with updated training? Do they know the benefits?

Maybe you have limited resources to be able to provide training for your people. However, if your staff is not well trained and they do not understand the tools with which they have access to, they can become frustrated and burned out. If possible mentoring, train the trainer or shadowing programs can be very useful in communicating training. When you train your staff, you empower them to do a better job. When they do a better job, they make your company a better place and in turn can improve overall performance. And that is what it’s all about.

I suspect a lot of the same goes on in business.  During the past couple of years staffs have been reduced, money is tight and there’s just not a lot of time.  So the staff goes through the motions performing tasks as their predecessors or fellow staff members told them to do so.  There’s not much critical evaluation of how things are done.  This can lead to inefficiencies, unnecessary work and frustration.  And that leads to turnover – even in difficult economic times.

It’s good to periodically evaluate what have become standard operating procedures.  The processes and procedures may be working but can they be improved upon to work better?  And who might know best?  Ask the people who follow those processes and procedures.  Ask the front line.  They may offer an insight that’s not readily available from other positions in the company.

One of the best times to evaluate standard operating procedures is when a major business tool such as an ATS system is implemented.  That’s one of the best times to retool the business and users, to change old ways of doing things and old attitudes.

When a Bond product such as StaffSuite is implemented, there is an opportunity for key personnel to participate in what is called a management planning session.    The goal of the management planning session is to determine how to best incorporate the software into existing business processes and what processes can be modified or eliminated due to the new software.   These sessions are usually lead by the consultant overseeing the StaffSuite implementation project.

Even after several years of usage it’s a good idea to go through a management planning session again to revaluate processes and procedures in light of the ever changing business environment as well as software changes and enhancements released since the initial StaffSuite implementation.  Bond consultants are available to guide you through the process.

Phones have made us more accessible, e-mails can be received immediately, and we can browse the Internet at our leisure. Some of the really important things we can do with our “smart phones”:

• Check our e-mails
• Update our Facebook status!
• Tweet to our hearts content.
• Check in on four square – very important!
• Play Angry Birds
• Stream videos and movies when we want

Can’t this all wait? This instant access and constant communication is enough to stress me out! My husband and I have often spent time watching television in the evenings, only to ignore the screen and both be focused on our own phones, tablet or eReader. The constant need for checking, did someone e-mail me? Am I missing something important? Does somebody need me? What ever happened to a regular house phone that no one would call after 9pm?

At the risk of sounding like my mother, I feel like the art of conversation is dying. I watch my son and others his age and how they communicate. I am sure I am not the only one that knows if I need to get in touch with him, I wouldn’t even think to call him! No, texts are the way to go and I get an instant reply. I think the last time a he hand wrote a letter was several years ago around December when I “forced” him to write thank you cards for gifts. This past year I was happy that e-mails were written!

The difference is that while we once wrote thank you cards, followed up with letters, and would have meetings face to face, now we don’t have to, which can make us lazy. We can text a friend to let them know when and where we can meet up, I can check in to a restaurant to let them know I arrived if I so desire. I can respond to e-mails while standing in line at the Post Office and can even access my desktop using LogMeIn if I need to get to something on my computer. I need never speak to or meet with another human being again!!!

I have considered going back to a flip phone. During the times where I realize I have been on my phone for several hours, just playing with apps, I swear I will get rid of the data plan… but that doesn’t happen. Having said all of this about stunting communication growth, here are some of the things I have grown to rely on and help make life easier:

• Online Banking: get to the store to realize you need to transfer some money? How simple and easy to do it from your phone!
• Social Media Monitoring: If you are responsible for keeping your company social media accounts up to date, having Facebook and Twitter on your phone means you can quickly respond or post an update at any time
• Travel Tools: Travelling for work is all too common. I am sure I would get over it, but not having my Delta app, and Flight Tracker would be rough! Being able to check in from my phone and have my boarding pass right there on the app is a huge time-saver! Flight Tracker lets me know my flights are on time, any gate changes, and is faster than the boards in the airport at telling me about any delays or cancellations.
• Calendar: I have this synced with my work and personal calendar so I always know what’s going on and how my day looks!

So, for me, I think I need to just moderate the use of my phone, cut back some and know when to switch off and take a break from technology, and when to embrace it and use it to my advantage! How do you use your phone? What app can you not live without? Would love to know your thoughts below!

Most of the customers I talk to don’t know exactly what virtualization is or how it may already benefit them. Whether or not to implement a virtual environment can be a tough decision but by explaining a few key points we may make that decision a little easier.  Let’s start by saying that virtualization isn’t for everyone, at least not to implement for themselves.  If your office runs on a desktop or laptop for each user and less than 10 servers it may not make sense to make that investment, even if the other advantages seem appealing.  However, the cost to virtualize is coming down.  Microsoft, Citrix and VMWare offer free versions of their technologies.  Remember there is also an added cost to implementing virtualization.  Someone will need to be able to manage the environment so additional training for your IT staff or to hire someone with the necessary skill set will be necessary.

First I’d like to dispel the myth that a virtual server isn’t real and may just disappear if you look the other way.  A virtual server is merely a compiled instance of the same Windows environment you’ve come to love.  It’s just running on a server which has the ability to host multiple Windows (or Linux, Unix, etc.) servers on a single piece of hardware.  Unless you have access to the management console or notice the Tools icon in the system tray you may never know that you’re running on a virtual server.  Even the server itself has no idea it’s running under a host and not on a physical platform.

The key point listed on almost every blog you find about virtualization is cost savings.  That’s assuming you have the number of servers where you’re saving money by virtualizing them then removing the physical servers.  Removal of the physical servers has a savings itself.  These are related to power consumption, cooling and maintenance costs.

Another key benefit to virtualization comes when you implement multiple hosts.  This benefit is called redundancy.  In the past redundancy was accomplished by setting up a cluster or load balancers across multiple servers so the applications could continue running in the event that the main server crashed or was taken offline.  That was also a very costly solution. With multiple hosts the transition can be so seamless that the end user never notices a host went down, either by error or for maintenance or the virtual server was moved to another host simply to “balance the load”.

Whether you decide to implement a virtualization technology yourself or not doesn’t mean you can’t take advantage of that technology.  You may already have someone else hosting servers for you that provide your users access to e-mail, phones or day-to-day applications.  If so, it’s a good bet those services are provided on a virtual platform.

If you’re interested in a more technical explanation of the advantages and disadvantages of virtualization read this analysis written by a Bowie State University student -

http://ac-support.europe.umuc.edu/~sdean/ProfPaps/Bowie/F09/Brasol.pdf

Two years later, with unemployment still higher than nine percent and a continually gyrating business market marked by political and global uncertainties, many would argue that the recession has not ended, only extended its run. For staffing and recruiting companies, that means continued ups and downs, even if business seemed to be slowly improving.

Still, the challenge for staffing and recruiting companies that are strongly in the game – or want to be – remains the same. Find a client with work to be done. Find a candidate that can do the work. Broker the work of the candidate to the client and make some money from that work. That is of course where the advantages of a fully-integrated staffing software comes to the fore – enabling staffing and recruiting companies to automate tasks and handle operations more efficiently and profitably.

Yet even with unemployment at an unprecedented high – creating a deep labor pool whose resumes are flooding the inboxes of staffing and recruiting firms with every job posting – many thousands, if not millions of possible jobs go unfilled. How in the world can THAT be?

An article in the Bloomberg Business Week by Vivien Lou Chen pointed at one reason that most staffing and recruiting companies are all-too-familiar with. Lack of the right skills needed for the jobs today. That is certainly not a new phenomenon, as anyone who has been in the industry for any length of time will tell you. What has changed is that many companies would prefer to hire only those who can literally hit the ground running and be productive with the skills and cultural fit that is exactly right for the position. Otherwise, they would rather wait, thank you.

So what is the forward-thinking staffing and recruiting company to do about that? The article suggests the opportunity that lies in the challenge.

What if staffing and recruiting companies helped candidates develop the skills needed for the jobs that clients are hiring for?

Some staffing companies have already implemented tutorial programs that enable candidates or current employees to master new skills. Some, such as Manpower, offer more extensive online training and development programs. But what about taking that concept to an entirely new, higher level? Couldn’t staffing companies discover what employers are really looking for in candidates, then work with learning centers to develop the courses needed to develop candidate skills?

For example, I just received a catalog of continuing education courses from a local university. A significant fraction of them could be considered business-oriented, but may not be focused on specific business needs within the area. Why not? Couldn’t they be more targeted if there were more input from recruiters and staffing companies (with job orders from local businesses in hand)? Why not then extend their recruiting skills to potential candidates and engage them to learn, offering scholarships, apprenticeships, job guarantees or other incentives to develop the skills that employers will pay for?

But that would really kill already tight margins, right? Would it? If your clients knew you were not a ‘body shop,’ but a partner in their workforce planning and execution, would they be more likely to use your services? If they know the candidates you offered were recruited and trained-up based on their skills needs, wouldn’t they be willing to pay a little more to cover your costs? If you had better control over your talent pool – through ongoing training and development – wouldn’t that improve your ability to compete?

In the staffing and recruiting business, it seems that it is no longer enough to sell, recruit, and fill the assignment. The future of staffing may be that – to be truly profitably competitive – you have to sell, recruit, train, develop, THEN fill the assignment. At a completely justifiable and higher profit margin – because your clients helped you design and develop a recruiting and staffing program that fits their needs.

What do you think? Is this the future of staffing? To become a true partner in workforce development?

Fortunately, there are some easy ways to help the kinesthetic learner.  During training, ensure that the users have access to the staffing software they are learning.  Also, make sure they have ample time to use that software during training.  Following each topic, allow the class 10-15 minutes of time to “do” what was learned.

Allowing trainees to use the software can be easily achieved if you have the right environment; however most of us don’t have a training room filled with computers waiting for use.  If you are unable to provide individual access to the software for each user, there are a couple of things you can try.  You could create a set of exercises for each user to work through at their desk after training.  You can motivate those users with a prize for each user that comes in the next day with a completed exercise.  If you want the users to be able to “do” during training, then you could take turns having users demonstrate the learned concept to the rest of the class.  This is also a useful approach when conducting online training.  You can take turns turning the screen control over to the users to drive.  The trainee becomes the trainer.

In my experience, most people will sit through training, but not fully learn the staffing software until it comes time to do their job.  Unfortunately, it is hard to be successful (and remain patient) when you are learning in the hot seat.  In order to prevent this type of learning that is so common to human nature, you can try to force real-life scenarios before they happen.  If possible, the trainer could sit with an individual user and walk through some of their daily processes while using the software at their desk.  When creating in-class exercises, you can create real-life scenarios.  Instead of instructing the trainee to create an Activity, instruct them to appropriately record a phone call from Jamie Smith stating she is available to work starting next Tuesday.  If there is a weekly report or list that is essential to a user’s job, then task them with entering the data that accurately populates the report.  They know what they want the end result to be, but they need you to help them learn how to get there.

Whether they are a kinesthetic, auditory, or visual learner, everyone needs training.  A good training program can become a great training program if you provide your learners with a variety of training and the opportunity for repeatable, take-away learning tools.