The Elusive Metric_Quality_FINAL - Flipbook - Page 3
The Challenge of Quality
in Temporary Staffing
Speed and flexibility often take precedence
in the fast-paced world of temporary
recruitment, meaning ensuring the quality of
hire can feel like chasing a moving target. Yet,
as businesses increasingly rely on temporary
workers to meet fluctuating demands, the
importance of hiring high-quality temporary
staff has never been greater.
The reality is, no matter the tenure of the worker, the
impact they have on your brand reputation, team
cohesion and client or customer experience will be longlasting. They are the face of the company during their
assignment, and if they aren’t quite the right fit, it can
cause significant internal and external damage.
Statistics have shown that the cost of a bad hire can be
three times the salary paid for the individual. While this is
a more commonly measured metric for permanent staff,
for those businesses that engage temporary workers, the
financial costs also add up. Unexpected turnover or ‘noshows’, for example, have a knock-on effect on budgets
and planned business activity.
around them. It can cause other members of staff – both
permanent and temporary – to become demotivated,
or increase workload and stress for others, and cause
friction with those who provide value to the business in
the long and short term.
When we also consider that retention still matters in the
temporary workforce, albeit in a different way, the quality
of a hire is even more important. The best workers will
be redeployed time and again across the business
and various sites. If, during an assignment, a regularly
redeployed worker has a bad experience with a fellow
member of staff that isn’t aligned with the values and
ethics of the brand, that interaction could cost the
business good temporary resources in the future.
Given that word-of-mouth is the most dominant
advertising source for attracting temp workforces,
word can spread quickly of a negative experience with
other workers – and those hearing the gossip won’t be
influenced by the tenure of the individual working with
the company.
If an employer wants a robust temporary workforce
that gels together and with permanent employees, then
quality really matters.
Then, of course, there’s the impact that a bad hire can
have on services and team cohesion. A temporary
worker who doesn’t deliver against the expectations of
their role will affect productivity for themselves and those
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