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Staffing Ideas to Strengthen Your Team - and Speed Your Recovery

No one could have predicted the challenges we would face and changes we would need to make, but many people are adapting and thriving. The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed the strengths and weaknesses of the overall economy and individual businesses. Successful companies are rising to the challenge and finding ways to make the most of this new reality.

As companies get back to business, they are facing challenges they have never seen before:

Increased sick time and call offs

If an employee comes down with COVID-19, it could take weeks to recover, even longer to being able to work at 100%.

How can you ensure their work is done during their absence? Also, because symptoms can be difficult to identify at first, an abundance of caution is required to ensure the little cough or mild fever that might have been brushed off before is not a sign of infection that can spread to co-workers.

Health and safety requirements

As part of post-pandemic reentry, you could see a need to staff for completely different positions such as cleaning staff to keep surfaces sanitized or individuals trained to take employee temperatures or perform other health assessments. If you haven't hired for these kinds of positions before, sourcing, screening, and interviewing can be a significant burden.

Remaining flexible in uncertain times

It's tough to know how the next few months will shake out. Will things be back to normal relatively quickly? Will the ramp up be slow? Will there be a second wave of infection?

A staffing firm can help you prepare for any possibility. They can help you take a cautious approach to hiring, adding to your team on a temporary basis to prevent layoffs in the face of a downturn.

Separating short term from long range

Some of the changes the pandemic brought were temporary - such as isolating in our homes. Others may be part of a new reality. For example, it's entirely possible that social distancing will be required in the workplace for an extended period. With fewer employees allowed to work on-site, how will your business respond? Will you need more remote staff? Will you need to extend or add shifts to perform work on-site and meet deadlines? How will you staff to meet these changes?

A Staffing Partner Can Help You Get Back to Business

It may take some time until we are back to full strength, but there is no reason we can't find ways to reopen successfully. Staffing and recruiting firms can work by your side to get your business safely and profitably operating at full capacity.

  • Minimize contact. Experts in safe business practices, staffing firms can help reduce the amount of unnecessary candidate traffic into your business. They can fully screen and clear candidates, so you only need to interview a couple of finalists in person.
  • Fill the gaps. At the beginning of the reopening process, you may find some employees are unwilling or unable to return to work because of illness, family obligations, child care issues, or fear of infection. Your staffing partner can find individuals to pick up the slack until the employees are ready to return or replace those who chose to move onto new opportunities.
  • Reassess your workforce. The pandemic did not affect every business the same way. You may be busier than ever, or your business may have slowed. If you adapted your business to the changes in demand (much like some automotive companies shifted to manufacturing medical equipment like masks or ventilators), your workforce must be adjusted as well. You may need fewer employees or an increased workforce. You might need to search for people with skills you never needed before. A staffing partner can help you find the people you need, particularly if you choose one that specializes in your specific niche.
  • Identify opportunities. Because staffing firms make it their business to know the local marketplace and industries they serve, they can find ways for your business to thrive in the new economy. They could be aware of an underserved need that your company can easily address. Don't be afraid to treat your trusted staffing firm as a partner.
  • Share best practices. As you plan to reopen, you try to anticipate every eventuality - to plan for every possibility. Why not bring your staffing partner into the mix? They work with dozens or even hundreds of companies that are dealing with many of the same concerns and unknowns that you are. They can offer advice and share what's working for others and what isn't.

Count on your staffing partner to help you:

  • Develop a flexible workforce plan
  • Scale your team to match demand
  • Control spend and risk
  • Close skills gaps
  • Reduce stress and overtime
  • Hire faster and more accurately
  • Topgrade your talent
  • Forecast hiring requirements
  • Meet tight deadlines
  • Complete critical projects
  • Test new service models