Sometimes the path to removing cost and time from core TAO processes comes as a complete shock.
Case in point: Back in the early 80’s I worked with a Professional Services Company that sold consulting projects throughout the United States. Most of these projects required the acquisition of new talent in order to deliver against client expectations. Once a project was sold, the recruiting team would quickly mobilize to hire the needed talent.
It didn’t take me long to realize that this TAO was having trouble. While the firm’s projects often had long sales cycle, as soon as the deal was signed, the client wanted work to start immediately. The recruiting team was suddenly thrust into emergency mode – desperately trying to fill regional talent requisitions in extremely compressed time frame.
I scheduled some time with the head of HR to go over some potential solutions. Expecting me to walk in with recommendations for more recruiting staff and new tools, I caught this executive totally off guard by recommending a change in process instead. “What if,” I said, “instead of hiring more staff, we started recruiting sooner?”
I convinced the organization to test a new process where we’d begin publicizing job openings when sales opportunities hit 50% win potential, and then begin recruiting and contingency hiring once the deal hit 75%. Even I was surprised at the results. With that simple change, we were able to significantly increase our allowed timeline for finding the right talent for each project. By being more proactive, the entire organization reduced the number of stressful, high pressure emergency hiring projects we had to deal with. Best of all, we were able to significantly reduce the amount of time it took to staff projects, saving costs and increasing our value to our firm’s clients.
What is even more surprising to me some twenty years how reactive processes still dominate so many TAO’s. Much of KGTiger’s ability to deliver speed and cost advantages to our clients goes beyond doing the same things cheaper and faster – it involves doing things differently, being more proactive, reducing stress and working smarter.
Nowhere is this more evident than in our STREAM offering where we work with our clients to define recurring talent requirements and work to build a pipeline of on-demand talent available as soon as requisitions come in. Interested? Let me know. You might be surprised at the results.