Outsourcing has received a very negative press in the current economy, with many businesses being criticized for sending jobs overseas rather than maintaining in-house employees in those positions. However, outsourcing does not always mean using a company in another country; it also means outsourcing jobs to contractors in an effort to streamline a business, improving its productivity, reducing overall costs and generally making management of the business easier.
A wide variety of businesses and industries utilize contractors both for specific short- or long-term projects, and for regular staffing needs. Contractors are also frequently hired to fill gaps in staffing due to illness, seasonal increases in workload, and to allow permanent staff to use vacation and paid-sick time.
Advantages of Outsourcing Employees
As many businesses struggle to survive economic instability, trimming staffing has become far more common as a means to control costs. As conditions improve, many businesses are electing to hire contractors rather than full-time employees for a variety of reasons.
Utilizing a temp agency or self-employed contractor allows a business to eliminate a number of very costly elements, including medical and dental insurance, vacation and sick time, as well as managing employee payroll. Employee taxes and payroll taxes can be crushing for a business, but using a temp or contractor eliminates these as well. The employment agency will handle all these issues, cutting paychecks and overseeing contractor pay solutions, benefits and, of course, taxes. The only business requirement is to provide monthly time sheets for each staffing outsourced staffing member and to pay a monthly fee to the agency.
Another advantage of using outsourced employees is that productivity increases. These employees want jobs, they want to work, so business owners can be assured that the people coming to work for them, whether short-term or long-term, will be focused on performing their job to the best of their ability, and with the screening processes that most firms require, can be confident that the highest quality employees are being sent their way.
Maintaining Balance in the Workplace
For many permanent business employees, the reality of contract employees coming in and working beside them is unnerving at best. While they can appreciate the need to cut costs with employee outsourcing, many will be fearful of being replaced by a less-expensive contract employee. It is vitally important to make sure that permanent employees understand that contractors are temporary employees, even if they are there for a longer-term contract. Permanent employees must also appreciate the fundamentals of outsourcing employees, the advantages and disadvantages for those employees, and how their presence actually makes the work environment more efficient and more productive.
Streamlining Costs through Outsourcing
For businesses struggling in a tough economy, finding ways to cut costs and to stay afloat has become a constant struggle. Outsourcing a portion of the company’s employment can substantially reduce operational costs, streamlining administrative functions and opening the company up to a variety of skilled and talented workers who will add to the productivity and success of the business without adding to the costs of maintaining it.