why your current staffing model isn't working for you and how to fix it.

Here's the deal: Many businesses choose one of two main staffing models: either they have an internal HR team to handle hiring, or they outsource their hiring to an external recruitment partner. Whichever choice they make, companies must deal with both the advantages and disadvantages of their decision. But you don't have to do that—working with a staffing firm on an as-needed basis allows you to bring on support where you need it, without completely outsourcing all of your HR processes. For instance, if you need support with resume screening and vetting candidates, but want to be fully responsible for interviewing, a hybrid model where you have both an internal HR team, and external recruitment support might make sense for you.

5 reasons hiring in-house isn't working for you

Keeping all your hiring in-house may sound like a grand plan. You know what you need better than anyone else, and managing recruitment yourself keeps you in control of the process. Surely that will lead to more qualified hires… except history tends to show that it doesn't always work that way.

Here are a few reasons keeping recruiting 100% in-house may not work for you.

1. Your HR staff are already busy. Hopefully, they're spending a lot of their time caring for existing employees and attending to internal human resource needs. That's the type of value-added work internal HR teams can do to increase employee morale and retention rates, after all, and those are good things for your business. 
2. You don't have access to an existing pipeline of candidates. Each time you need to hire someone, it can feel like starting over. That's because without an HR partner, you don't have access to a cultivated database of candidates. That lack of resources leads to more work finding candidates and longer time-to-fill.
3. You're missing the skills for strong job posting. Writing job descriptions and knowing exactly where to post them online and off to draw in the right candidates is an art form. Internal HR reps who spend most of their time handling other matters haven't practiced these skills nearly as much as external recruiters have, and that can make a difference in how efficient your hiring processes are. 
4. Selection processes can be frustrating. Sorting through a stack of hundreds or even thousands of resumes, scheduling interviews and screening candidates with the appropriate testing can get frustrating—especially if you aren't backed by tools such as applicant tracking systems. 
5. It's easy to push hiring processes off while you put out today's fires. Hiring managers and internal HR teams often have plenty of other work on their plates. No matter how urgent a hiring process might be, the person or problem that's physically in front of you is likely to seem more urgent. That can cause work related to hiring talent to be put off in favour of dealing with urgent internal matters. 

3 reasons a fully outsourced HR process may not be a good option

After reading the section above, outsourcing recruitment may look like an attractive option. And while working with a recruiter can solve some of those issues, if you turn to a staffing firm for everything, you may run into some other issues. 

1. You have to pay for those services. While hiring a recruiter or firm externally can save you time and money in many instances, it's important to remember that you are paying for their expertise. If you outsource all of your hiring processes, you might be looking at a large expense. It's important to weigh the benefits of support with recruiting with your budget.
2. An HR partner is not your company. Reputable staffing firms work hard to understand your business needs and how to source candidates who are good fits for your teams. But at the end of the day, your staffing partner is still an external resource. They aren't going to have the same grasp on what you need that your internal HR department and hiring managers do.
3. You may be paying for things you can do internally. If you make a choice to go all-in with outsourced HR, you could be paying for things that make more sense to handle internally. For example, if you have a policy to post job descriptions internally before you seek external candidates, does working with a recruiter to handle that part of the process make sense?

why not consider a hybrid HR model?

You've probably already realized that a middle-ground approach could be best for your company. Find out more about the benefits of a hybrid model that combines internal HR and outsourced recruiting by downloading our guide today.