how to engage your contingent workforce: key considerations.

With the global labor market growing increasingly complex, your workforce is likely undergoing its own transformation. Specifically, the use of temporary talent – whether it’s the human cloud, traditional temp staffing or independent contractors – is becoming a more strategic contributor in getting work done. But just as you need to build an attractive employer brand to engage with your permanent employee population, it’s more important than ever to make sure you do the same to attract the best contingent talent.

Recent research by Gartner found that 32% of organizations were replacing full-time staff with temporary workers as a cost-saving measure. The company also predicted that employers will continue to increase their use of contingent talent to maintain flexibility in workforce management.

Deloitte has noted that the use of contingent workforces has 'grown significantly' and, after interviewing eight global clients, found that key priorities in this area fall under five broad categories:

• Access to talent
• Cost reduction
• Compliance
• Data and visibility
• Contingent worker experience 

There’s no question that contingent labor usage is growing, spurred on by a number of market dynamics. The rise of the gig economy, the adoption of total talent management models, the widening of the skills gap and the digitalization of business are all leading employers to think about and view talent in a different way. By employing temporary workers, you can access resources more quickly, become more agile to business needs and reduce overall costs.

Employing contingent workers brings many benefits, but there are unique considerations in how you engage with them. For example, consider how your employee value proposition (EVP) needs to be different for a contingent workforce since the benefits and experiences sought out by permanent talent might not apply here. Taking the time to understand their preferences and making investments to address their needs will yield a loyal and sustainable pipeline of temporary workers. 

To optimize engagement with your contingent talent, focus on these three areas:

• Establishing a talent community
• Enhancing your contingent talent brand
• Nurturing long-term relationships

An effective strategy for strengthening each of these areas will help to make you an employer of choice for contingent workers.

1. a thriving talent community

Investing in a strong talent community could be a vital step on the way to addressing some of your biggest skills and recruitment challenges. This should be a priority for many organizations, with key findings from Randstad Sourceright’s 2021 Talent Trends research showing that a large number of employers continue to face growing skills gaps, despite the large pool of currently available workers. Four out of ten C-suite and human capital leaders agreed that talent scarcity poses a real challenge to their business. 

A robust and well-managed contingent talent community can support a significant portion of your resourcing needs. Whether you require seasonal payrolled workers, statement-of-work (SOW) contractors or temp staff workers, such a community can also reduce labor costs by enabling you to directly fill roles rather than using an agency or talent supplier. Furthermore, you are assured that community members are familiar and engaged with your business.

key requirements for building a talent community

The most important consideration is demonstrating value to entice workers to join. A talent community isn’t just a pool of pre-identified candidates; rather, they are interested in your company because of your employer brand, your nurturing efforts and the experiences you have to offer. Regular communications on company developments and career opportunities are important for maintaining a high level of engagement. Additionally, resources should be available to provide answers to any questions workers might have.

Download the full guide to learn what other actions you need to take to engage with your contingent workforce.