Experts are advising medium sized business owners around the country to focus on hiring more contractors as part of a flexible employment strategy.
I agree completely with this one, especially when you consider the amount of talent that is available with the thousands of contractors offering their services right now, in a variety of different industries.
The message is simple: why go through all the hassle of hiring permanent staff, when you can easily hire a contractor who often has the same or more skills, but doesn’t have to be added to the payroll when the demand for their services isn’t required anymore by your business.
However, as studies have shown, many medium businesses who hire contractors for short term work end up keeping them around for months, and even years.
What I’ve been hearing is that many medium size business owners are really impressed with just how quick contractors are able to adapt to the job they are given, which in the past was a concern when hiring contractors.
The general thought process used to be…we are going to spend hours training someone who might not even be around in a few weeks. However, these days it’s much more a case of…just give them the work and leave them to it.
I think this highlights the importance of hiring specialised contractors so the amount of training is minimal, even if it means paying a bit more for their services.
For example, if you want an IT contractor for a specific project, then getting someone who is experienced in this area is essential. Anything else just ends up wasting your valuable time.
What are some other reasons why contractors are perfect for medium sized businesses? Well, for one, they are available to start right away when you get unexpected work or projects that needs to be completed quickly, and then once finished, there is no obligation to keep them around.
This also holds true for seasonal times such as Christmas where you might require extra staff for a couple of weeks to cope with more business and customers. Once the seasonal demand is over, the contractor no longer has to be kept on the payroll.
Another reason is that very often a contracting professional will bring fresh ideas into your business, which can give you more ways to profit. Just one idea can provide your business with an exciting breakthrough.
Ultimately, hiring contractors is all about building up a list of contacts that you can trust. Hire someone for a few weeks to finish a job and then drop them off your payroll, but they are always only a phone call or email away where you can contact them for another job.
At the end of the day it’s all about flexibility and what is the best overall strategy for your business.
