As the modern workforce continues to evolve at lightning speed, one trend continues to stand out: an increasing reliance on contingent staffing. 

Staffing Industry Analysts predicts that contingent workers will make up 5.2 percent of the North American workforce in the next three years–an increase from the current 4.2 percent. In contrast, full-time workers are expected to constitute 76 percent of these workforces, down from 80 percent today and 82 percent three years ago.

But what exactly is contingent staffing? And how can you meaningfully integrate it into your workforce? Let’s dive into the details. 

Understanding Contingent Workforce

Contingent workers are non-permanent employees who work on a temporary basis. These individuals are not bound by the traditional employer-employee relationship and often work on specific projects or tasks. You’ll find contingent workers across all industries, including marketing, education, health services, and retail. Examples of contingent workers include:

• Independent contractors
• Freelancers
• Consultants
• Interns
• Temporary workers employed through staffing agencies

The primary differences between contingent workers and full-time employees lie in their employment relationship, duration of employment, benefits, and level of commitment.

What is Contingent Workforce Management?

Once you understand the options available to you via a contingent workforce, it’s important to develop systems to support them. This is known as contingent workforce management.

Contingent workforce management refers to the strategic approach and processes an organization uses to leverage their temporary and non-permanent employees. This encompasses a range of activities, including:

• Sourcing and recruiting 
• Onboarding 
• Performance management
• Offboarding
• Ensuring compliance with labor laws, managing contracts, and optimizing the overall workforce strategy

Related: Video: Contingent Staffing

Key Components of Contingent Talent Management

Sourcing and Recruiting: Finding the right talent quickly is crucial. Contingent workforce management involves leveraging various channels such as online job platforms, staffing agencies, and professional networks to source skilled contingent workers.

Onboarding: Efficient onboarding processes integrate contingent workers into the organization swiftly, ensuring they understand their roles, responsibilities, and company policies.

Compliance: Managing a contingent workforce requires adhering to labor laws and regulations and involves classification issues, tax implications, and contract management. Non-compliance can result in legal risks and financial penalties.

Performance Management: Monitoring and evaluating the performance of contingent workers is vital to ensure they meet project goals and contribute effectively to the organization.

Offboarding: When a project ends, or the contract is completed, offboarding involves managing the exit process smoothly, including knowledge transfers and gathering feedback.

Additional Perspective

To further enhance your understanding of contingent workforce management, consider the following perspectives:

• Technology Integration: Leveraging advanced technology platforms can streamline the management of contingent workers. A Vendor Management System (VMS) can automate processes, track performance, and ensure compliance, allowing you to manage your contingent labor more efficiently.
• Talent Pool Diversity: By utilizing a diverse range of contingent workers, organizations can foster innovation and bring in fresh perspectives and experiences. This diversity can be a strategic advantage in solving complex problems and driving business growth.
•  Long-term Strategy: While contingent workers are often associated with short-term projects, integrating them into a long-term workforce strategy can provide ongoing benefits. This includes building a reliable talent pipeline and developing relationships with high-performing contingent workers for future projects.
• Employee Engagement: Effective engagement strategies are crucial for contingent workers. Ensuring they feel valued and integrated into the company’s culture can improve their job satisfaction and productivity, leading to better project outcomes.

Stay Ahead with Effective Contingent Workforce Management

Whether you’re a Fortune 500 company or an emerging industry leader, partnering with a contingent workforce management provider with proven experience can help you reach your business objectives. With the increasing presence of freelancers, independent contractors, and temporary employees in the workplace, Broadleaf is well equipped to help companies keep their workforces engaged and efficient. 

Broadleaf delivers contingent staffing solutions that effectively manage staffing supplier efforts to enhance candidate quality and compliance, while decreasing costs. Our managed service provider (MSP) solutions are specially designed to help you source the highest-quality candidates, consolidate services, streamline processes, and provide advanced workforce analytics.

Learn more about Broadleaf’s managed service programs here. 

This blog was authored by Joseph O’Shea.