What HR Processes are Leading Companies Outsourcing?

In today’s marketplace, companies are becoming more innovative in terms of streamlining their internal processes.  When done smartly, significant cost savings and process efficiencies can be had.

“Agility is what companies are after,” says Charles Moeser, Vice President at Broadleaf.  “Usually, their internal teams are saddled with responsibilities in which they don’t have expertise or that do not add value to core business missions.  That, or their time has simply been stretched too thin to afford proper attention to all duties.  Outsourcing those burdensome process points to experts in the field provides companies with the agility and flexibility needed to focus on and react to company growth and strategy.”

Indeed, the symptoms of struggling HR departments vary.  They range from overworked employees to escalating costs, and from missed deadlines to poor quality of work.  Inefficiencies in an HR department anchor the company and keep it from advancing.

Companies are increasingly turning to outsourcing as a solution, as evidenced in surveys conducted by the Broadleaf.  Some companies turn to experts for the outsourcing of entire process chains, such as Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO).  Others bring in the experts to perform needs analysis and then outsource only troublesome elements of their workflows.  In either case, all firms reported increased efficiencies, reduced costs, and improved employee satisfaction after the deployment of outsourcing solutions.

So what are companies outsourcing?  In general terms, many are looking to industry experts to provide:

  • Benefits Administration
  • Co-Employment Risk Mitigation
  • Employee Training
  • Labor Relations
  • On-boarding and Off-boarding Processes
  • Pay Rate Benchmarking and Rationalization
  • Payroll Processing
  • Skills Management
  • Strategic Workforce Planning
  • Travel Management
  • Workforce Scheduling

But it doesn’t stop there.  Many companies also seek out the services of workforce solutions providers to rationalize their recruiting cycles.  As stated before, firms can either outsource all of these processes or select elements:

  • Job Posting Management
  • Candidate Sourcing
  • Candidate Screening
  • Skills Testing
  • Background Checks & Drug Testing
  • Reference Checking
  • Job Fair Administration

HR duties are complex, so how can you be sure that you are selecting the right firm to provide an outsourced solution?  The right provider will have years of experience in the industry and understand its nuances.  It will be attentive and provide customized solutions.  It will have its own Legal Department that specializes in employment law.  And the company will itself be agile, able to rapidly and expertly adapt to your evolving needs.

In the end, outsourcing has proved a boon for the companies that have leveraged it effectively.  Identifying the processes that are prime for outsourcing—and then selecting a provider that you trust—is key.