Change is constant. More than one-third of workers have experienced significant change in their roles in the past year, according to PwC. A full 70% of leaders agree they face a skills gap, and technological changes drive much of this. According to McKinsey, by 2030, up to 30% of current hours worked could be automated due to generative AI. 

Many employers are tempted to resist recent technological innovations and their talent implications, but many are adopting strategies to help them stay ahead of change. When attracting and recruiting top candidates, a recruitment process outsourcing (RPO) partner may be the key to conquering the talent equation. No two RPO providers are the same, however, and the key to success lies with an RPO that goes beyond transactional recruiting to bring flexibility and trust into the relationship. 

“Working with an RPO gives you the advantage of bringing resources and strategies into play quickly against changing conditions and business demands,” says Rebecca Bowser, director of client services for Sevenstep. “Our clients trust us due to our ability to predict failure before it happens. Our proprietary data system and processes enable us to take action and pivot before our clients even see the issue ahead. That is the level of trust and flexibility an employer needs in a volatile business environment.” 

What qualities should you demand from an agile and trusting partnership to help you face economic uncertainty, growing skills gaps, and generational shifts? The demands speak to the fundamentals of talent success, including: 

• Scalability. “Hiring markets ebb and flow,” Bowser points out. “For example, we have a client whose hiring needs ranged from 50 to 600, all in a single year. Having a partner eliminates internal recruiter downtime, stress, and turnover. It can also empower organizations to hit hiring goals when they need to flex up, reducing time-to-fill.” 

• Standardization. From an operational standpoint, a partnership can help standardize controls and tracking, enabling a consistent hiring process aligned with the considerations of the rest of the business. Bowser says external support in driving a consistent process can unleash the full potential of both internal and external TA teams. 

• Global reach. As companies expand and grow into new markets, it can be difficult to understand the local laws, regulations, and market-specific challenges. An RPO partnership with a global reach can bring in expertise to help solve local talent concerns.   

• Strategy rooted in data. With access to data and analysis, a partnership can bring a new perspective on hiring approaches. For example, a proprietary predictive analytics capability used by Bowser’s organization analyzes requisitions to predict hard-to-fill roles (i.e., those that would be at high risk for aging). Her team can deploy specialty resources and tailored talent strategies against those requisitions to mitigate that aging risk, keeping hiring initiatives moving forward with quality talent.

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