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Why UK Companies are Taking a New Look at Managed Services Programs

Why UK Companies are Taking a New Look at Managed Staffing ProgramsRecruitment in the U.K. has had an image problem. Managed Services Providers (Managed Staffing Providers), now widely viewed as essential in the U.S., have long been available to international markets. 

But according to Yoh’s U.K. office, there’d been some hesitancy among companies in the past to engage a managed services program because of a reputation conferred by the high-pressure, Wolf of Wall Street-style sales tactics some staffing companies used to find new partners.

But all that is changing as top MSP players step up with quality service and more U.K. companies feel the need to ramp up hiring quickly as the technology and oil and gas sectors boom. As experts in the U.K. office shared, the reputation concerns have faded in the light of genuine partnerships formed between workforce solutions agencies and corporations with substantive talent needs. Under this new paradigm, managed services programs are now transforming companies throughout the U.K., finding new clout after years as a bypassed staffing option as companies seek new sources to finding the right talent and a better way to scale their workforce.

A rebranding of Managed Service Providers

MSP is nothing new, but what has changed is the perception of this staffing strategy. Even in the U.S., many large companies looked at MSP as providing an advantage, but not an essential element of their recruitment program. Then the Great Recession wiped away what companies thought they knew.

For too long, many organizations in the U.K. believed they too could still manage their contingent labor needs internally. But rapid market changes and high turnover among internal staffing generalists had them spending more money and time sourcing needed workers than they could afford. Demand for MSP has slowly grown out of the chaos of the recession, and organizations of all sizes are turning to MSP to optimize their workforce and recruitment strategies.

The proven value and success of top U.K. managed services providers, coupled with organizations’ increasing realization that they can’t do it themselves has moved MSP into the limelight, especially in the IT and oil and gas industries.

How Managed Service Providers get involved

Recruiting in the U.K. long centered on permanent hires. But both the tech and energy sectors in the U.K. are seeing success with contingent labor. In a world where incessant economic woes continue to shape companies’ hiring, contingent labor offers attractive flexibility. And in project-based industries where a new software offering or a new drilling site requires companies to find potentially hundreds of highly skilled professionals as soon as possible, MSPs are providing more strategic, efficient, and effective processes.

Today, U.K. MSPs like Yoh have boots on the ground working with talent and business leaders face to face at industry events, becoming involved in new sectors of the economy, and working within the intricacies of each industry. In today’s economy, MSPs are attuned to the needs of organizations, are sensitive to what challenges each industry faces, and are in touch with the right talent at the right time to fit evolving hiring needs. This new attitude and understanding of what a leading MSP provides is shifting perceptions and better revealing the advantages MSP offers.

Organizations, once hesitant to hire contingent workers, let alone an outside firm for staffing needs, increasingly view MSP as a necessary cog in the recruitment and onboarding process. This change in perception has started to globalize MSP’s popularity. As more organizations see the value of MSP and capitalize on its ability to scale up quickly, its march around the world will only grow louder.

Matt Rivera serves as Vice President, Marketing and Communications and is responsible for overseeing all aspects of Yoh’s marketing and brand communications. Matt holds a degree in Journalism/Public Relations and has been working in the staffing industry for more than 25 years. Prior to this role, Matt held many different roles from branch recruiting and proposal writing to technology management and online marketing.

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