In our last newsletter we wrote about why it makes good business sense to use an outsourcing and outplacement firm such as AESI. As promised, we turn our attention to some considerations in effectively choosing a good outsourcing and outplacement firm.
With hundreds of firms from which to choose, ranging from one-man job-shops to fortune 1000 companies, choosing a good outsourcing and outplacement firm can be somewhat overwhelming. Finding the right firm should be akin to finding a good accounting firm, legal firm or any other company with which you will work very closely and will share very proprietary information - your staffing needs and growth plans.
So, when your company wisely decides an outsourcing and outplacement firm is the way to go in filling its staffing needs and you are handed the job of finding the right one for your company, consider the following points in your search. Good firms want your business, so don't be afraid to treat them as you would in establishing any good business relationship.
Find more than one firm and do your homework
The first thing to do is find more than one firm to interview and to do a little background investigation on each beforehand. This will save you both time and aggravation with needless meetings later. You should get at least three good firms, but no more than five. To find these, start with your colleagues at other companies, especially those companies you admire, your Board of Directors, your accounting firm and your legal firm, especially if you have a legal firm which has a partner or associate specializing in employment law. Another good source may lie with your major competitors. Next, give these firms a call and see if they will send you written information and if they have a website. Believe it or not, many firms have nothing to send and rely on a verbal sales pitch entirely. A good firm will be happy to send you written information. In addition, a quick visit to the firm's website can tell you volumes about the firm without having to take the time to meet. Look over the pages and examine the openings for which they advertise. Are the descriptions complete? Are the types of jobs advertised related to your field or industry? Check with your local BBB. Firms which don't send you information, don't have a website, don't advertise any openings related to your field or industry or have unresolved complaints lodged against them should be stricken from your list.
Interview each
After narrowing your list to two or three companies, arrange for interviews of each. You should arrange to have the first meeting at the firm's place of business. This will serve to give you an idea of its size and organization. At the actual interview meeting try to have more than one person from the firm in the meeting. You should subtly conduct the meeting in two parts. The first is simply the general overall picture of the firm with the second focusing on the more specifics of the people handling your needs.
In the first part, find out about the firm itself. How long has it been around? In what areas of employment does it focus (if any)? How broad is its employment base? Who is its legal firm and how many claims have they had and what was the outcome? What is the average tenure of people they have recruited and hired for their clients? What is the average time it takes for the firm to fill a position? For this question, use any of your company's needs as the example, as many firms will give you a standard, "that depends on the position" response to this crucial question. In addition, you should investigate the firm's finances. Though this is not a standard practice in setting up vendors, remember, this firm is going to be paying payroll and the associated taxes and benefits before it gets paid by you. Its cash flow is critical to your company's performance. Have they ever missed a payroll or tax deposit? Get a bank reference.
Next, find out where your company and your industry fits in with the firm's business plan. Are you a growth industry for them or are they already established in your industry? Each has an advantage. If you are a growth industry, the firm will apt to be more hungry for your business and may go out of its way more to land you as a client. On the other hand, a firm established in an industry will probably give you faster results. Finally, since many firms offer no benefits at all, which ultimately leads to a higher turnover in your workforce, find out what the firm offers. AESI offers a full range of benefits including: a 401(k) Plan, additional life insurance, Accidental Death and Disability Insurance, Flexible Spending Plans, direct deposit, medical and dental plans, as well as sick leave and vacation. The firm you choose should, too. In any case, good firms will give you honest answers without hesitation.
For the second portion of the meeting, you should insist that at least one of the people in the meeting is an actual recruiter and the one who would be in charge of handling your recruiting needs. If one isn't, insist that person be brought into the meeting. Once he or she is there, get some background information such as: previous experience, length of time in his or her present position, names of other clients he or she represents, and most importantly, is his or her background education and experience related to your business and industry. This is critical, especially in the high-tech fields where certain skill-sets are absolutely essential to getting a project completed timely. The last thing you want is a non-technical person or team handling your technical needs.
Lastly, get three good client references. Sometimes two will do if the clients are large corporations with diverse needs. In addition, it is a good idea to get three employee references - people the firm has recruited for clients. If the firm opts not to give you the employee references you shouldn't automatically discount them. They may simply prefer to protect their employees right to privacy. However, if they choose not to give you client references, you should ask why.
Follow Up after the Interview
Check all the references given you, including the bank. When checking with the reference, let them know who you are, how you got their name and what the call is regarding. Many times references will be hesitant if you don't let them know you got the name in connection with your interview. When speaking with the reference, first confirm what you already know, but ask the question as if you do not. For example, you know the firm has recruited 20 people for the reference. Ask, "about how many people has XYZ brought you?", not "XYZ brought you about 20 people, right?" The former method of questioning gives you a more honest answer. In addition, ask each of the references for another reference. You may get one not on your list, which if so, is the most critical one of all. Be sure to call that reference or references, even if they no longer use the firm. It may reveal problems untold.
Select the Firm
After gathering, investigating and analyzing all of the above, you are ready to make a decision. No firm is going to be a perfect fit. Since this is to be a long-term relationship, don't be afraid to consider hiring the firm on a trial basis. Give them some of your hiring needs to fill while your in-house people take care of your other needs. See how the firm does. If you like what you experience - grow the relationship.
Irrespective of how you decide to start the relationship, a good selection will be a firm who is established, focuses within your industry, has recruiters on staff who have the educational and work experience similar to your company's needs, is financially sound, has benefit plans in place and who is dedicated toward meeting your needs in a timely fashion.
At AESI we meet these stringent criterion. Give us a call - we will be more than happy to discuss your needs or visit our website at www.aesi.com!
This month's client corner features Hewlett-Packard or as it is better known, HP. Hailed as America's Most Admired Computer Company, and ranking in the top ten of America's Most Admired Companies by Fortune magazine, HP was founded in 1939 by William Hewlett and David Packard in Palo Alto, CA, where its corporate headquarters remain to this day.
Developed in a garage (which is now listed in the state's Historical Landmarks register), HP's first product, an audio oscillator, enabled scientists and engineers to produce low frequency signals necessary for making measurements in a variety of fields including: acoustics, medicine, oil and gas exploration and oceanography. One of HP's first customers was Disney Studios in which eight of these oscillators were purchased to develop a state-of-the-art sound system for the now classic movie, Fantasia. In 1943, HP entered the field of microwave technology by developing signal generators and radar-jamming devices for the military. By the 1960s it had introduced the oscilloscope and its first computer. Ironically enough, its first computers were used to gather and analyze data produced by its own electronic equipment. In 1972, HP introduced the world's first handheld calculator, the HP-35 which led HP into the business computing market in the 1970s with the introduction of its HP 3000 mid-level main-frame systems. Answering the demand for smaller, more intelligent computer equipment, it introduced its Reduced-Instruction-Set-Computing or RISC systems which today are HP's number one source of revenue. HP also tapped the end-user peripheral market during this period by introducing its thermal, ink-jet and laser printers, which have continued to dominate the printer marketplace to this day.
Today, HP designs, manufactures and services a vast variety of electronic products and systems for measurement, computing and communication technologies used in virtually all fields within industry, business and educat ion. With net revenues in 1995 topping $31.5 billion, HP has become one of the largest companies in America, employing some 105,000 people worldwide selling 24,000 different products in more than 120 countries.
HP's continued success is based on its long-standing philosophy of a strong commitment to research and development, investing some $2.3 billion each year. The company recognizes the demand and competition for engineering, computing and technicians proficient in the high-tech fields as an ever increasing problem. In recognizing that these individuals are vital to HP's R&D programs and their success, HP routinely turns to AESI to fill many of its most crucial openings.
Because of our technical savvy, HP has been able to find many of their best people quickly, giving its own HR people time to fill other company needs. Give us a call today and see how we can help your company stay ahead of your competition.
It has been appropriately termed Year 2000, but it is a potential problem which has to date received far too little attention. Named for the year in which it will begin rearing its ugly head, Year 2000 refers to the unfortunate fact that most computer programs, particularly those operating on and tied to mainframes and their related databases, will be unable to discern the year 1900 from the year 2000 beginning in the last year of this millennia. This is due to the date convention used by today's systems. Data files store the date in a MM/DD/YY format, meaning 2 digit month, 2 digit day and 2 digit year. Since only the last two digits of the year are stored, the systems in current use simply assume its the 20th century. Thus, January 21, 1900 and January 21, 2000 will both be stored as 01/21/00.
Why is it Significant?
The significance of this problem isn't as apparent as it may seem. The actual problem itself is rather straightforward and its effects and significance are fairly self-evident: if your computer system has the wrong date for transactions and files, the uncertainties which ensue are endless since virtually every transaction and file in a system is linked or tied to another. The real significance is actually three-fold. First, most companies view this as tomorrow's problem. Second, these same companies think this problem can be fixed overnight. These two lead to the third and heart of this problem's significance, complacency.
The facts are such that to find and correct all the programs and systems which a company may own may very well take years to complete. Much of this time will be spent simply identifying and analyzing which programs and systems will be affected. Many companies have no one centralized MIS person or file. Thus many divisions have their own which makes compiling this information more time consuming. Only then can the actual changes be coded. Once this is accomplished, the next feat is to coordinate the fixes in both a timely and convenient fashion. A company certainly doesn't want the fix to cripple its business, even for a short while. Finally, testing and follow up are always involved whenever a major software or system change occurs, usually leading to one or more revisions.
Who is Affected?
Though most DOS based PCs have already corrected this problem, any business whose terminals, PCs or systems which are connected with any other computer or network has the potential of being affected by Year 2000. The only truly insulated system is the standalone PC which has been tested and found to be unaffected and is not connected with any other system or database. To check your PC, follow these steps: 1. Go into the real-time clock and calendar and change them to read 11:58 PM, Dec 31, 1999; 2. Power down your PC and wait several minutes; and, 3. Turn the system back on and check the date and time. If it reads the year 00 or 80 your system is affected. Caution: do not attempt this test unless you are very familiar with your PC and do not open any applications until you have corrected the clock and calendar by resetting them to the correct day and time.
Those businesses and departments affected the most will be those relying heavily on dated information. Thus to cite only a few examples: manufacturing companies for receiving and shipping orders, accounts receivable and payable departments for due dates, insurance companies for ratings and actuarial tables, banking for making interest calculations and the military in maintaining its arsenal, will all be severely affected. "This problem has the absolute potential to turn many businesses' computer systems upside down," says Mark Weston, a Senior Recruiter and Analyst at AESI. "Further," he adds, "the liability exposure to firms not handling this problem in a timely fashion could conceivably drive them from the marketplace in terms of time lost, revenues lost and legal fees and damages recovered over the misfortunes an incorrect century reading by a computer system can cause."
If You are Affected; What Should You Do?
If you even think your company's systems and software will be affected by this, check it out and check it out now! Time is of the essence. Because your MIS personnel will still be very busy taking care of the company's normal operations, most companies will require additional people to assist in this effort. Currently, there are available consultants and groups which have specialized experience in solving this problem for companies. Give us a call today and let AESI quickly find them for your company - before its too late.
WE'RE MAKING A MOVE. That's right - with all the new faces, the old place just isn't big enough any more! We will be moving to 845 Stewart Drive, Suite B in Sunnyvale, CA 94086 in early February. Our phone number will remain the same. Celebrate! ..Our move up. All of our clients, employees and friends are invited to an Open House on Friday, April 25. Lunch will be catered and our office staff and Benefits Consultants will be on hand to answer any client and employee questions and address any needs.
Wish You Were There. Our Annual Summer Outing at Great America in September was great fun! The over 100 employees and their families who participated received free T-shirts for the outing as well as a picnic lunch. Many thanks to all those who made this outing a success!
Holiday Party. Our annual Holiday Party at the Il Fornaio was also a great success! AESI office and field employees and their families enjoyed the fine food and drink and afterward many took a stroll through the very-nearby Christmas in the Park in downtown San Jose. Many more thanks to all of those who worked to make this event successful!
More New Faces. In keeping up with our growth, we've added some more new faces to our administrative staff. Come by and say hello to Kim Forrester and Mariane Caywood.
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Technically Speaking is published for the friends, employees and clients of Albin Engineering Services, Inc.
Albin Engineering Services, Inc. is an outsourcing and outplacement employment firm specializing in the high-technology career fields, whose corporate mission is to become a model for the outsourcing and outplacement industry through the use of high ethical standards and outstanding customer service. We welcome any comments you may have. Feel free to send your correspondence to the editor via USPS, Fax or E-Mail. All material is c1996 AESI. Unauthorized reproduction of any material herein is expressly prohibited.
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