5 Reasons To Hire Contract It

by Peter David on Aug 30, 2011 in IT Staffing

by Kira Dennison Capen, Account Manager – Contract Services

Technical Staffing has become a more viable option for IT departments across multiple verticals. On a more regular basis we are finding our clients are utilizing Contract IT talent which allows companies and hiring managers the flexibility they need to ramp short term projects, align with specific skills sets and mitigate risk. In addition, there are the significant long term benefits of allowing hiring managers more time to accomplish their business goals and manage their employees.

Here are our 5 top reasons to hire contract IT talent:

Align With a Specific Set of Skills

When an IT organization faces the challenge of having to ramp up specific skill sets in a short period of time what do they do? Niche skills are tough to find. It is not likely that your company has set aside money for recruiting and training for a specific skill set. By utilizing an IT staffing company you get two for one: access to a talent pool that meets the needed skill set without the cost of bringing on a full time employee.

Imagine, if you will, you have to roll out a product in a seemingly short period of time. This is a scenario not unlikely to occur in the technical world. Hiring a contract Engineer or Developer to help ramp a project for a one to two month period allows your organization to meet ever-demanding deadlines.

Can’t find a Full Time Employee

It is no secret that the IT market is tightening up and the hard to find “rock stars” are fewer and farther between. When the hiring manager needs someone yesterday, moving through the sometimes lengthy search and interview process is not an option. Bringing on temporary technical talent can help fill the “time lapse” between putting out a requisition for a new employee and actually finding the perfect fit.

Try before You Buy

When a Hiring Manager needs to fill a certain skill set and is not sure whether it is a long term (permanent employee) fill or short term need, they have the option to bring on a contractor to figure out if they are a good fit for the organization, team, and project. In the same respect, the contractor has the ability to get a feel for the organization to determine if it is the best fit for him as well.

Risk Mitigation

By hiring a staffing firm, you delay the costs associated with processing and administering payroll and benefits. Because your contract employee works for the staffing agency, unemployment benefits do not affect your bottom line. In addition, companies can save roughly 20-25% of the cost of having a full time employee. Using temporary and employees on payroll in place of regular full time employees will reduce employment risks. By going through an agency, companies can mitigate the risk of improper classification of independent contractors (which can lead to fines from the Department of Labor and IRS and exposure to an expanded audit). In cases like these, many recent court cases have resulted in settlements in the millions.

Many companies today have been tasked with being more flexible and having a broader set of skills in the fast paced technology environment. By utilizing contract technical staffing, your company can be more efficient utilizing resources without the commitment of a full time employee — Now that’s savvy business. 😉