Organizations outsource a business process to gain more value. Whether eliminating a repetitive task or gaining new capabilities, the driving force behind the decision is achieving value otherwise unattainable. The process, let alone the thought for many, of outsourcing is often met with resistance.
Can we do this in-house? Will it be to our standards? What is the cost? Are internal jobs jeopardized? These are all justifiable questions to be asked, and they should be. Outsourcing must be a strategic move with a positive business case. This rings true for recruitment process outsourcing (RPO).
RPO is truly a strategic move for an organization. The right RPO provider augments your internal recruiting capabilities and brings innovation. Eliminating your internal talent acquisition team is not the goal – far from it in fact. An RPO provider becomes a strategic partner to the client organization, and this is where the value of RPO lies.
RPO Is A Partnership
The relationship between provider and client must be a partnership. Anything less is compromising client value. The partnership mentality allows the RPO provider to fully understand your organization, the direction you want to go, and how to provide the right solutions to get there. The RPO provider must have visibility into the organization to know what is currently working and what is not.
Scalable & Component Based
A differentiator with an RPO is the ability to align and scale to the client’s needs. An end-to-end RPO solution involves different components to achieve a stand-alone recruiting function and talent acquisition strategy. The right solution for you may not involve every component to meet your goals. For example, you have a small internal recruiting team which lacks the bandwidth to hire at scale for a new project. This situation would call for a short-term RPO to scale and meet project hiring needs. Or, your HR team has identified a downward trend in job applicants due to a weak employer brand. The RPO partner could help strengthen the employer branding, leaving the recruiting function all in-house. The key is RPO is not a “one size fits all” solution.
Brings New Innovation
With the different dimensions of an RPO, innovation should be a key factor in implementing any type of RPO solution. Your RPO provider should be leveraging their talent acquisition expertise to bring you new capabilities. Think of RPO as making a new set of tools available to the partner organization. These tools could encompass technology, data analysis, branding, and talent acquisition strategy. Access to these tools provides the organization with new efficiencies and resources as if they were their own. RPO can be transformative for an organizations’ talent acquisition. The value it brings relies on an experienced RPO provider and true partnership with the client organization. The agility and scalability of RPO can only augment your current talent acquisition processes and strategy. With a successful RPO solution, your HR resources can focus more on what’s most important – your people.