What are the challenges of full-time positions in uncertain periods?
Soft skills: diverse and conflicting
A single person can offer a certain range of skills, but this range might be relatively narrow.
You have probably known people great with numbers who are not so good with people – and you most likely have seen the same the other way round.
Someone who is precise might not think outside the box. Creative people might have less accuracy, while someone who reliably adheres to rules and regulations might be less artistic.
Someone might enjoy communication with people or might prefer to be immersed in a project. You have those who prefer teamwork and people who tend to choose independent and self-sufficient approaches.
A patient and methodical person might not be adaptable and might not enjoy fast-paced work.
Assertiveness and firmness might not go hand-in-hand with being friendly and approachable.
Quick thinkers might not follow protocol strictly, and while there are people who handle repetitive tasks well, others can easily find such tasks boring. Taking initiative and the tendency of
waiting for approval might turn out to be conflicting requirements.
Measurable requirements: technical skills
Even if you find the right balance of soft(er) skills, there are undoubtedly lots of requirements that are easier to define and assess.
Knowing a certain software to the desired level, being available at the given time of the day or week, having the ability to work overtime if needed, knowing a certain language (or, a programming language) are requirements that are easier to evaluate during the hiring process.
You might also have requirements related to geographic location.
Uncertain environments: plans might go out the window
It is hard enough to precisely allocate talents to meet the required workload and skills even when things are steady, especially considering the fixed working hours of full-time positions.
In an uncertain business environment, the optimal blend of requirements is changing continuously.
A full-time employee might have to pivot and work on tasks that are not in their profile – as an extreme example, a finance analyst might be asked to try and make sales calls or be assigned 50 hours of work a week instead of a more realistic 35, if hiring another person is not justified.
Hiring another full-time employee will bring the same challenges related to conflicting requirements and the fixed “chunk” of 40-hour-per-week capacities.
And in case of an uncertain situation, shifts in requirements might also be frequent.
You might even be wary of hiring someone to avoid the commitment – or realise that by the time the hiring process is completed, and the new person is up to speed, requirements have changed again.
And of course, none of us enjoys those unpleasant conversations that come with involuntary separation.
Approaching capacities with flexibility in focus
Business support services provided on an hourly basis can help overcome many of the challenges and disadvantages of rigid planning.
You can break down tasks, define the required skills, and assign as many people to them at the right timing as you need. This can include soft skills, knowledge of certain software, languages, availabilities. And if the requirements or workload change, you simply let us know and we adapt quickly.
What if something exotic comes up? You don’t have to expect that your sales guy suddenly takes on a graphics designer hat for two days to design you a flyer. And you don’t even have to buy the software: if a specialised equipment is needed for a short while, such as a software tool, there is no reason for you to buy it and wait until one of your employees begins mastering it.
What Broadstone.io can provide is:
- Equipment without investment on your end
- Expertise using the equipment.
- Skillsets as you see fit in any one time.
- Quick change if there is a change on your end.
