Businesses historically have depended on temporary staff to fill specific needs. But unlike the typists or keypunch operators of previous generations, these “temporaries” may be highly trained specialists, such as computer network engineers or marketing consultants, whom your business relies on for months or even years.
Regardless of their responsibilities, these people must have references checked, be hired, be paid, and perhaps have benefits administered. The staffing agency you contract with may offer a package rate or charge a fee for each service provided.
The U.S. Small Business Administration estimates there are 8,000 staffing services agencies in America. Many focus on specialized services such as technology or communications. The larger agencies may typically charge a 50 percent markup.
If you need temporary staff, you may want to check your newspaper’s “situations wanted” classified ads first; you just might find a person whose skills match your needs.
Usually, you can find at least one locally owned staffing service agency where you live; metropolitan areas generally include offices of the large nationwide agencies as well. You should have a concrete idea of what you’re looking for, including number of hours worked and pay scale. You also should be clear about which of you is responsible for what tasks, and who pays for them.
A professional employer organization (PEO), which handles human resources for a business, may hire temporary staff for you. Since these organizations are frequently part of risk management solutions, your insurance broker or representative may be familiar with these agencies and the services they provide.
Yes, you certainly can do it yourself. The biggest challenge when doing it yourself, though, is finding and acquiring the temporary workers when you need them.
You essentially pay the temporary agency to make sure you have access to the right people when you need them. You have to determine, based on your own needs and labor force in your area, whether it's worth using an agency.
If you decide to do it yourself, you will want to check out the tools available to registered SBI users in the Resource Center section of this site.