Our Process
Synchronicity in business is something we strive for, and as we worked closely with IT and software experts we identified the Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC) methodology has a beneficial application to the consultative process to talent acquisition that we take with our clients to ensure a cost-effective, high-quality outcome.
How does SDLC methodology work in staffing?
Whether you call it a process or methodology, we know that utilizing a consistent approach to projects and development ensures a high-quality output. Software development requires that process be cyclical, continuously revaluating the needs of the end-users and adapting the system over time as the needs of the business grow and change.
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We believe that the talent acquisition process requires the same consistent and continuous approach. A proactive analysis of the industry teaches us to plan for things like succession, turn-over, growth & expansion, and project-based staffing to address the ever changing needs of an organization.
The goal of a SDLC is to minimize project risks through forward planning so that the software meets customer expectations during production and beyond
What is the agency staffing industry doing wrong?
If you have worked with a staffing agency you are probably familiar with a step in their process called something like a "Job Order" or "Job Specification" aka "A Spec"​. Even if they haven't used the terminology with you, they definitely utilize it internally. As the name suggests, a business development person, maybe accompanied by a recruiter, takes about 30min to ask you questions about your open position in order to get the details needed for a recruiter to begin identifying candidates and submitting them to you.
So, what goes wrong here? Lack of genuine interest and consistent processes.
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Business development staff at agencies are given metrics and expected to bring in a certain number of jobs to the company. They are rarely measured on the quality of the Job Order or the amount of information provided to the recruiter to properly attract and identify a quality candidate. There is then a constant battle between Recruitment not being able to identify candidates with limited information about the position, and sales people feeling frustrated not being able to go back to their clients with solutions.
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The shortcomings on the quality of the information gathered in the job order is largely due to a lack consistent processes and documentation by agencies (as well as limited learning & development provided to sales staff). If you don't set a standard for the questions to be asked, the method in which to ask them, and the level of detail required in a complete answer, how are you ever able to measure?
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So help prove us wrong: Ask your other agencies to show you their "Job Order Form" or "Job Specification Form" or "Job Intake Form". Whatever they call it ask them to show you the process of how they learn about the problems at your organization and the needs to fill your open positions. If you are satisfied with the quality and approach, we are thrilled there are other staffing specialist in the industry helping to set a good standard!
If not, let us chat with you for 15min and show you a different methodology
Our Job Consultation Process
Planning
"Begin with the end in mind" is a philosophy we take seriously. We start by planning our the full logistics of your open position. This includes items like categorizing the employment type, expected working hours, reporting structure, and compensation. We also go into detail on the implementation roadmap, much like an SDLC has a project timeline with key deliverable points, we map out the identification and qualification process that Onyx will complete, as well as the internal interview process you will under take to assess and select a Candidate; such as the number of interviews, methods of interviewing, and who will be conducting the interviews to coordinate schedules and availability. This level of detail up front in the talent acquisition process ensures that any Candidate we submit to you is fully aware, interested, and committed to the structure of the role as you have planned it, saving you valuable time in the interviewing and assessment stages.
Analysis
Separate from the logistics of your position, is the actual problem in your organization that cause the need for staffing to begin with. We conduct multi-tiered investigation into the software and architecture of your company, mission critical items that need to be solved, the daily activities that need to be accomplished, and seek to build out a holistic analysis of the position.
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This process results in our ability to draft a job description as well as qualification assessment to be able to discern the right Candidates for the role. Also, to be able to accurately set their expectations for the needs of the position, which cuts down on turn-over post placement where often the expectations set for the role by the staffing agency, don't meet the reality of the position at your company.
Design
Once the problem is fully understood, we begin designing the solution: the Candidate profile. Not just a collection of buzzwords and years of experience, but a process driven S.M.A.R.T. goal setting process to create a clear recruitment specification for us to follow when moving into the implementation plan and to test against once the Candidate is identified. We gather your ideal solutions in criteria related to the Technical skills and qualifications, the Functional skills in how they operate within your organization successfully, and the Relational skills and personality styles that will meld best with your company culture.
Implementation
This is what we are most proud of: proven results-driven recruitment methods. A software design is only as good as the ability to build it and implement it.
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We engage in a push/pull marketing approach to advertise your position and generate an interest with the most attractive candidate pool, while actively head hunting and identifying the Software experts you need
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From there we conduct thorough investigative interviews, reviewing each position on the Candidates resume as well as exploring and verifying skills
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We then attractively present your role to the qualified short list of Candidates to get them excited about the opportunity and also ensure they are fully committed to the process of interviewing
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Lastly, we determine the Candidate's minimum compensation requirements for the role based on our presentation. If their expectations align with the planned budget for the position, then, and only then, do we submit forward these select experts.
Following this consistent approach ensures we save you the time and effort of getting to the serious Candidate pool to conduct your evaluation. It also gives you the benefit of selecting from the most attractive experts, not just the most convenient or ones that happened upon your job
Testing
Testing could be considered the most integral part of a SDLC, because of the moving parts of handing off responsibilities and specifications between people, much like passing the job consultation over to the recruitment team. We guide the Candidates and your company through the planned testing process of interviewing and selection, only moving on to offers and onboarding when we feel the solution meets the design criteria.
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As with software testing, we know to expect errors and some data migration issues. Sometimes this testing uncovers that the design is not actual possible, like a customization that can't quite get configured within the operating system. We recognize that sometimes our design criteria for the Candidate or our implementation plan can need revisiting and revising, in order to get to the right solution. We call this process "Re-scoping" the consultation based on the data and feedback we get from the Candidate marketplace.
Maintenance & Support
The "Go-Live" portion of a software is always hectic, even with the best laid plans. It is why you proactively plan for training, troubleshooting, and extra end-user support in the first couple weeks after install. In the same way we know that onboarding a Candidate, orienting them to the company and settling into the work can use some additional hands on deck. Our team are engaged to provide that maintenance and support where need, to ensure the solution has fully been implemented.