On-Premise Team's Contractor Engagement Efforts Help Global Logistics Firm Retain Workers, Optimize Production

Client Profile

Our client is one of the leading and fastest growing global logistics and supply chain management service providers. Known for their innovative industry solutions and high-quality operations, they partner with thousands of clients to provide shipping and logistics services that ensure their end-clients can get products to consumers quickly and efficiently.

Aerotek has been providing on-premise staffing services to this client non-exclusively for over a decade. Aerotek built a reputation as a valued partner to their organization through both our consultative approach and consistent performance throughout this time. Since 2013, Aerotek has hired over 7,460+ contract employees for our client– maintaining an average headcount of 355 contractors with an 84% retention rate.

Challenge

At their Carlisle, Pennsylvania facility, our client was routinely measured by their end-customer on facility capacity, turnaround time, and units per hour to determine their “Business Success Score.” This score ultimately determined their ability to retain current and pursue additional business. Given the large scale of their operations and consistent seasonal ramp schedule, our client’s initial solution consisted of utilizing multiple vendors to supply staffing for their facility. 

Over time, as a result of their large vendor pool, our client found themselves experiencing high turnover and disorganized day-to-day operations; subsequently resulting in missing Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and production quotas. At the end of 2021, the site was given an unfavorable Business Success Score which put them at risk of business pulled from the facility and given to competitors. Our client knew that as they headed into their seasonal ramp, where they needed to hire more than 500 contactors within six weeks, they needed a staffing provider they could trust to deliver and ensure no further goals were missed.

Solution

Knowing that our client was at a critical point where they were at risk of losing business, at the beginning of 2022 Aerotek introduced the idea of streamlining their vendor pool to boost facility efficiency. By becoming the sole vendor supporting their seasonal ramp, Aerotek was able to develop a solution that holistically addressed the recruitment and retention of the workforce, while also allowing our customer to increase operational efficiency.

High-Volume Recruitment

In order to meet their hiring goal of 500 contractors in six weeks, Aerotek increased the size of our on-premise team to include: two on-premise managers (OPMs), one on-premise account recruiting manager (OPARM), and six on-premise recruiters. Through this support and delivery model we were able to take a hands-on approach to our screening, onboarding, and performance evaluation process - allowing our client's internal teams to focus on their core responsibilities.

Employee Engagement & Retention

Capitalizing on the fact that our client’s environment makes them an employer of choice in their area, Aerotek incorporated site tours into our hiring process to increase applications and likelihood of contractor retention. This process helped to give candidates a realistic preview of the job – including their responsibilities and the facility – to determine if the job was the right fit prior to their first day. Additionally, we worked with our client’s team to implement a contractor engagement program that included events for major holidays and contractor recognition lunches. These factors boosted contractor engagement which, in turn, increased employee retention and candidate referrals.

Operational Efficiencies

As our client’s only vendor, Aerotek was able to streamline processes and communication for both our contractors and the client. Having oversight across the entire staffing program ensured that all contractors were given the same information and were held to the same performance standards. Our on-site presence further enhanced our performance management process by allowing us to hold office hours and provide real-time performance feedback and issue resolution which kept the client’s operation running smoothly.

Having unified program support gave site leadership greater visibility into the facility’s operational efficiency, which helped them to make more proactive business decisions during their busy season. Aerotek provided our client with detailed performance reporting, including attendance tracking, in addition to scheduling quarterly business reviews. These conversations gave us the platform to engage our client contacts in more detailed conversations around workforce and market trends and their short and long-term business needs, allowing us to take a more agile approach to our support of the site.

Results

By scaling up our on-premise team, Aerotek was able to meet our client’s goal of 60 starts per week, ensuring that they maintained adequate staff to hit all production goals throughout their busy season. Additionally, our focus on contractor engagement led to a workforce retention rate of 85% or higher. Increased contractor retention led to higher production volume due to decreased downtime as less time was taken training new employees.

By utilizing an exclusive vendor, our client’s internal teams found that payrolling and invoicing processing for their temporary staffing program took significantly less time – giving them the ability to focus on their core business functions. 

The site’s performance throughout their 2022 ramp, including facility capacity, turnaround time, and units per hour, brought the client’s Business Success Score up to 97%. This dramatic improvement allowed our client to not only successfully retain their end-customer’s current business, but also request more lines of business and increased production volume.