Meet Lexx, Our Recruiting Coordinator in DFW!

Meet Lexx, the Recruiting Coordinator for both the Fort Worth and Dallas branches. Before coming to Hire Up Staffing, Lexx worked in customer service for the last ten years, and within the last three years, she was working in a call center. When it comes to work-related accomplishments, one that comes to mind is the number of associates Lexx has trained and seen thrive within her time in customer service. The feeling of seeing them succeed because of the knowledge she has shared is great.

Lexx is excited to work for Hire Up Staffing because she is continuing her education in Human Resources, and the things she is doing for work now coincide with the lessons she is learning. When Lexx isn’t in the office, she likes to catch up on TV, bake, and also manage her own small baking business.

Meet Liz – Our Houston Recruiting Manager!

Meet Liz, your Recruiting Manager in the Houston branch! Before Liz came to Hire Up Staffing, she worked with an ABA company where she administered therapy to children with Autism. She also has work experience as a research assistant recruiting participants. While working at her previous job, Liz received an award for the outcomes of her work. One professional goal that Liz has is to build mutual connections that will last a lifetime.

Now, working at Hire Up, she is excited to be a recruiter who gets to build relationships with candidates to get them the best job possible. When Liz isn’t in the office, you can find her taking dance classes and going to the gym. She also enjoys being outdoors, hikes, and going to the beach.

Tempted to Hire Temporary Employees? Discover the Benefits in Doing So

Leah Perez

Vice President of Major Accounts

Hire Up Staffing & Healthcare

12/2/2021

Our organization is in the staffing business and has been for years. Naturally, in this business, temporary employment opportunities are among the services we offer our clients. While temporary employment is nothing new to the industry, it has stepped up and made a name for itself as a helpful solution for organizations in this challenging job market.

Did You Know?

According to American Staffing Association, during an average week, there are more than three million temporary/contract employees working in the United States.
For the month of October 2021, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported an increase in 41,000 temporary help services jobs within the Professional & Business Services industry.

If you have not yet considered temporary and/or contract employees as a solution(s) for your organization’s hiring needs, you may find the benefits other companies are experiencing quite TEMP-ting. Temporary employees serve to support companies through peak seasons, special projects, and leaves/vacations. This interim coverage assists with maintaining the workload and moving the company forward despite short to mid-term gaps in staffing. We have seen firsthand by way of our clients that temporary workers allow for project deadlines to stay on track, peak seasons covered, and orders fulfilled.

Here are seven benefits for YOU and YOUR organization when you choose to hire temporary employees.

ARE you ready to be TEMP-ted?

Faster Solutions: Temporary employees allow for organizations to adjust to the workload fluctuations much faster and more easily, allowing for a more seamless transition. Traditional hiring places time as your adversary, having to often start the search from scratch.
Assists with Morale: By adding additional support to the team in an expeditious manner, even if temporary support, your existing team is less likely become overworked and burned out. They can rest assured knowing you have a solution for the staffing insecurity. Your quick response to place a temporary employee demonstrates that you make your team’s work environment a priority.
Overtime Minimized: Utilizing temporary employees allows you to ease the cost of your team’s overtime. Paying a straight hourly wage for temporary support is a win-win! You save payroll dollars by not paying overtime for the extra work and longer hours of your existing team, avoiding burn out.
Workplace Flexibility: Flexibility within your organization is one of the more appealing yet often hidden benefits a workplace can offer. With the use of temporary support as an option, you build in a host of opportunity for your team. Temporary workers allow for an added amount of flexibility to ensure your company’s logistical needs are satisfied and that the members of your team can do what they need to do to take care of themselves and each other.
Sample of Work: Temporary employees allow you to see their work in action, live and in real time, rather than making your best judgments based upon their well-versed answers to your interview questions. Temporary employees often show you right away if they walk the talk.
Time is Money: While there are financial costs associated with hiring temporary help, the benefits of saving time with this option could end up saving you money long term. Consider the amount of recruiting hours your organization uses to screen candidates and schedule interviews, only for you to still be unsure if you have found the right match for your needs.
Leave it to the Professionals: When you employ an agency, the agency serves as the temporary worker’s employer—NOT YOU. This small but important detail means that the agency is responsible and bears the financial burden of recruiting, screening, testing, hiring; payroll expenses and paperwork, payroll, and tax withholdings; unemployment and workers’ compensation insurance. Whew! Not to mention the training associated with a new hire, temporary or otherwise. You may find full-service agencies even provide training for the temporary employee, such as software application tutorials.

As you can see from this list, there truly are lasting benefits to utilizing temporary employees. If you have ever toyed with the idea, now might be the best time to try it. What do you have to lose? It is only temporary.

Our team of recruitment professionals can walk you through the steps and get you started. Simply give us the green light and we can send temporary support your way. We also have unique insight into staffing trends and employment tips that may assist with the specific needs of your area or industry. If the worries of staffing your team are keeping you up at night, please contact us. We are here to help, whether with temporary support or permanent placement, Hire Up is your one-stop shop for staffing solutions.

——

There is no doubt that 2021 will bring forth opportunities with which to leverage new and emerging employment trends. Follow the Hire Up Staffing & Healthcare Services Blog to stay connected with a variety of topics aimed to help support you! Whether you are an active job seeker looking for tips and tricks to land your perfect job or an employer looking to fill a challenging position, we are here to help you HIRE UP!

American Staffing Association

The Employment Situation – October 2021 (bls.gov)

Leah Perez, Vice President of Major Accounts | December 2, 2021

As the Vice President of Major Accounts, Leah focuses on the national level clients. Leah has over 16 years of recruiting experience in various industries from medical/clinical to administrative/accounting, all of which has launched her to being one of the most well-respected staffing leaders in California. Clients and candidates would describe her as urgent, ethical, and most importantly she takes the time to understand her client’s needs so she can properly assist them. Leah would love to speak with you so she can help your business reach new heights.

Meet Shannon – Our Accounts Payable Coordinator!

Meet Shannon, the Accounts Payable Coordinator in the Corporate office! Shannon has experience in various industries, including electronics, fast food, hotel, and clothing manufacturing. She also has experience in Accounts Payable/Receivable and Management. One of Shannon’s professional goals that she applies herself to each day is always to do her best, so she can be proud at the end of the day. Because Shannon has set a goal for herself to do her best, she was selected as Employee of the Month a few times in the past.

Now, Shannon is excited to be working at Hire Up Staffing because she is part of a professional environment that helps individuals with employment opportunities. When Shannon isn’t in the office, she likes to speed walk, go to the beach, work on refurbishing old furniture, spend time with her son, and watch and collect movies.

The Cost of a “Bad Hire”

Lauren Milam

Regional Vice President – West coast

Hire Up Staffing & Healthcare

November 16, 2021

How to Navigate Common Pitfalls

You may be seeing the headlines about it and/or experiencing the impact of the 2021 Great Resignation. While companies are working to regain a stronger sense of balance within an otherwise imbalanced candidate market, leaders are feeling the pressure to hire and an uneasiness in doing so. This makes sense because the potential negative implications of a poor hiring decision are far-reaching even in the best of candidate markets. Yet, add in these current circumstances and it is important to give pause.

When evaluating the true costs of our hiring decisions, there are things to consider. I have identified several key components, along with ideas for how to best avoid pitfalls when possible or navigate through them when necessary.

1. Financial: Most obvious of all “costs” include financial considerations. The number of hours spent reviewing resumes, scheduling, and conducting interviews is just the beginning. Consider also the costs associated with advertising the position and the hourly rate associated with the person supporting your recruiting efforts.

Then once hired, the costs of the onboarding process add up and include the number of training hours required of them, the team needed to train them, and any equipment needed for their new role.

According to the US Department of Labor, the price of a bad hire is at least 30% of the employee’s first-year earnings.

Pro Tip: Be thoughtful with your compensation. Staying competitive is important, however, avoid “buying” your new employees for the sake of “winning” their acceptance of your job offer. Overpaying new employees to get them in the door will not always afford you the most enthusiastic and high performer, but potentially someone just looking for dollar signs. It is difficult to sustain performance if the employee is not truly in the position because they want to be there for anything more than the money. Hire for passion and use compensation as a tool, not a trump card to ensure a candidate picks you over another employer.

Pro Tip II: Be clear with your expectations early. Painting a clear picture of the position is an especially important part of ensuring you are not being hasty with your hiring efforts. Desperation can create poor outcomes, on both sides. Your clear explanation of the role and checking for their understanding of the position is key to setting your new employee up for success. Remember: Unclear is unkind.

2. Morale and Culture: A poor hiring decision can negatively impact your organization’s culture and leave the most resolute of employees questioning their loyalty and your leadership decisions. As a hiring decision-maker, you are an important gatekeeper of culture. It is imperative that you carefully consider how a potential candidate will integrate with your established team.

One bad apple can ruin the bunch, as they say. Whether the trouble starts with a new and negative Nellie or a newbie who is not as interested in meeting the expectations of the position, your ability to identify red flags early and respond accordingly will be paramount to preserving a positive workplace culture. Disengagement is born from feelings of being misled or unappreciated. If a new employee is not meeting expectations, your team already knows. Show them you care about preserving their workplace culture.

Pro Tip: Stay engaged beyond the hiring process. Be sure your new hire understands performance expectations. Create milestones and schedule performance check-ins. Have difficult conversations early, if needed. Coach to correct behaviors immediately. Show genuine efforts with the new hire; rally around them, support them. Ensure you are being direct and fair in your communications and expectations with everyone.

And, if necessary, and when timing is appropriate, be open to righting a wrong fit. You show through your actions that your team is important to you. They are watching for this. Remain committed to maintaining a positive workplace culture by staying nimble and not tied to a hiring decision solely to safe face or money. (It will not do either overall.)

3. Reputation: In addition to the negative impact a poor hiring decision can have on morale, a similar risk comes into play with customers. When considering fit, remember to also consider the risk associated with a new employee working closely with your valued clients. A poor hiring decision could not only tarnish relationships with current customers, but they could turn off new and potential customers as well. The financial risk associated with reputation is hard to quantify, however, placing an employee in front of your customers is a particularly crucial decision that has long-lasting consequences.

Pro Tip: All candidates are potential employees and/or customers. They have ties to the area in which you operate. Remember to be respectful and honest in your interactions. If a candidate does not appear to be the right fit for your needs, be clear with them and keep your promises when it comes to getting back in touch. How you manage your interactions with them reflects how you serve your customers.

We are in the people business and if there is one thing that is consistent, it is that people are multi-dimensional beings with complex characteristics. There is no full-proof guide to ensuring THE perfect hiring decision every time. However, the tips above will help you to be thoughtful with these decisions. “Going with your gut,” is advice we all have heard over the years. As a hiring professional, I agree that we use our gut instincts in our favor by identifying potential areas of concern. Pay attention to the red flags and do not be afraid to ask more questions around those areas where you feel performance may be an issue.

Closing Pro Tip: We are all human. We may find that a hiring decision did not work out as we had anticipated. Valuable lessons lie in honest reflection. Work with another manager and talk things through. Collaborate and identify areas of the process to manage differently with the next hiring decision. Walk through all components of the current new hire equation and assess which areas to enhance, making for a better experience for all involved.

Be open to learning from your missteps. Not only does this quality make you a better leader but your team is watching and looking for ways to confirm that they are in the right place with a leader they can respect. A leader who learns from their mistakes can be the model for change and innovation in the workplace. It starts with you. The cost of a bad hire may have its price, but the value of a leader who is human enough to allow room for their own vulnerability is priceless.

Care for some support during this unusual candidate market? Let us help!

——

Lauren Milam, Regional Vice President – West-Coast | November 16, 2021

As the Regional Vice President of the West Coast operations, Lauren focuses on the development of each Hire Up team member and office to ensure they have the tools and ability to meet the needs of all the clients and candidates. Lauren’s vast experience in the staffing industry and her passion for people, results, and success is what drives her daily. This experience includes leadership, management, employee development, sales, marketing, recruitment, client retention, and candidate retention. Her goal is to ensure every client and candidate receives excellent service through every aspect of the process. Lauren would love to speak with you so she can help your business reach new heights.

Meet Diana – Our San Diego Recruiter!

Meet Diana, your Recruiting Manager in the San Diego branch! Before Diana came to Hire Up Staffing & Healthcare Services, she worked in customer service and recruiting. She worked in retail and restaurants for over ten years and started recruiting in the staffing industry two and a half years ago, specializing in light industrial. One of Diana’s work-related accomplishments that she is proud of is doubling her weekly billing hours during covid. Now, she is excited to be part of the Hire Up team because they all share the same values. From the interview to Diana’s first day, Hire Up has made her feel welcomed. She can’t wait to grow and be part of a team that encourages each other to succeed.

One of Diana’s goals starting at Hire Up is to challenge herself and branch out and recruit for industries and fields that she has not previously worked in before. When Diana isn’t in the office, you can find her outdoors, going to concerts, and exploring new restaurants.

Meet Rani – Our Recruiting Manager in Austin!

Meet Rani, our Business Development Manager in the Austin branch! Before coming to Hire Up Staffing & Healthcare Services, Rani was already in the staffing industry for over 20 years specializing in legal, finance & accounting, professional, office clerical, and light industrial. A major work-related accomplishment she has is opening a startup office in San Antonio, Texas, for Adecco Special Counsel, formally known as Ajilon Legal. Rani was the fastest startup office for their Legal Division in regards to GM and client billing.

One professional goal she has is to become a Regional Business Development Manager and work at HQ for a staffing company. Now, Rani is excited to work at Hire Up because of the growth opportunities and working for a company with a great culture. When she is out of the office, you can find Rani working out, spending time outside near water, and spending time with her family and friends.

Proven Steps to Speed Up Your Hiring Process

Chris Rogers

Regional Vice President – Mid-West

Hire Up Staffing & Healthcare Services

October 11, 2021

Understaffed?

This word conjures up many uncomfortable feelings for managers who have been in this position.

Picture it: You know one of your departments is struggling and needs several new employees to even attempt to get back up to normal operating speed. You also know the amount of time and work your organization’s hiring process takes. Ugh.

Organizational hiring processes can be a challenge even in the best of circumstances, but when there is an urgent need, often the processes required for managers can feel like major obstacles. The awareness of such obstacles can result in a delayed response because already busy managers dread what they are up against.

A large majority of managers must navigate multi-step hiring processes and approvals. Imagine working to get a requisition approved, posting the position, reviewing the stacks of applications, screening potential candidates, coordinating schedules for interviews, going through the selection process, drafting offer paperwork, negotiating salaries, waiting for offers to be accepted, and working out start dates, setting up new hire orientation, coordinating department training…. the steps seem endless and the idea of starting this process can feel overwhelming, to say the least.

Within the staffing industry, hiring is our business. As professional staffing consultants, we have hiring down to a science. Part of the science is understanding the proactive behaviors that can have a direct impact on the ability to bring on a qualified candidate at record speed. Curious about some of these industry secrets? Read along…

Write Better Job Descriptions. It sounds like a no-brainer, but the more accurate you can get your job descriptions, the better qualified your candidates will be. An accurate job description will catch the eye of candidates looking to do exactly what your job requires. Job descriptions that are vague or unclear will likely receive interest from candidates who are also unclear as to what they are looking for in their next position. Be sure to accurately describe the position’s day-to-day duties, as well as long-term expectations for the role. If you want a higher caliber candidate, your job description must also be of a higher caliber.
Faster Communication. Once a candidate has completed one step of the hiring process, do not delay. Move ahead to the next step quickly and communicate to all parties involved. One of the easiest ways to lose a quality candidate is to delay or belabor this initial process. Showing you are a strong communicator with a clear plan are both qualities top notch candidates seek in an employer.
Check References Sooner. Many employers will proceed with a candidate all the way through the hiring process only to find a red flag from a reference at the end. This snag takes those managers back to square one. By checking references sooner in the process, you can save yourself and the candidate time.
Hire Internally. Companies with a great talent pipeline find more opportunities when hiring internally. Not only is this more efficient, but it is also attractive to both internal and external candidates. People want to know your organization is one that offers professional growth and works to promote the hard-working people within it. Celebrate internal hires as often as you can, brag about such promotions. This is the good stuff people want to hear.
Include the Hiring Manager and Human Resources from the Beginning. Be thoughtful about your partnerships and when to collaborate with your resources. By getting the right people together at the right time in the hiring process, you save yourself time while ensuring all key partners are included in on the plan.
Outsource a Recruiting Firm. Whether you need people in a hurry or have a plan for keeping on top of a planned headcount, partnering with a recruiting firm can offer you important support. Recruiting professionals with years in the industry have important ties and relationships to organizations within your area. They have their eyes and ears open for possibilities and potential candidates. By incorporating a recruiting firm, you create additional opportunities for expediting your search and overall hiring processes while also widening your potential candidate base.

As many managers know, hiring is not always easy. However, it can be made easier by comparing your current plan to these six important areas I have shared above. Then, identify where your plan could use additional reinforcement and create steps to strengthen those areas.

Working to expedite your hiring takes a bit of forethought. But it is so worth it. By gathering your resources and improving your hiring plan, you will be better prepared and avoid that oh-so-familiar feeling of dread that can come from being understaffed.

Don’t have the time to rework a hiring plan? Give our team a call. We have professional recruiters in both Texas and California ready to offer support and get your organization back to optimal staffing levels. Hiring is our business—and we have it down to a science.

—

Chris Rogers, Regional Vice President – Mid-West | October 11, 2021

As the Regional Vice President of the Mid-West operations, Chris focuses on the mentorship and development of his Hire Up staff to ensure they are equipped to provide the best service to both our candidates and clients. Chris’ extensive knowledge of the staffing industry lays the groundwork for his teams to always deliver top-caliber talent to great organizations. His expertise includes experience in all disciplines from commercial and professional staffing to executive placement. Chris and his teams strive to improve the lives of their candidates and improve the businesses of their clients. Chris’ over 15 years in the staffing and recruitment industry includes the successful management of high-performing sales and recruiting teams throughout the Southwest. Chris would love to speak with you so he can help your business reach new heights.

Meet Tre – Our Recruiting Manager in the Bakersfield office!

As your Recruiting Manager in the Bakersfield office, Tre’s goal is to improve his network relationships so that he can be a successful recruiter for his clients and candidates. He wants nothing but the best for them. Before coming to Hire Up Staffing & Healthcare Services, Tre worked in the recruiting industry and retail management in high-volume stores for over six years. One major work-related accomplishment that he is proud of is he helped to fight the ongoing issue of shoplifting, return fraud, simple errors, or employee theft at a Target store.

Now, Tre is excited to work at Hire Up because he loves the overall company morale. Everyone is so helpful and supportive. While Tre is outside of the office, he loves to travel, work out, and try new food. If he is not spending his day outdoors, then he likes to play video games. A fun fact about Tre is that he is a major Marvel and DC fan!

Meet Elisa – Our Training Director!

Meet Elisa Weathers, the Training Director for the entire Hire Up company. Before coming to Hire Up Staffing & Healthcare Services, Elisa previously worked for a staffing agency as a Training & Development Specialist. She has worn many hats in the staffing industry, including recruiting, sales, training, operations, marketing, and compliance. One professional goal of Elisa’s is to develop a powerful training program at Hire Up. Her hope is that new hires will feel welcome & well-prepared for their role. She also would like to deliver next-level training to Hire Up’s existing employees.

A work-related accomplishment that Elisa is proud of is when somebody tells her that she has helped them become better in their role, made their life easier by teaching them something, etc. That is the biggest accomplishment for her. Elisa is always excited to come to work at Hire Up because of the culture she has experienced over the past few months. Everyone she has interacted with has been amazing, welcoming, and helpful. Outside of the office, you can find Elisa spending time with her daughter, cooking, going to concerts, being in nature, and watching live sports games.