Staffing buyers/providers ... going steady?

Once again, Jon Osborne at SAI gives his entertaining, but quite relevant, perspective on the relationship between staffing firms and staffing buyers:

"I happened to be going through some of our survey data from 2009, and noticed an interesting coincidence.

When buyers were asked what advice they would give to staffing firms, their number one response was that staffing firms should be "more of a real business partner." Strangely enough, in a separate survey, when we asked staffing firms what advice they would give to buyers, their number one response was exactly the same--buyers should be "more of a real business partner."

So if everyone wants the other side to be a real business partner, why do both sides feel the other doesn't want it and isn't doing it? Reading the details of their comments reveals the answer--the two sides are worlds apart in terms of expectations and priorities.

Staffing buyers want a lot--quality, speed, cost control, shared knowledge, creativity and ever-improving performance. Staffing firms, presumably doing at least some of that, feel their profits are excessively squeezed and that buyers should be helping them stay in business instead of treating them as a commodity.

Is there a common ground between all those needs? Yes, and the reality is that staffing firms and buyers are already finding it on a regular basis to the tune of nearly $100 billion in U.S. sales annually.

But that common ground doesn't lend itself to terribly serious partnership; it's less like marriage and more like high school, because ultimately everyone is still open to a better deal. That instability can be tough at times, but in business it makes for progress.

A more marriage-like partnership might seem attractive, but my recommendation for the contingent world is--be happy with just going steady."

USA Staffing Services:
Not including Osborne's sharp wit, there is an incredibly important note to consider for a moment. He asks:

"Is there a common ground between all those needs? Yes, and the reality is that staffing firms and buyers are already finding it on a regular basis to the tune of nearly $100 billion in U.S. sales annually."

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So how old is the staffing industry?

From Staffing Industry Analysts' contributor, Jon Osborne, a nice little corporate history lesson:

"'In 1347, plague swept across Europe, killing somewhere between a third to a half of the population. In its wake, it left a labor shortage of unprecedented proportion.

Landlords still had plenty of land, but now they had to compete with each other for labor. Wages went through the roof, the terms of employment gradually began to liberalize and then the unthinkable happened: 'In gaining more power, workers following the Black Death often moved away from annual contracts in favor of taking on successive temporary jobs that offered higher wages,' according to historians Simon A. C. Penn and Christopher Dyer of the University of Birmingham."

USA Staffing Services:
Makes you wonder about what groups (or individuals) saw the opportunity at hand and started recruiting, then supplying, available workers in response to the labor demand of the landlords. Obviously, they must have been an incredibly astute and savvy group!

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So how many staffing firms are there?

Staffing Industry Analysts contributor, Jon Osborne, took some time to publish this interesting data.

In 2002, there were an estimated 9,124 staffing firms.

In 2007, there were an estimated 10,600 staffing firms.

Currently, there are an estimated 8,500 staffing firms.

These figures would represent "the lowest numbers since the 1990s."

USA Staffing Services:
So, if you are one of the survivors ... Congrats! Looks like you have a bright future: Increased market share (less competition) in a growing market. Well played.

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