By Maria Rosploch, Global Vice President Consulting, KellyOCG
When a company looks to procurement or talent decision-makers for guidance and strategy on engaging the extended workforce, the big questions matter:
- How effectively are we reaching the talent we need? What stands in the way?
- Can we secure contingent workers and contractors at the right cost and time?
- How do we boost our workforce data and technology capabilities?
- How do we mature our extended workforce strategy and its value to the business?
These thorny questions require a focus on the fundamentals for creating an effective strategy. Develop a clear picture of your current state. Set a vision for the future. Map a path forward, and apply the resources and expertise to make it all work.
This is where a consulting resource can bring significant value to your organization. The right partner can lead the effort to identify and address your needs, provide a framework for strategic development, and apply its objective position and deep experience to drive change.
The need for a consultant in such situations is well known, but many of my first-time clients are initially surprised that a managed service provider (MSP) offers such strategic consulting. Over time, they’ve come to appreciate the perspective I bring to the table — with knowledge that is more closely aligned to workforce management than many consulting firms can provide. An MSP consultant brings a detailed understanding of the client’s processes and goals, as well as the technologies involved. They also bring market insights, benchmarking, and best practices aligned to the client’s approach for consistent talent quality and cost-effectiveness.
If you’re not sure you’re ready for a consultant from your solutions provider, you’re not alone. Many companies overlook this service, or they simply don’t know if the expertise we provide is relevant to their needs. With that in mind, the following points are a good way to begin evaluating if you should bring an MSP consultant into your business and strategic conversations.
1. “We’re not sure where we need help, but we have improvements to make.”
This is a common reason for not engaging a workforce consultant. The HR/TA or procurement decision-maker feels they must define their needs in detail and make the case for engaging a consultant before they turn to us.
The reality is that whether we are creating a long-term strategy or overseeing technology selection and implementation, the issues at play are often different than what the company initially expected. A best-practice consulting process looks at the current state in detail. Through a design-thinking lens, we often reveal that many issues are symptoms of underlying problems that a future-state process can address.
For example, initial data may show a business’ high quit rates weren’t due to incapable talent. Instead, the work was not well-defined, and talent wasn’t trained adequately. In this case, we designed a more targeted, transparent alignment of work to specific talent and skills. Attacking the gaps head-on delivers what’s needed to deliver desired talent outcomes.
Takeaway: It’s okay to engage a consultant without fully understanding the challenge ahead. The goal is to get the conversation started.
2. “We need to bring our talent technology up to speed.”
Anxiety about technology stems from very real concerns regarding data quality, efficiency, and user experience. It can relate to implementing or adjusting a vendor management system (VMS), integrating data sources for better visibility of information, optimizing AI, or aligning technologies and processes across the contingent workforce.
VMS implementations are typical MSP consulting projects. For example, an EMEA-based global pharmaceutical company approached us to resolve an issue with disparate instances of the same VMS technology. They sought a new VMS technology that could be used by all partners, accompanied by a global program office (GPO) to oversee its contingent workforce activity.
As a consulting partner in the process, we facilitated the VMS selection and GPO implementation. The effort included a gap analysis of the client’s current program, benchmarking against best practices, and establishing requirements for the user experience and future-state processes. The result was a VMS request for proposal (RFP), tailored to the client’s needs. We stood with the client throughout the process, including the deployment of technology.
Takeaway: An objective view, combined with expertise in digital solutions, innovation, and your organization’s contingent workforce processes, makes an MSP ideal for guiding your technology strategy.
3. “We have a major workforce goal to achieve, and we need a roadmap.”
Major goals, like significant cost savings, bring uncertainty. An MSP consulting practice can demystify the process. Consultants help identify areas of potential value and prioritize how to address them — whether it’s managing IT spend, tightening your supplier network, or streamlining tasks to reduce headcount.
For example, we helped integrate a company’s distinct MSP operations in Japan into its global program. This complex project required combined expertise in contingent workforce management, technology, change management, and a strong grasp of local labor regulations. The result: we shortened hiring cycles by more than two days, and achieved 100% compliance with category requirements.
Takeaway: Clients rely on MSP expertise to examine all angles, obtain buy-in, and execute plans with the commitment needed for success. A quality MSP can bring the level of credibility needed to support the strategy.
Drive ROI and long-term workforce success with MSP consulting
An MSP’s consulting practice can be the difference you need to overcome complex and difficult workforce challenges. With an MSP, you gain access to expertise that is cost-effective, objective, strategic, and actionable.
Our goal in any engagement is to build a lasting, trusted client relationship. That means your consultant will only recommend a course of action if it’s absolutely beneficial and ROI-friendly. It’s a win for both the provider and client, and a competitive advantage that will keep you ahead in a challenging business and workforce environment.
