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Direct Sourcing

Key Providers for 2021: Prosperix

Solution Providers by Christopher J. Dwyer on

The Background:

There is no doubt that the events of the past 18 months brought about a level of change to business the likes that had never been seen before. The very attributes of the Future of Work movement were accelerated, including the power of remote and hybrid work, advancements in talent engagement and talent acquisition, and the transformation of how business leaders structured their work-based strategies and approaches.

Given the symbiotic relationship between talent, technology, and evolutionary business thinking, there is added weight to how the many aspects of the Future of Work were accelerated in the face of global business disruption. As organizational leaders continue to reimagine what workforce management means to their enterprises, the accompany technology must work harmoniously with the alterations across the greater economic and labor markets.

Enter Prosperix.

Why They Were Selected:

A little less than a year ago, Prosperix operated under the “Crowdstaffing” brand; this solution was known for many of its industry-leading pieces of functionality that promoted a powerful “user experience” regarding applicant and candidate data tracking, analysis, comparison, and presentation, built on top of the solution’s foundational hiring marketplace (a built-in network of thousands of ready-to-hire talent suppliers).

The newly-rebranded Prosperix solution not only builds on these strengths, but also offers technology that truly allows its users to harness the power of the Future of Work movement and tap into the greater value of the agile workforce.

In Their Own Words:

Prosperix is a Silicon Valley-based workforce innovation company developing software for the Future of Work. Our contingent workforce and total talent management solutions enable businesses to build a powerful workforce that delivers extraordinary outcomes. The main tenets that drive the company’s philosophy are:

  • Today’s workforce must be global, empowered, agile, transparent, high-performing, and diverse.
  • The right people can dramatically impact the success of an organization.
  • When individuals and organizations are aligned, great results and outcomes are possible.
  • Innovation that combines technology and people in a meaningful way is the path to the future.

With our technology, businesses can access amazing talent from anywhere and everywhere, on-demand and without limitations, allowing them to grow exponentially by scaling their workforce quickly and easily. Our end-to-end solution includes applicant tracking, vendor management, connected talent pools, direct sourcing, artificial intelligence, real-time analytics, personal curation, and easy-to-use technology in a single, cloud-based, fully-integrated software suite.

The Outlook:

Prosperix’s messaging is incredibly unique in today’s workforce solutions market, leading with an edge that differentiates the company from others in the space. Understanding that it is the convergence between the “human” and “technology” elements of workforce management that will help both candidates and businesses prosper in the face of continued evolution across the greater world of talent and work.

Prosperix is positioned for incredible growth and impact heading into 2022, with offerings that traverse beyond mere workforce management. On top of an already-industry-leading hiring marketplace, the solution’s direct sourcing, talent pools, and VMS offerings are aligned with the company’s overall vision and purpose: provide human, workforce, and business prosperity in a time when the Future of Work movement is table stakes for organizations that want to thrive during these changing times.

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What is the Future of Direct Sourcing?

Direct SourcingTalentTalent Acquisition by Christopher J. Dwyer on

Businesses learned a harsh lesson in 2020: those that could not adapt to the major shifts in work optimization were the ones that could not survive months of extreme disruption. As 2021 careens towards its end, another new year is on the horizon, and businesses must prepare for perhaps the most critical period of their history given the direction of the economy and the labor market.

The shift towards “flexibility as the Future of Work” means that enterprises must execute in a more dynamic manner. The companies that thrived and continue to thrive are the organizations that understand and embrace 1) how they want to get work done, 2) the talent and technology needed to get that work done across both the short- and long-term, and 3) the proper balance between human and automation.

In looking at various perspectives in how work was transformed over the past 18 months, there is one strategic program that businesses seem to gravitate towards in convergence with the talent-led world in which we now live: direct sourcing.

Going into 2020, direct sourcing and talent pools were the #1 and #2 (respectively) priorities for businesses; even the most forward-looking organization could not imagine at that time just how critical a program it would be in the face of unprecedented change. Even the most basic direct sourcing programs drive table-stakes value to their owners through a combination of on-demand, plug-and-play talent and a level of hard cost savings. However, many attributes of the world of work and talent were fast-tracked over the past 18 months due to the most serious public health crisis of our lifetimes and its long-ranging ramifications across the scope of business, worker, and personal perspectives.

Direct sourcing went from being an additional way to find talent to a revolutionary means of tapping into the extended workforce to drive better business outcomes. As the business world continues to evolve, even in the throes of a “Great Resignation,” the lowest unemployment since the pandemic began, and “power” shifting to the worker, the continued transformation of talent engagement is now a standard. The question then becomes: How do businesses continue to respond in the wake of being forced to reimagine talent acquisition, human capital, and the agile workforce?

Direct Sourcing 2.0.

“Direct Sourcing 2.0” follows the next generation of direct sourcing strategies and is fundamentally rooted in the linkage between key technological arenas, a renewed focus on the candidate experience, a seamless connection between talent pools and the projects and roles that require specific expertise, and a retooled “hiring manager experience” that takes into account Future of Work-era innovation.

Why the shift to Direct Sourcing 2.0? Isn’t direct sourcing effective in its “1.0” version? Of course. Direct sourcing and its traditional phases (including talent curation, talent pool segmentation, integration into core recruitment streams, talent nurture, etc.) are driving increased value within those organizations that are currently leveraging standard programs. However, that doesn’t mean it can’t evolve. Take into account the major shifts in both business and candidate behavior over the 18 months, and, especially, over the past several months:

  • The “candidate experience” is far deeper than we ever imagined. It’s not just about ensuring that candidates have a positive experience when engaged, but rather extending that experience into areas such as when they are engaged, how they are engaged, the communication methods used for reach out, methods of onboarding and offboarding (seamless, digital, and virtual!), etc. Recruitment marketing automation, digitized referral campaigns, and a mobile-optimized means of communicating with hiring managers all contribute to the next great era of the candidate experience.
  • Hiring managers should be engaging and sourcing talent in a consumerized and enhanced manner for the sake of efficiency and quality. This doesn’t mean that we have to completely meld e-commerce technology with direct sourcing platforms, however, it does translate into taking into account just how effective existing processes are within the hiring managers’ total workload. The greater business must provide hiring managers with the necessary trust and education to ensure that these leaders are converging the company’s main goals and objectives with how they find, engage, and source talent (which will result in superior role-to-candidate matches). In addition, harnessing the power of next-gen direct sourcing automation, recruitment marketing technology, and similar solutions will boost the hiring manager experience.
  • Businesses must go “beyond the brand” and prove that they are fostering truly inclusive workplace cultures that resonate with candidates. An organization’s “brand” can be a powerful tool for direct sourcing; candidates tend to flock to those companies that align with their own beliefs and values. However, businesses must move beyond the brand and incorporate deeper elements of the organization in how it applies Direct Sourcing 2.0 strategies, including communicating its purpose and vision (and ensuring that it resonates with candidates) and how well its preferences in how work is done are broadcast to workers (fully-remote, hybrid, on-site, etc.). A purpose-driven organization wants to establish a more trustful relationship with its candidates, share its core cultural values with them (particularly on the DE&I front), and communicate how open it is to the attributes desired in today’s “Age of the Worker,” such as flexibility, career development opportunities, and the enablement of core skills growth.

Look for the Future of Work Exchange‘s upcoming Direct Sourcing 2.0 research study later this month.

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Unlimited to the Core: PRO Unlimited Bolsters Direct Sourcing Technology With WillHire Acquisition

Direct SourcingSolution ProvidersTechnology and Innovation by Christopher J. Dwyer on

Just a few years ago, many business leaders were aware of the benefits of direct sourcing but had not yet fully embraced its value. In 2019, direct sourcing as an extension of non-employee workforce management caught steam when enterprises realized that they could drive both hard and soft benefits through direct relationships with known and vetted candidates; by bringing these workers into curated pools and internal talent communities, enterprises had a cost-effective and on-demand way of injecting new, top-tier talent into their projects and initiatives.

Going into 2020, direct sourcing and talent pools were, respectively, the top two priorities for businesses entering a new decade. Although the early months of the pandemic may have put a damper on many talent acquisition and contingent workforce program initiatives, the truth is that direct sourcing (and its many unique attributes) emerged as an ideal means of both keeping top-tier candidates engaged and positioning the greater organization with workforce agility. And today, direct sourcing has become one of the preeminent means of driving higher talent quality and supporting true workforce scalability. Nearly 55% of businesses across the globe, according to Future of Work Exchange research, have a proper direct sourcing initiative in place today (compared to only half this figure just two years ago).

MSP and VMS provider PRO Unlimited has long demonstrated its direct sourcing efficacy, with its DirectSource PRO offering one of the market’s strongest solutions for direct sourcing. While the provider’s end-to-end power is industry-leading, achieving the “platform” vision that CEO Kevin Akeroyd laid out last year would not be possible without both organic growth and aggressive market activity to bolster the solution’s already-impressive range of innovative functionality.

“Direct sourcing is no longer a “hype cycle” topic, it is a mission-critical priority for enterprises and one that is finally being invested heavily in and adopted. The historical problem has been the utter fragmentation and immaturity of solutions,” said Kevin Akeroyd, CEO of PRO Unlimited. “Large global brands have needed MSP services, curation Services, direct sourcing SaaS, VMS SaaS, analytics SaaS, market rate data, and payroll just to get off the ground. So, they’ve gone out and hired seven small vendors that each do their own little piece, and that large brand spends the next several years doing nothing but managing people/process/systems integration and vendor management instead of driving business outcomes, winning the war for talent, and driving hundreds of millions of savings out of their organizations every year. DirectSource PRO has solved that; it’s the one holistic platform that does everything, at scale, globally, and provides that single platform and system of record for direct sourcing…Hence the adoption of over 40 Fortune 1000 clients adopting it just in the last five months (with that number expected to be over 80 by the end of the year).”

Yesterday, PRO Unlimited announced that it had acquired WillHire, one of the industry’s leading direct sourcing technology offerings. The acquisition allows PRO to reinforce the strength of its DirectSource PRO solution and tap into additional functionality; this acquisition also enables PRO to leverage WillHire’s comprehensive end-to-end campaign management technology for recruitment marketing, as well as its “marketing automation-like” self-scheduling and communication with talent. Other highlights of this acquisition include:

  • PRO Unlimited, WillHire, and Eightfold are a winning trifecta for direct sourcing. PRO’s direct sourcing technology was already a leading solution due its innovative stack and partnership with Eightfold. The addition of WillHire not only bolsters the total power of the DirectSource PRO offering from a pure functionality perspective, but also complements the DE&I and candidate assessment data that is funneled through the Eightfold partnership.
  • WillHire brings an added layer of repeatable “Direct Sourcing 2.0” technology to PRO’s existing functionality. One of WillHire’s core strengths (as written about in Ardent’s 2021 Digital Staffing Platforms Technology Advisor) is its ability to enable “Direct Sourcing 2.0” capabilities, such as recruitment marketing, automated referral management, and deeper candidate matching algorithms. This acquisition will surely increase the overall power and impact of Direct Source PRO.
  • WillHire’s relationships and integrations with major job boards and career sites will deepen the overall talent reach of DirectSource PRO. The very crux of direct sourcing is building a repository of known, vetted, and top-shelf talent; WillHire’s existing integrations with leading industry job boards translates into a more robust swath of high-quality candidates. This will fortify DirectSource PRO’s talent engagement reach.

“Adding WillHire enables us to add large-scale digital talent board/network/FMS integrations, deeper AI/MBL matching, candidate/worker recruitment marketing and ongoing engagement, and skills assessment to the platform,” Akeroyd added. “And, as importantly, it is robust across ALL job types – including shift workers, light industrial, not just white collar, so it allows us to enable direct sourcing for an enterprise’s ENTIRE contingent worker population.”

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Key Providers for 2021: GRI

Solution Providers by Christopher J. Dwyer on

The Background:

The Managed Service Provider (MSP) model has long been a powerful solution in the workforce management industry, its longevity owed to decades of success in transforming how companies think about their talent, how they structure contingent workforce management (CWM) initiatives, and how they ultimately drive value from their extended workforce.

Today’s MSP offerings have evolved mightily in recent years to provide their clients with a slew of services designed to facilitate end-to-end management of SOW/services procurement, direct sourcing, payrolling, talent acquisition, and more. In fact, many leading MSP solutions are reimagining their services suites to reflect the dynamic changes occurring in the greater world of work and talent.

GRI is one of those solutions.

Why They Were Selected:

Many of the globe’s market-leading managed services offerings have a similar slew of products that are only slighted differentiated based on such attributes like service model delivery and sector-specific aspects. One key differentiator of those MSPs that stand out from the pack is the ability to provide its customers with not just traditional value, but true workforce and business agility through a focus on talent, technology, and transformative thinking.

Geometric Results, Inc. (GRI) has long been a household name in the MSP space, and for good reason: its Envision Analytics is a self-service portal that blends powerful business intelligence with real-time talent data. Predictive analytics, neural machine learning models, and hundreds of data sources position Envision Analytics as one of the contingent workforce industry’s deepest, most robust reporting-led offerings.

In addition, its “Managed Direct Sourcing” approach allows customers to build flexible direct sourcing programs and strategies that traverse beyond simple talent pools; GRI’s MDS product is one of the market’s most forward-thinking direct sourcing offerings and positions clients’ direct sourcing programs with a 360-degree brilliance of agility through a strong convergence of industry expertise, human-led processes, and Best-in-Class automation.

In Their Own Words:

GRI works exclusively for our customers and transcends the industry standards. The client comes first and our role as an exclusive advocate is absolute and unbiased.  We are the only MSP that is (1) singularly focused (2) vendor-neutral, (3) free of all channel conflict, and (4) not controlled by a staffing company.

GRI focuses solely on delivering innovative, Best-in-Class workforce solutions as an independent MSP provider. And in an industry that largely lacks transparency, and is steeped with channel-conflict, no other workforce solutions company can back up this claim!

We offer a direct sourcing solution that is native to our MSP. It creates meaningful cost savings and reduced time-to-fill beyond the typical program while improving worker quality. It works well because we are motivated and incentivized by its success; no other MSP can confidently stake that claim.    

We actually innovate — it’s not just an overused and largely misunderstood word at GRI. The ‘box’ doesn’t direct us, and therefore it’s much easier for us to think outside of it. And to think instead about technologies, talent acquisition models and processes as well as the collective ecosystem that will most benefit our clients.

The Outlook:

GRI is positioned as an MSP that will thrive in the years ahead due to its commitments to flexibility, innovation, and the Future of Work. Its unique Managed Direct Sourcing offering balances the necessary human elements with a deep technology stack and platform ecosystem, while its Envision Analytics tool is one of the industry’s finest talent intelligence solutions.

As the world of talent and work continues to evolve and adapt and require talent- and intelligence-led offerings, GRI will continue to establish itself as a preeminent source of workforce management innovation.

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The Symbiotic Link Between Digitization, Talent, and the Future of Work

Business LeadershipTalentTechnology and Innovation by Christopher J. Dwyer on

The very concept of “digital transformation” is limited in its scope: move to a digital infrastructure that creates value and optimizes enterprise processes. While a digital transformation effort is much better than leveraging age-old manual strategies, there is a fundamental flaw in how today’s businesses are approaching this increasing digitization and parlaying its benefits into the ultimate success of the greater enterprise.

Digital transformation depends on the evolving talent ecosystem, and businesses must embrace this symbiotic link to truly optimize how work is done.

For the past decade, I’ve defined the Future of Work in both simplistic and more intricate manners; the simple definition is “how enterprises optimize how work gets done through the advancements in talent acquisition, the advent of new technology and innovation, and the transformation of business leadership/business thinking.” The more complex version follows a cascading revolution of reimagining the very elements of work, including talent, diversity, workplace structure, technology and innovation, collaboration, etc.

It’s much more complicated than simply automating facets of the business. And it’s so much more than shooting for the “digital enterprise” goal. We’re at an inflection point when it comes to work, talent, and technology: embrace the linkage between these elements, or, lose the agility and flexibility afforded by the power of this convergence.

Businesses learned a harsh lesson in 2020: those that could not adapt to the major shifts in work optimization were the ones that could not survive months of extreme disruption. While we are now nine months into 2021 (wow…time flies, doesn’t it?), another new year is on the horizon, and businesses must prepare for perhaps the most critical year of their history given the direction of the economy and the labor market. The shift towards “flexibility as the Future of Work” means that enterprises must execute in a more dynamic manner. The companies that thrived and continue to thrive are the organizations that understand and embrace 1) how they want to get work done, 2) the talent and technology needed to get that work done across both the short- and long-term, and 3) the proper balance between human and automation. In addition:

  • It’s not just about remote work, but rather the way remote workers collaborate, improve their productivity, and share intelligence. Digitization isn’t just for the office. With upwards of 44% of all workers telecommuting today (according to new Future of Work Exchange research), these critical professionals require the proper tools, technology, and software to be productive and connective with the greater organization. So much of the focus on hybrid work models has been on trust, communication, and productivity, when it should rightfully be on priming these workers for success.
  • Businesses must tap into the full ecosystem of talent-led technology, including AI-led candidate assessment, digital staffing, talent marketplaces, etc., to drive a better alignment between work and skillsets. Using one outlet of talent technology won’t cut it moving forward. With so many job openings and “The Great Resignation” hopefully receding as we move into 2022, businesses are nonetheless faced with continued pressure to deepen human capital and future-proof skillsets within their total workforce. The only way to solve this incredible challenge is to invest in reskilling and upskilling, validate skills through AI-fused assessment tools, augment the total workforce by tapping into on-demand talent marketplaces, and developing a long-term digital staffing roadmap that ensures all talent gaps can be addressed from both internal and external channels of expertise.
  • And, speaking of skillsets: “talent sustainability” is developed through data science, next-gen analytics, artificial intelligence, and data oceans that provide executives with real-time snapshots of their total talent. Talent sustainability is a keystone of the Future of Work moving further, as businesses require the ability to plug-and-play talent across a hypothetical future whilst maintaining, developing, and retaining the necessary skillsets to thrive. This is only possible through a thorough mix of talent management, skills assessments, next-gen solutions (like AI), and a commitment to harnessing data science to uncover core expertise gaps in both the general workforce and the leadership behind it.
  • Digital recruitment depends on automated marketing, seamless referral campaigns, and full linkage of talent acquisition systems. “Digital recruitment” differs from “digital staffing” in that the former relies on more elegance and strategic capabilities rather than an external channel or talent network. As such, businesses must develop a positive and seamless “hiring manager experience” that allows these leaders to build pipelines of talent through automated referral campaigns, digital marketing initiatives that promote the company culture and brand, and full linkage of these efforts into greater talent acquisition strategies (and associated talent engagement, ATS, VMS, etc. platforms).
  • Direct sourcing must move from “strategy” to “embedded architecture.” A straightforward notion: move direct sourcing from being a bolted-on workforce management strategy to one that is embedded in the digital architecture of the greater organization. Talent pools should be segmented and available on-demand in enterprise recruitment streams, while talent pipelines should be contributed to and accessed by any hiring manager across the organization for total visibility and proactive planning. Talent nurture should be a natural series of seamless processes that are automatically designed to facilitate open communication with candidates to foster engagement and continually reflect the strength of the enterprise brand.

And, finally, a fundamental shift in the role of digitization: technology should not be the total linchpin to organizational success, but rather a realm of interconnected functionality, data, and intelligence that reinforces true business agility and workforce flexibility. Problem-solving has long been the gateway for businesses to invest in, adopt, and leverage next-generation technology; the Future of Work dictates that businesses execute more forward-thinking strategies in the vein of innovation. The symbiotic link between digitization, talent, and the Future of Work is what will allow business to be more proactive as they build a dynamic infrastructure that is built on elements of new technology platforms, real-time data and intelligence, and an overarching desire to develop a truly agile workplace culture.

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Key Providers for 2021: Talmix

Solution Providers by Christopher J. Dwyer on

The Background:

The global talent acquisition and HR markets have collectively experienced a near-700% increase in the adoption of digital and on-demand staffing solutions over the past five years, a direct response to the evolution of talent engagement, shifts in how businesses view their contingent workforce, and the overall transformation of how work is addressed and done.

For today’s businesses that crave true workforce agility and aim to engage top-tier talent in an on-demand manner, talent marketplace and digital staffing solutions have emerged as go-to platforms. However, while these solutions offer deep networks of vetted talent, businesses also require functionality that can ensure alignment with key projects, roles, and positions while developing true collaboration between independent talent and enterprise hiring managers.

Enter Talmix.

Why They Were Selected:

Talmix offers one of the deepest channels of strategic talent across the globe and is primed for fast growth in the years ahead due to its robust candidate-matching functionality (fueled by true artificial intelligence), robust analytics and reporting, and commitment to direct sourcing. The solution’s “Talent Passport” offering is a unique module that automatically updates each candidate’s core skillsets (including soft skills) based on the evolution of career paths, projects completed, and answers to dynamic screening questions.

The Talmix solution is one of few platforms that provides a deep service-layer offering on top of a robust technology system and global marketplace of top-tier, in-demand skillsets and expertise.

In Their Own Words:

It’s five years since Talmix launched and our purpose is unchanged – we want to unlock the power of the extended workforce. We have built a talent marketplace and global talent network focused on Business Talent. Companies use Talmix to create an extended workforce which can address skills and operational requirements, and get critical work done.

Our platform automates the heavy lifting for both the client and the talent, so they benefit from a first-class experience in terms of using the platform, and because this is high-end business talent and high-value projects, we don’t forget the service layer to enhance that experience.  Being global provides more flexibility to our clients and talent – the opportunity to have the best talent working on projects, regardless of location.

As more companies turn to the extended workforce, we want to make sure that our platform continues to develop and support those companies with the fastest and most precise way to reach that workforce. For example, this week we’re launching tagging capabilities, meaning more data points on the Talent Passport for talent, and easier ways of defining projects for client.

And our name tells it all –  we believe that with the right mix of talent, anything is possible.

The Outlook:

The Talmix solution enables a deeper understanding of worker demographics, micro-experiences, soft skills, feedback, work style preferences, and other key worker attributes, which are dynamically updated as candidates complete new jobs and projects. This innovative approach towards talent marketplace functionality, especially in a business world that is evolving seemingly overnight, can be incredibly crucial for those HR and talent acquisition executives that require a specific level of expertise for mission-critical projects and initiatives.

And, with its direct sourcing and talent pool functionality, Talmix will be positioned to help global businesses engage, build, and develop a truly agile workforce in the face of massive transformation within the greater world of work.

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Contingent Workforce Weekly, Episode 606: A Conversation With Cesar Jimenez, CEO of myBasePay

Podcast by Christopher J. Dwyer on

Another all-new edition of the Contingent Workforce Weekly episode, sponsored by DZConneX, a Yoh company, features a conversation with Cesar Jimenez, CEO of myBasePay. Cesar and I discuss the impact of direct sourcing, the current state of talent and work, the future of the agile workforce, DE&I, and so much more.

Tune into Episode 606 of Contingent Workforce Weekly below, or subscribe on Apple Music, Spotify, Stitcher, or iHeartRadio.

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Contingent Workforce Weekly, Episode 604: A Conversation with Matt Pietsch, Chief Strategy Officer at High5

Podcast by Christopher J. Dwyer on

An all-new edition of the Contingent Workforce Weekly episode, sponsored by DZConneX, a Yoh company, features a discussion with Matt Pietsch, Chief Strategy Officer at High5. Matt and I chat about the digital staffing industry, the evolution of direct sourcing, the outlook for the Future of Work movement, and much more.

Tune into Episode 604 of Contingent Workforce Weekly below, or subscribe on Apple Music, Spotify, Stitcher, or iHeartRadio.

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The Agile Workforce Runs on Talent Marketplaces and Talent Communities

Direct SourcingTalentTalent AcquisitionTechnology and Innovation by Christopher J. Dwyer on

Last year, Ardent Partners predicted that the global business landscape would experience a sharp uptick in the utilization of non-employee labor as a direct result of the pandemic’s sweeping impact on business and human interaction. Going into 2020, 43.5% of the average organization’s total workforce was considered “contingent.” In 2021, that number sits at nearly 47% and there are strong indications that this percentage will grow as the transformation of talent and work continues forward.

Additionally, 82% of all businesses state that the challenging times of 2020 created a bigger need for extended and non-employee talent. The past 12 months have clearly revealed that workforce scalability is an essential link to economic survival in the now-chaotic, hyper-competitive world of global business. Operationalizing that scalability is the very root of workforce agility, from which businesses can tap into talent pools, marketplaces, clouds, and communities to enhance the work done by the trusted FTE workers, and a range of services and other recruitment streams to build, in real time, a dynamic response to a crucial enterprise initiative. The contingent workforce has become the foundation of workforce scalability, and rightfully so: businesses that survived 2020 and look forward to thriving in the second half of 2021 are actively harnessing the dynamic power of the agile workforce to get work done.

In its upcoming Future of Work Exchange Report for 2021 research study, we discovered that Best-in-Class organizations (top-performing enterprises based on a series of key workforce, quality, visibility, etc. metrics) are 32% more likely to tap into digital staffing outlets for talent acquisition needs. These solutions, which typically include talent marketplaces and talent communities/clouds, offer vetted and high-quality talent for either general positions or specific verticals (such as light industrial, engineering, graphic design, coding, etc.). These offerings are often considered enterprise-grade solutions that facilitate real-time and on-demand talent engagement with independent, freelance, or contract workers via a web-based network or portal.

Talent marketplaces typically offer “white-glove” or high-touch talent management services (akin to Managed Service Providers) to help their clients source the best-fit talent for their project requirements as well as the automation of core workforce management processes (such as requisition management, talent pool development, and back-end financial operations). The utilization of talent marketplaces and digital staffing outlets has increased by over 700% over the past six years, according to our research.

Ardent Partners recently published a definitive guide to the digital staffing and talent marketplace solutions arena, the 2021 Digital Staffing Marketplaces Technology Advisor. Click here to register and download your copy today. This new report will assist executives and professionals understand this evolving solutions landscape and help them find, engage, and source top-tier talent and skillsets.

Download your copy of this critical new research study, and feel free to reach out if you have any questions regarding the new report, the digital staffing technology landscape, how to find the best-fit talent marketplace for your organization, etc.

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Preparing for Tomorrow’s Workforce

Contingent WorkforceHRTalent by Featured Contributor on

[Editor’s Note: Today’s article is a guest contribution from Neha Goel, Vice President of Marketing at Utmost.]

Tomorrow’s workforce is changing at a pace we have not experienced in past decades. The pandemic expedited what was already happening in the market: emerging technologies leading to automation and digital transformations; the desire for flexibility in how and where people work; a focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I); and globalization. It’s become clear organizations require a shift in how they think about and manage their entire workforce.

The Future of Work, which Ardent Partners defines as work optimization via the transformation of business operations, talent usage, seamless and comprehensive workforce management solutions, and flexible enterprise thinking, requires a change in how companies are tracking, managing, accessing, engaging, and reporting (i.e., spend, worker type, performance) on talent at an enterprise level.

Disparate systems make it difficult for companies to have visibility into their entire workforce. Even if an organization has a vendor management system (VMS) to track their contingent labor, they support as little as 10% of the total external workforce, which is now made up of project-based workers, freelancers, independent contractors, gig workers, and outsourced resources not captured in a VMS.

The Time is Now

As the non-employee utilization rate nears half of the total workforce (nearly 47% of the total workforce, according to Ardent), and more than 80% of large corporations planning on substantially increasing their use of a flexible workforce in the coming years, the time to prepare is now. The fastest-growing part of the workforce is the one that is currently not being tracked, which poses huge challenges for organizations.

This impacts activities like on/offboarding, classification, tenure, performance, payment, and reporting if only a portion of your total workforce is captured in your current ERP, VMS, and project-management tools. More importantly, it becomes impossible to assess and engage your total workforce in a scalable way without a single system of truth.

The Workforce is Changing

By 2025, 75% of the workforce will be made up of millennials — the most diverse group in American history, with 44.2% identifying as “non-white.” This should be a wake-up call for organizations who are not putting their DE&I initiatives at the top of their priority list. Having a platform that allows organizations to easily access, attract, retain, and report on diversity measures to meet their goals is crucial.

Millennials are also the first “digitally-native generation,” according to Pew Research, which means they expect to interact with work in the same way they interact in other aspects of their lives like ordering meals, rides, movies, and other services. They are demanding flexibility, engagement, diversity, career advancement, and a cultural fit regardless of how they are employed — be it full-time or contingent.

Future-Proof Technology

Together, all of these factors require organizations implement a technology platform built for the extended workforce. This can mean anything from connecting to new sourcing channels in an agile way to configurable back-end processes to managing distributed teams in a worker-centric way.

Utmost helps organizations fully engage and optimize their entire extended workforce. Built as a native application on the Workday Cloud Platform, Utmost provides a seamless experience for Workday customers to gain full visibility into their changing workforce composition, quality, and spend in an agile and scalable manner.

We believe the Future of Work is getting “the most from your all,” meaning the enterprise is getting the most out of its workforce, and talent has all the tools in place from their employer to bring their best selves to work. We believe this combination will set organizations, and their most significant competitive advantage, their talent, up for success.

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