The notion of “procurement’s influence” is no strange term around these parts. In fact, collaboration is a common theme in the articles posted here on CPO Rising, and it’s certainly a prevalent theme that is aligned with contemporary contingent workforce management. Ardent’s Contingent Workforce Management Framework details the necessary capabilities, strategies and technologies required to effectively manage the full swath of contingent labor (including traditional temporary labor, complex contingent labor and independent contractors), as well as how each category of this labor should be measured from goal- and performance-based standpoints.
One ubiquitous aspect of the CWM Framework is very clear: supplier management principles are critical cogs in an effective contingent workforce management program. No matter the category of the CWM Framework, the role of supplier management is a prominent one.
While some supplier management attributes are actively leveraged to manage the realm of independent contractors (particularly when it comes to agreements, assessments, and contracts), the modern-day CWM program experiences the heaviest penetration of supplier management processes and capabilities within the traditional and complex contingent labor categories for one main reason: there are a wealth of vendors that supply talent, which must be managed effectively to control costs, manage compliance, and drive visibility.
In the world of traditional temporary labor management (which typically revolves around the management of staffing suppliers, agencies, vendors, and other sources of talent), it is crucial to apply rigorous supplier management principles to fully-understand the scope of talent sources and their financial ramifications on the greater organization. Managed Service Providers (MSPs) specialize in not only providing operational process assistance, but also providing a viable gateway in which enterprises can optimize their mix of staffing / talent suppliers.
Solution providers such as Kelly OCG, Staff Management, TAPFIN, and ZeroChaos offer vigorous supplier management capabilities as part of their global platforms. These offerings provide an entryway to staffing supplier visibility (via intelligence and data) and help users negotiate service-level agreements and manage / monitor both internal and external compliance to those agreements. Other supplier management aspects of the MSP model include:
- Frequent (set by user) compliance reviews to identify potential areas of misclassification
- Supplier optimization
- Identification of poorly-performing suppliers
- Standardized / optimal supplier reporting
One very significant aspect of the Managed Service Provider model is the fact that most of these solutions offer management of day-to-day operations within contingent workforce management. Effective CWM involves a multitude of processes, including invoicing / payment, compliance measurement, supplier management (as explained above), system administration and market analysis. And, of course, the most important attribute of all: being a single point-of-contact to a wide scope of talent suppliers.
RELATED ARTICLES
How Are We Doing? Five Questions to Evaluate Your CWM Program
Contingent Workforce Management Technology: Market Update, Q4 2013
The Next Generation of CWM Technology, Part III: The Evolving MSP
