Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/135744
MSP Maximizing Values Using HR management skills to advance trust, communication, and training. By Paul Petersen In order for an organization to receive maximum benefit from a managed services program (MSP), HR needs to help drive broad adoption of the MSP program across departments. One of the best ways to do this is to use HR management skills to cultivate a successful "three-way street" relationship among the practitioner, the provider, and the supplier community. Cultivate Trust HR professionals typically gain the trust of both employees and management by perfecting the art of balancing their differing needs. With your MSP and supplier community, you should strive to do the same. As MSP programs have matured, they've gone beyond the general administrative and IT categories to expand their offerings to include niche suppliers within categories previously not included in the MSP program. However, it is still a work-in-progress when it comes to process issues. While the MSP relationship is generally one of mutual respect, a few sensitive topics periodically cause tension. For instance, some staffing suppliers feel that MSPs prevent them from directly soliciting candidate feedback from you and your hiring managers. At the same time, MSPs feel that some suppliers aren't completely committed to refraining from fulfilling orders outside their program—usually through a combination of hiring manger instruction and a recruiter's desire to fulfill the request. Although some of these issues are sore spots within the program, they can be turned into a win-win-win for all involved if you engage the supply base as allies in the hiring process. Additionally, as an advocate for the success of the MSP program in your organization, you can provide support by working with management to help develop processes that allow for the unique fulfillment requirements of these categories. For instance, in the niche "digital creative" category, it is important for an MSP program to allow for the following requirements: Figure 1 Unique Requirement Candidate Showcasing For creative talent, "showcasing" highlights the candidate's most noteworthy accomplishment, skill, or ability to an end user. Technical Skills Ratings Particularly for digital creative positions, it's critical to provide a place to communicate a technical skill rating to end users. Expert Technical Interviews Particularly for positions that require technical skills, such as evaluating code, candidates should be evaluated by experts in their field. Portfolio Reviews [46] How to Accommodate There are a number of ways in which creative, marketing, and digital hiring managers evaluate creative work. Most importantly, they want to see visuals, so it is important to see samples of work. HRO TODAY MAGAZINE | MAY 2013