Business Process Outsourcing

Customer Background
Formed in 1987, Selectemp Employment Services is the product of two experienced managers in the wood products industry. Steve Gaughan and Roger Cox knew that manufacturing companies need well-trained, reliable employees that can be hired on a non-permanent basis and that can be obtained for a reasonable cost.

Following a "Jobs that Fit" philosophy, Steve and Roger share a passion for matching people's skills and abilities to jobs that they will enjoy.

Selectemp's Staffing Managers spend an extraordinary amount of time in the interview process to get to know the candidates whom they will be placing. In turn, their clients succeed because they receive reliable contract employees that are well-qualified for the assignment. This approach works well for all parties involved - job seekers, employers and Selectemp. This full-circle success is what sets Selectemp apart from its competitors.

Selectemp specializes in the areas of Light Industrial, Production/Assembly, Warehouse, Skilled Labor, Specialty Trades, Technical, Professional and Clerical/Administrative.

Currently, Selectemp operates four offices which staff approximately thirty employees. Many of its key personnel have been with the company for many years, a credit to Steve and Roger's goal to hire a staff that shares their passion for the business.

To learn more about Selectemp, please visit www.selec-temp.com.

Situation
Not all clients are a good fit to self-host their staffing software solution. While some value the control, many others find the responsibilities, requirements and costs associated with it to be an unnecessary burden.

When Selectemp initially implemented its TempWorks staffing solution, it chose to take on these responsibilities and house the system on its own servers at its main office location. This meant purchasing the necessary server equipment and employing an IT staff that would be responsible for daily maintenance, performance and network connection reliability.

Through the years, Selectemp grew aware that it was not efficiently running its software off of self-hosted servers. The current equipment was aging and nearing its capacity - factors which translated into a near-future need to purchase new servers, plus additional ones to accommodate for growth. And, with the equipment's condition on a downward slope, network performance was degrading.

Connection to the network had become frustratingly slow. It typically took twenty minutes for a branch office user to login to the system - equaling 100 lost minutes every week for each branch office employee. In some instances, only two branch office users at a time could connect to the system through the network. Both situations drastically reduced productive work-time every day, first thing in the morning. Selectemp's staff was frustrated by the work flow interruptions that restricted full utilization of the software system.

The IT staff was called upon daily to address connection speed and reliability problems. But, they weren't the only ones handling the burden. Selectemp's Vice President of Administration was spending approximately 20-25 percent of her work week dealing with network issues. She took calls every day from branch office staff members who were reporting connection problems, and then burned more time communicating the issues to the IT staff.

Selectemp pegged two main areas that demanded improvement in its current situation: reliability and speed. Specifically, it wanted a guarantee that branch office users would access the system through the network, and it wanted to drastically reduce the time that it took them to login and start working.

"The TempWorks Hosted solution has greatly increased productivity and has virtually eliminated the frustrations endured with our previous, self-hosted model. We feel that TempWorks plays a very important part in our company's journey of going from being a good company to becoming a great company."
Roger Cox, CEO, Selectemp

Solution
Selectemp was a perfect candidate for the TempWorks Hosted ASP solution. With this model, Selectemp still utilizes its full-featured staffing software, but without the hardware and maintenance responsibilities.

TempWorks Software assumed the full responsibility of housing the Selectemp database on its servers in its secure, climate-controlled Data Center. A skilled team of system administrators maintain the servers and network connection, and perform daily data back-ups.

The Hosted solution offers Selectemp the flexibility to access its system from any remote location through an internet-enabled PC. Staffing Managers that are on-call can login to the system from home, rather than having to come into the office to deal with urgent needs.

Results
With its transition to the TempWorks Hosted solution, Selectemp eliminated in-house server equipment and storage space. No longer using internal staff to fix maintenance and connectivity issues, it directs 100 percent of its resources to what it does best - staffing.

Technology-related issues are rare and Selectemp feels that they are now using their staffing solution to the best of its ability. Branch office users are able to connect in just a few seconds, rather than the previous twenty minutes. "It probably takes them longer to type in their user login information than it does for the system to come online," remarks Roger Cox, CEO for Selectemp. Worker satisfaction has improved, along with the enhanced productivity from decreased interruptions.

Selectemp's VP of Administration gained back the 25 percent of her work week expended on the network connection complaints. She is able to focus all of her valuable time on more important operating tasks.

The original IT staff, used to uphold a self-hosted environment, was released. A new IT team was hired to concentrate on advancing new technology projects at Selectemp, like website development and Voice-Over IP technology.

Relationship building is a top priority at Selectemp that distinguishes it from the other staffing firms in its markets. The boost in internal productivity and efficiency from switching to a hosted solution helps it to deliver higher quality service to its employees and clients.