Case Study 2
Jasmine Howard
Liberty University

Case Study 2
Part I Kaiser Manufacturing Company has been in business for over 50 years using the standard method staffing. Hiring its own employees, training, managing and all human resources issues were all handled in house. The option is now arising to use an employment agency, FSS, to relieve the burden from Kaiser Manufacturing Company. It is important to weigh the advantages and disadvantages of this option before changing the entire business plan Kaiser Manufacturing Company has worked so long. The advantages include, flexible staff numbers, as of current Kaiser Manufacturing Company has a workforce of 725 production workers, 30 clerical workers, 32 engineer and professional workers, and 41 managers, who are all full time employees. This number was a perfect fit for the company when the sales were at an all-time high but as of 2008 the sales have stayed at 175 million annually. Cutting back on the cost of the workforce would be very beneficial to Kaiser Manufacturing Company’s bottom line. If and when sales are to peak or employees call out it is great to have the option to bring in more employees or decrease the number of employees staffed when necessary without adding more work to management.
A second advantage would be the caliber of workers available to the company. Though the current workers are adequate to keep the business running, it may be advantageous to bring in someone temporary to help understand why sales have not increased in so many years and formulate a plan to fix that. The opportunities to make the company better by bringing in highly skilled employees will benefit the company (Houseman, S., 2001). Since the workers are being sought out by FSS instead of Kaiser Manufacturing Company, it has less of a burden and expense on the company. The benefit of removing Kaiser Manufacturing Company from the staffing process helps with employment taxes, management, training, and employment relations so that the company can focus on the sales of the business and what is working towards future goals. The savings involved in removing most of the core workforce from in house staffing would enable to company to reinvest in itself. With over 800 workers the amount of health insurance cost alone would be a substantial savings for the company, enough to seriously consider FSS proposal.
The disadvantages of a flexible staffing agency include potentially losing a lot of the workers that have been with Kaiser Manufacturing Company the past 50 years because they are not able to be hired by FSS. With 750 production employees there is a chance that a great percentage will not be there to lead and help the new staff get accustomed to the company. When contingent workers are hired and there is a lack of experienced workers in place there may be a longer learning curve than normal. This could delay production and business could be affected depending on the level of expertise and capabilities of the new staff. Also contingent workers would report to a different manager and may need more leadership on the ground in order to keep the business afloat. There may be an expectation that the manager needs to be in house in order to deal with the amount of employees required to continue production. Part II FSS is providing an excellent opportunity to Kaiser Manufacturing Company if the expectations are set and met once the staffing is in motion. Offering to take the responsibility of recruiting, selecting, and hiring the potential will help alleviate a lot of responsibility from Kaiser Manufacturing Company. Kaiser Manufacturing Company can also set the expectation before an employee is hired to make sure they are up to company standard. Another advantage is to only have to deal with FSS, Kaiser Manufacturing Company has its own personal staffing service that will make sure everything involving employees handled without needing much input from Kaiser Manufacturing Company after the agreement and expectations have been set. A disadvantage included in using FSS is the amount of control the company has to put into the hiring agency to find what it needs, fulfill the promises made, and do all of this quickly with the least amount of expense. Though FSS takes care of a lot of the task Kaiser Manufacturing Company does now it does not come without a fee and stipulation. The markups could cost more than what the company is currently paying when doing its own staffing. Kaiser Manufacturing Company has to decide if the savings/cost associated with the markups is worth the convenience. Part III. When making this decision Kaiser Manufacturing Company may want to consider doing research on how other company’s in its industry have done wither contingent workers. This is important because some industries have to be heavily involved in finding its employees and retaining them. Finding out the policy behind bring an employee on as a full time employee and what stipulations follow with that. Knowing whether there is a certain amount of time an employee has to a contingent worker before making them full time and if that time is not met is there a fee associated with bringing them on early. Some staffing agencies will make a company payout the employees contract in order to hire them full time. Understanding the impact FSS will have on the day-to-day aspect of Kaiser Manufacturing Company is important, in the beginning will someone be able to assist with the transition? Is it necessary to have someone in house as a go to for all contingent workers and is so if there a fee associated with this? What things should FSS know about Kaiser Manufacturing Company before starting the recruiting process that may have a great impact on the success of a worker. There are numerous things that could go wrong with using a flexible staffing agency but it is important to make sure all parties involved are clear on expectation and what happens when those expectations are not met in order for the relationship to be successful.

References
Houseman, S. N.. (2001). Why Employers Use Flexible Staffing Arrangements: Evidence from an Establishment Survey. Industrial and Labor Relations Review, 55(1), 149–170. http://doi.org/10.2307/2696191