When your business is operating full-tilt or you’re in the middle of a major project, hiring may be the last thing on your mind. Putting in the effort to hire new staff may seem like a net loss, since it requires time and money – two things you don’t have in the thick of a project.
Postponing recruitment, however, costs a business more in the long run. Understaffing negatively affects your ability to meet your customers’ needs, risking harm to your reputation. It also carries several hidden costs, including:
- Productivity. Even highly motivated workers can only accomplish so much work in any given day or week. Having the right staff available increases productivity, allowing the company to meet deadlines and offer higher-quality goods and services.
- Employee stress and morale. Overwork leads to stress, which endangers employees’ physical and mental health, and undermines morale. Understaffing requires fewer employees to shoulder greater burdens, increasing stress and decreasing morale.
- Turnover costs. Worn-out workers are more likely to leave an organization at the first opportunity, especially if their physical or mental health is at stake. Turnover forces the company to deal with recruitment more often, spending more time and money on replacing workers.
- Inability to grow as a company. Companies that struggle to handle their current workloads are rarely able to take on new projects or clients – and if they do, they may be stretched too thin to provide quality results. Understaffing stunts a company’s growth by diverting energy from innovation to survival.
How Should My Company Deal With Understaffing?
When you’re already stretched thin, staffing sounds like one more project. But it’s a short-term project that can offer long-term payout, and you don’t have to face it alone. Working with a recruiter to develop a strategic staffing plan and make hires that fit the plan will relieve both the short-term burden of finding new talent and the long-term difficulties associated with challenge and growth in the marketplace. Recruiters can also help your organization find contract workers, temp workers, or consultants to address temporary understaffing or skills gaps.
At Marquee Staffing, our experienced recruiters can help you find the talent you need to address understaffing, both in the short and the long term. Contact us today to learn more!