Understand how Contract or Freelance Recruitment can Benefit your Business

It’s never been more popular for clients to use contractors or freelancers across Creative, Marketing, Digital & Tech. With the workplace landscape changing drastically in the past five years, it’s more and more apparent that companies require short term or interim staff to fill their gap.

The most common reasons clients approach us for contract or freelance resource are:

The process of hiring a permanent member of staff is too long, and they need support now
To drive costs down and keep ROI more manageable
Short term support for peak business periods or projects
Covering long term leave e.g. maternity, paternity or parental leave, sick cover, and holiday cover

Client Testimonial:

“I've recently moved to internal recruitment and had the pleasure of working with Katy and Ceri who have been above and beyond when helping me find and hire exceptional candidates.Their constant communication ensured I was always in the know, whilst being very friendly and personable always being available on the other end of the phone throughout the whole process. 5 stars!” - Tom - Creative agency, Manchester

But what’s stopping you?

After conducting our own independent research with all of our clients, these were the main barriers they faced when thinking of recruiting contractors or freelancers. As a result we’ve offered some helpful advice below:

IR35 regulation

The 2020 UK IR35 tax legislation really shook up the contract and freelance market. Our consultants at The Candidate can offer insight into all the rules and regulations, but the long story short is - before hiring a temporary member of staff, you need to complete a questionnaire or report to determine an individual’s tax status. We’ve got a whole host of guides to help you out and our consultants are just a call away as well! We can take you through the whole process and make this extra step simple.

Cost

It’s no secret that having a long term freelancer or contractor can be more expensive than hiring a full time member of staff.

But what about the long term cost on your permanent employees? If you have a gap in your team, timelines might be slipping and the rest of the department will likely be working overtime. All of this has not only a financial cost, but a culture cost to your company; the longer there’s a gap in the team, the more pennies go down the drain!

Finding an interim or temporary solution will definitely offset this cost. We also regularly benchmark our candidates and their rates against market average, to make sure you’re not spending through the nose.

Time to embed

It goes without saying, anyone starting in a new company will take a little time to settle in and adjust. BUT don’t forget, the majority of the time, this isn’t our contractors/freelancers first time at doing this - they are aware of what is needed from them and aim to come in and hit the ground running. We also thoroughly screen all our contract and freelance candidates, to ensure they’re ready for the task at hand.

However, if you feel a candidate is taking too long to settle in or you feel for whatever reason they aren’t suitable then call us straight away!

Unsure where to start!

Well, what better way than to speak to the experts! Our experienced contract recruitment consultants are here to guide you through every step of the way. We’re always just a phone call away for any questions you may have.

Interested in recruiting contract talent? Contact us today.

To see all our live contract roles, click here.

If you are are a candidate interested in contracting, click here.

Check out this article about the pros and cons of using freelancers here.