Staffing Venture

Great article I saw today on Gizmodo, which is one of the best tech blogs on the web.

Seems like it’s all we’ve been talking about lately.

And a Happy Columbus Day to all my pisanos.

http://m.gizmodo.com/site?t=hCrmfnhskgJRU-WxVJUpbw&sid=gizmodoip

Hang in there folks, Friday is almost here. It’s been a hectic couple of weeks and I am looking forward to the weekend.

I had an interesting first call with a prospect this morning who recently signed up and has been using our free software. She loves the software and would like to switch to the more comprehensive version. I asked if she needs funding and she said no, as she already has a funding company. Then I asked who processes her payroll. She uses a local company. Then I asked about who does her billing. She does personally because her employees kept messing it up. Collecting/posting cash? Sometimes her, sometimes her factor.

The salesman within me was busting at the seems with exuberance. When I feel this good on the tee, the result of my over-exuberance is a premature start to the downswing, a quick turn of the hips, a jerk to the left and a pull hook drive that starts 30 yards left of my target. Same as in sales, but fortunately for the wife and kids I am a salesman and not a pro golfer. So I showed restraint and patience….

Including yourself, how many “vendors” do you have for payroll, taxes, billing, funding, AR management etc? How is the integration between lender/payroll processor/database/CRM/ATS? (Selling something, anything is easier when you listen more than you speak).

Ok, I had heard enough and asked what I needed to know. Ever-respectful of an entreprenuer’s time, I simply stated that Tempworks Venture will single-handedly assume all of those tasks and give you the software you are loving (with the full feature set) for about the same price, maybe less, than what you currently pay. Hmmmm. Oh, and all data is fully integrated. Hmmmmm. ATS, CRM, clients, employees, hours, payroll, billing, collections. All of it.

The last thing the prospect said was, “it just makes sense”. I couldn’t agree more.

http://iphone.foxnews.com/story/0/560501-FTC-Regulate-Blogging.html

It’s a great Monday in Minnesota. We have 2 out of state prospects that came from far and wide to meet the TW team and see our products in action.

There is an unquestionable correlation between successful staffing company owners and visitors to our corporate office. On the flip side, staffing services who fail to do their research properly often wind up in relationships that don’t meet their expectations.

We invite you to visit Tempworks and see what the staffing industry is abuzz about.

Happy Friday SV blog readers. A nice and intimate Friday Webinar is in the books and the discussion was a good one. We discussed mostly high end contract staffing assignments and the difference between making those placements and regular transactional staffing. The takeaway was the recruiting efforts are far more extensive and time consuming but the rewards are proportionately better, with longer term assignments and higher margins.

As usual the price discussion came up and again we reiterated the importance of charging enough to earn profits and cautioned about being a charity vs. a business. And how bill and pay rates are largely determined by the marketplace.

Please join us next Friday at 11:30 EDT. Have a great weekend.

Hi folks a reminder that we will be getting together for our usual Friday Webinar, “How to Start a Staffing Business” sponsored by Tempworks and hosted by me, Jack Terrana. Please visit tempworks.com to register for free.

POST FALLS, Idaho–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Command Center, Inc. (OTCBB: CCNI), an emerging provider of on-demand, reliable labor solutions, today announced revenue of $5.24 million for the five-week reporting period of September 2009. The company noted that average weekly sales of $21,389 per store in September was the highest weekly average recorded for any month in 2009.

Revenue for the third quarter ended September 25, 2009 was $13.23 million versus $22.03 million in the like year-ago period. This comparison is impacted by deterioration in the general economy over the past 12 months and by the fact that the Company, as part of its continuing Profit Improvement Program, closed eight underperforming stores in the nine month period of 2009.

“Sales of $1.12 million for the last week in the quarter were the strongest we have seen in many months,” said Command’s Chairman and CEO, Glenn Welstad, “and the preceding week was only slightly lower. Revenues also remained stronger than expected through the two weeks covering the Labor Day holiday – which historically have created a drag on September sales.

“The recent American Staffing Association Weekly Employment Index showed a positive percentage change in staffing employment in ten out of the last eleven weeks. While it is too soon to know if September marks the beginning of an upward trend in our business, we are certainly encouraged by what we are seeing at this point in the economic recovery.”

Happy Humpday SV readers. As some of you may know the Staffing Expo is just weeks away and the attendance is predicted to be an all time low. Should you be going? The short answer is probably not. Tempworks has been a huge supporter of the ASA and their Expo for years and when all is said and done, we have probably dropped close to $1mm. This year we are not exhibiting yet will be sending a small contingent of sales folks who will be sharing rooms and watching expenses. As a staffing company, you should be watching the dollars as closely. The old adage of needing to spend money to make money is true, as is a foll and his money are soon parted. How do you know if you are striking the right balance. Err on the side of what costs less, at least until things get back near normal.

I was at a small local lumberyard over the weekend and while I was waiting for my receipt, I was eavesdropping on the proprietor. It sounded like a contractor was calling and pricing large quantities of sheet rock, dry wall as it is called in some places. The owner was advising that he charges $7.50 a board (highway robbery) and offers no discount on volume orders. He was pressed and made it real clear: if you need 20-30 boards, buy it here and pay for the convenience. Any job requiring more and you’d be crazy to pay almost double than what Home Depot charges.

There is a very valuable lesson here for small business owners. There is nothing wrong with charging more than your competition, but if you’re not able to successfully sell the benefit of what you offer, your prospects and clients will go elsewhere and pay less. What is your value proposition?

I similarly paid nearly double for 2 sheets of plywood. Why? Well for starters I only needed 2 boards and wanted them cut on the big saw as they were to be a finished shelf. Had I gone to Home Depot, I would have saved about $30, but added a couple of hours to my job. This example may provide a better clue for your situation.

Convenience. Are you available? Are you available and able to fill the last minute order with a competent, no excellent, employee? People, particularly desperate hiring managers, are willing to part with the company’s money in order to maintain order in the office and in their lives. Keep that in mind.

This is a huge week on many many levels. First, it’s the week that kicks off the best selling season of the year, October-November. In the staffing business, and more specifically the business of funding staffing companies, it’s all about January 1. October to Thanksgiving is the time to get ‘em in and set ‘em up. By Thanksgiving, it’s pretty much quiet until the new year, however salespeople should remain vigilant for their competitors’ blunders, that often necessitate quick action to capitalize and win the business.

This is also the week where I will be traveling to Tempworks for some very specific and very exciting events. Yes, there will be several client visits that look to be great Tempworks clients for ‘10. And yes, as always it will be great to spend time with my Northern brethren and spend chunks of time in the TW snack room. And yes, it looks like the temperature will be more humane than on other visits. But the most exciting draw to the Twin Cities this week is the wedding of Casey and Dana.

Casey Kraus is one of the top notch sales guys at Tempworks. I have had the pleasure of spending a lot of time with Casey through the years, from trade shows, to golfing, to driving through large swaths of the US visiting clients and prospects. He is a super kid and he will be marrying a really super girl, Dana Skildum. I wish them both a long and happy marriage filled with love, kids and good health. Cheers Casey and Dana!