Innovative Staffing Solutions Gets Thumbs-Up From BuildIt Outlet Owner
Prior to joining forces with Innovative Staffing Solutions, Rudi Thompson’s work life was characterised by constant stress.
Image Courtesy Innovative Staffing Solutions
The owner and manager of two BuildIt outlets, Thompson was accustomed to taking control of every aspect of his business, with his productivity suffering as a result. Being self-employed, he had assumed that this was the way of life for a small business owner.
“I constantly had to deal with internal labour issues, problems with the unions, staff queries on leave allocations and disciplinary procedures. The list goes on. I had no time to focus on what really mattered: expanding and growing my business. Had I known then what I know now, I would have outsourced my labour force six years ago,” says Thompson.
With an outlet in Ebony Park and more recently Rabie Ridge and a staff compliment of 60 and 30 employees respectively, purely managing his staffing issues had become a full-time job in itself.
Thompson emphasises that after outsourcing his workforce to Innovative Staffing Solutions, a subsidiary of the Innovative Solutions Group TM his work life changed significantly.
“Literally, from day one I experienced an improvement. I no longer had to deal with ongoing employment-related issues. It has made such a huge difference, in both relieving my stress, as well as allowing me the time to concentrate on growing my business to where I feel it should be. As a direct result I am looking at opening a third outlet in 2018,” continues Thompson.
The 60-strong staff members of the Ebony Park branch were initially sceptical about being transferred to Innovative Staffing Solutions and fell prey to unfounded rumours that the store was closing and their jobs were at stake. Following a short period of transition, many of the branch staff readily agreed to the transfer, with the newly-opened Rabie Ridge employees quickly following suit.
Outsourcing your staff compliment is still a foreign concept to many businesses in South Africa and it is often mistaken for labour brokering. The key difference between the two is the type of employment generated. Labour broking is more inclined towards temporary or casual employment. Outsourcing creates fixed-term or permanent employment, and employees are entitled to the benefits and full protection under the Labour Relations Act.
Innovative Staffing Solutions MD, Arnoux Maré, says outsourcing benefits both the business and its employees. He says they have managed to provide outsourcing solutions to certain non-core services such as truck drivers, engineering -and hospitality staff, cleaners, farm workers, etc.
"An experienced outsourcing company such as Innovative Staffing Solutions, understands issues around human resources and related legalities allowing our clients to focus on growing their core business. We also believe in providing a skilled work force and therefore absorb all costs for staff training, skills development and competency requirements," he says.
Having experienced first-hand the benefits of labour outsourcing, Thompson concurs.
“I am constantly telling friends and colleagues that they also need to consider outsourcing as an option for their businesses. Not only has my turnover increased, but Innovative Staffing Solutions handles all staffing and human resources related matters on my behalf. This takes a great weight off my shoulders. In addition, the dedicated Contract Manager, who has been appointed to solely work on my business, makes my life much easier. Just one call to him and my problem is resolved.”
