Business today changes at the speed of technology. As your business grows and expands, you may implement new systems and software platforms that require specialized knowledge and skill. Initially, you’ll need an installation and implementation team. Even if you already have an IT department, you may want to supplement your resources with additional temporary IT staff. Staff augmentation with IT software consultants is a great choice for these kinds of projects. But what happens when your IT needs expand?

Changing Needs: A Good Problem to Have

Once you’ve integrated and implemented your new software, ideally it will help your business grow, expand, and thrive. Software platforms like internal customer relationship management solutions (CRM), enterprise resource planning systems (ERP), manufacturing resource planning systems (MRP), and content management systems help your business manage operations and reach customers. Implementing these systems may create ongoing additional support needs, and maintaining this network of diverse, integrated systems can require highly specialized IT resources. You may be surprised to learn that the answer to your IT needs may already be working with your team.

For example, your company has decided to integrate an enterprise video management system, and you’ve selected the Qumu platform. It may not make sense for you to hire an expert in the Qumu video management platform for a permanent IT position with your company when you first integrate it into your existing systems. Hiring a short-term expert consultant to help with implementation can be efficient and economical. However, if your business grows quickly and continues to expand into new markets, your ongoing Qumu needs may be more than you anticipate. Rather than repeatedly hiring an outside consultant to troubleshoot, upgrade, customize, and expand the platform, you may decide that the scope of work warrants a full-time employee with specialized knowledge of the platform. A short-term consultant who has worked with your project throughout its implementation and already knows your company is an obvious choice to fill this role.

Save Money & Time by “Hiring from Within”

Recruiting and hiring employees usually involves a lot of overhead – both time and money. Depending on your company’s personnel considerations and applicable regulations, the hiring process itself can be time consuming, difficult, and expensive. Offering a persuasive salary and benefits package can be difficult in the current tight market. Having to compete with both other organizations and the appeal of freelance consulting can make recruiting and retaining in-house IT talent difficult and expensive.

One of the surprising findings of HR analytics studies, however, is that employees in the modern workplace (particularly millennial employees) value an organization’s culture, including its “support for innovation” and opportunities for professional growth and development, as much or more than economic perks. Employees who already know and fit into the culture of an organization are more likely to have higher rates of employee satisfaction, reducing turnover costs and improving retention rates.

Plus, making an offer for permanent employment to an existing temporary contractor eliminates recruitment and hiring costs and saves the time and hassle of sorting through resumes and interviewing potential candidates. And your team already knows their new team member, reducing the time it takes for the new employee to integrate into the existing environment and get up to speed on projects.

Finding Great Temp-to-Perm Candidates

The software consultants you bring in to augment your team must be reliable, knowledgeable, and skilled, but you may not even know what kind of specialists are appropriate to help with the projects you want to execute or implement. Ideally, you would find someone to consult with you about your goals, problems, and systems, advise you about the kind of specialized resources you may need, and hire and manage the professional contractors necessary to handle your IT needs (whether they be short term or ultimately turn into permanent contracts).

A skilled IT augmentation company can evaluate your IT needs, estimate the costs of providing you with the appropriate experts, and find, contract with, and manage the specialized personnel necessary to fill your needs and accomplish your objectives on time and within budget. Outsourcing your specialized or overcapacity IT needs means that you get exactly the level of care when you need it while minimizing the HR headaches.

PulaTech can help you find the quality software consulting services you need to implement, integrate, and support all of your enterprise software solutions, both for short term and temp-to-hire assignments. Contact us for a free consultation and find out how our cost efficient IT outsourcing and IT staffing resources can benefit your St. Paul-area business.