Workforce Planning: Defining Staff Needs

Workforce Planning is the first step in the staffing process and is done as part of the budgeting process by large organizations and less formally by small organizations. Defining staffing needs includes:

  • Identify the job functions and type of work to be accomplished
  • Identify the skill levels and number of people required
  • Consider the gaps that exist between the current and the future workforce
  • Consider:
    1. Recruiting of additional regular and temporary staff
    2. Training current staff for future growth
    3. Outsourcing selected functions instead of staffing internally
  • Consider internal factors such as turnover rate, and external factors such as skill and ability

Determining What Resources are Needed
Determine who will do each part of the recruiting process from sourcing and making initial contact with candidates, to interviewing, and to making the offer.

In-house Recruiting Resources

  • Large organizations have an internal Recruiting Staff within the Human Resources function, while in smaller organizations recruiting may be the responsibility of the Hiring Manager. Responsibilities vary depending upon staff available.


  • Organizations that need scalable resources and want to have the recruiting expertise located within the organization utilize Contract Recruiters. Contract Recruiters work on an hourly fee basis to fill positions on the employer's premises. They can work independently on a 1099 payment basis or be employed through a staffing firm. Contract Recruiters and Contract Staffing Managers may also be helpful to a company in defining staffing strategy and setting up the recruiting process.

External Recruiting Resources

  • Temporary Staffing Firms have become an increasingly important factor in the employment market. Employers use temporary workers for business upswings or when they benefit from trying out employees before hiring them. Temporary firms often specialize in functional areas such as scientific, lab, administrative, accounting, or legal. Some temporary staffing firms offer both temporary and temp-to-perm arrangements. Costs for temporary hires are based on an hourly rate plus a mark up for the agency. Temp-to-perm arrangements include an hourly mark up plus a placement fee if the individual is hired. The placement fee is typically comparable to a regular placement fee of 20 to 25% of salary, with some firms lowering the fee based on the duration and the hours worked before the individual goes permanent.


  • Contingency Search Firms refer and present candidates for specific positions to employers. While the fee is agreed upon in advance, it is not payable unless and until a candidate is hired by the employer. Employers may allow several contingency search firms to refer candidates for the same position. It is recommended that employers communicate with a limited number of proven contingency firms. For the process to work well, employers must be committed to devoting time and effort to explaining job requirements, providing feedback on why or why not candidates are qualified, scheduling interviews, and communicating the progress and status of candidates back to the referring agency. Fees: Contingency firms do not charge for expenses, and their fees are often a set percentage of the base annual salary, or total annual compensation amount. The fees may be on a sliding scale depending on the level of compensation. Firms typically request 20—30% fees, but the fees may be negotiated lower.


  • Retained Search Firms are granted an exclusive contract and up-front fee by the employer to source, interview, and present qualified candidates for a particular position until the retained firm is successful in filling the opening. The client company is invoiced for a predetermined fee plus expenses as the search progresses. Usually retained search firms are used for senior level, difficult to find, or sensitive searches. Retained search firms typically charge their clients approximately 30% of the total annual compensation, in addition to the billing for expenses related to the search.


  • Research and Sourcing Services provide resumes that match the job requirements. The fee and number of resumes is agreed upon in advance for each job opening. The cost of this service is considerably less than for a search firm in that the primary service involves only the research and sourcing of resumes.

How to Source Quality Candidates
The following are methods and tools representing best practices used by biotech companies in finding and attracting qualified candidates.

  • Employee, Management and Partner Referrals make up the highest quality referrals and hires, and cost the least. This entails requesting the help of existing staff, directors or perhaps partners. They need to know what you're looking for and understand the selection process.


  • An Employee Referral Program (ERP) is a formal program that companies establish and communicate to their employees. An ERP typically includes a specific bonus amount to the referring employee for each person hired, and sometimes includes awards for qualified referrals. Some companies pay the hiring bonus at the time of hire, others pay it in two or more installments, for example, one half the bonus at the time of hire and the second after three months. The bonus amount may vary depending upon the level of the hire or may be a flat rate for all hires. Awards for candidate referrals are often granted in the form of a lottery, or drawing with all employees who referred a qualified candidate during a specific time period eligible for the drawing. The referral awards are most often in the form of a cash bonus, prize, or gift certificate.


  • Develop Talent / Grow Your Own through training of current employees and through offering scholarships and internships to undergraduate students, graduate students and post-doctoral fellows.


  • The Company Web Site can include a list and description of specific job openings and requirements, or a general summary of the expertise and experience you seek. Companies periodically review the content to highlight and add information that is attractive to potential candidates. The web site can also be linked to professional associations such as the Bay Area Bioscience Center.


  • Company Press Releases, Publications and Articles can include information about the technology and scientific expertise you seek. Company publications and articles can serve to provide exposure and help build your image as a challenging and interesting place to work.


  • Scientific and Professional Associations provide opportunities for individual members and member companies to communicate and network with other professionals in the specialty. Most associations offer an on-line job board and many offer opportunities to advertise in their publications.


  • Speaking Engagements, Seminars and Presentations offer opportunities to communicate current and future job opportunities. Contacts and publicity about these seminars and presentations will provide exposure beyond those who attend the actual events.


  • Universities and Training Programs—Build and continue relationships with these institutions through contact with professors, participation in seminars and research studies, internships, and by posting your job opportunities in alumni or career placement publications. Select the Universities and Training programs specific to the candidate you seek. For example, UC Berkeley is a source for BioInformatics candidates and U.C. Davis is a source for candidates with expertise in Animal Science.


  • Participation in Job Fairs is done by medium to large Biotech companies that have a large number of jobs to fill. In deciding whether to participate in Job Fairs, consider the fee for participation, the time and cost to prepare for the fair, including a display booth, hand-outs and the people resources to manage the booth for a full day or two. More targeted sourcing efforts may be appropriate for smaller firms and for those with few job openings. Biospace.com and Bio.com are two industry-specific Job Boards that periodically hold job fairs in the Bay Area.


  • Open Houses, On-site Seminars provide opportunities to show off your company and research.


  • Other Employers—Start-up enterprises can often tap into larger more established recruiting systems and resources within firms represented by Directors or Alliance Partners.


  • Internet Recruiting—The Internet is the most popular meeting ground for employers and job seekers. All levels and types of job seekers use the Internet. Employers can post job openings for candidates to review and respond, and you can search resume banks to identify qualified candidates who have posted their resumes for employers to view.


  • Biotech and Lifescience Sites include scientific and lab related positions. The following is a partial list of Life Science Job Sites:



  • Local Bay Area Sites: BAjobs.com is used by Biotech firms for all positions and provides a local pool of candidates. Craigslist.com is often used by Bay Area biotech firms for non-scientific positions such as Accountants and Administrative Assistants.


  • National Sites such as Monster.com, Careerbuilder.com , and Brassring.com have a huge number of job seekers accessing their sites and are used by nationwide firms and by large biotech firms for senior professional and management positions such as Controller or IT Director.


  • Online Classified Sites for the San Francisco Chronicle, BayRecruiter.com, and the Mercury News and Contra Costa Times, BayArea.com , are occasionally used by Bay Area Biotech firms.


  • Professional Organization, Association and University Sites offer specialized job sites for members and many offer free posting as a benefit to their members. Most schools offer a site similar to the traditional job board. The site is offered to both graduates or alumni. There are a few national sites linking all the schools such as JobTrak.


  • Diversity Sites—Many diversity sites can be helpful for recruitment.



  • Internet Recruiting Resources by Specific Jobs / Disciplines


    SPECIFIC JOBS / DISCIPLINES

    RESOURCES

    Administrative Staff

    Local Internet Job Sites such as BAJobs or Craigslist

    Animal Science

    BioInformatics

    Clinical Research and Trials

    Finance / Accounting

    Human Resources
    • HR professional organizations such as NCHRA (Northern California HR Assoc.) and SHRM (Society of Human Resources Management—National)
    • Local Internet Job sites such as BAJobs or Craigslist

    IT

    Legal

    Manufacturing

    Marketing

    Regulatory Affairs

    Sales

    Toxicology

Screeing, Interviewing and Selecting the Best Candidates

  • Pre-qualification Questionnaires: Many employers ask candidates to complete a questionnaire via Email prior to making personal contact. The questions can be included in the job posting, or can be sent to candidates as a second step in the selection process.


  • Phone Screens** are effective means for exchanging information and confirming qualifications before committing to a face-to-face interview. The phone screen is also an opportunity to "sell" the candidate on the job opportunity and the organization. The areas covered include:

    • Introduction to the job and organization
    • Confirmation of education and training
    • Review of the candidate’s experience and skills in comparison to the job requirements
    • Brief review of past employment record and work history
    • Interest level
    • Identification of any commute or relocation issues
    • Salary requirements and salary history
    • Availability for interview and to begin employment
    • Next steps in the process


    **The questions and areas addressed in the phone screen must adhere to sound interviewing techniques, including questions that can and cannot be asked.


  • Interviews: Staff involvement in the interviewing and selection process fosters ownership and teamwork. Best practices call for everyone involved in the interviewing and selection process to:

    • Be knowledgeable of the requirements of the job
    • Commit to interviewing as a priority
    • Be knowledgeable of sound interviewing techniques, including questions that can and cannot be asked
    • Commit to meeting the candidates’ needs by providing information and selling points
    • Use an objective and consistent evaluation tool to provide feedback to the hiring manager. The evaluation tool can be as simple as the list of job requirements against which each candidate is evaluated. The selection may involve an evaluation meeting in which the interviewers share information.


  • Ongoing Communications: Response time, frequency and openness of follow-up communications can make or break a candidate’s interest in a job opportunity. It isn’t just getting back to the candidate quickly, it is developing a relationship with the candidate and setting a tone throughout the process of keeping each other informed.


  • References: Best practices include references completed by the Hiring Manager or by Human Resources. It is recommended that at least three professional references be contacted, and one of which be from a previous supervisor.

    Vendors are available that will do references, verify past employment and education, and perform background checks for a fee. All verifications and background checks must be related to the requirements of the job.

Compliance with Staffing and Employment Laws and Regulations
All companies, regardless of size, must be aware of and comply with state and Federal regulations that apply to the entire spectrum of employment practices and documents. The California Chamber of Commerce Web Site provides excellent resources for companies. HR Managers can access state and Federal guidelines through professional associations such as the Society of Human Resource Management, www.shrm.org.

Extending Job Offers
It is recommended that legal counsel develop a template with the appropriate clauses and language for written offers as these differ by level and type of position. Many Scientists interviewing for positions in the Bay Area have multiple companies interested in their qualifications. For highly competitive positions some companies strive to make an initial job offer the same day as the final interview, or on the following day.

Welcoming New Employees
is an important part of staffing. Prior preparation is key to ensuring that the new employee’s first day and first week is pleasant and productive.

Measuring the Staffing Process
Larger firms track metrics designed to assess key success in the hiring process. Such measures include cost per hire, average time to fill, and impact on diversity.

Source: Susan Ensey—Staffing and HR Consultant

Copyright © 2002 Bay Area Bioscience Center