Given the challenges of securing talent in today’s tight labor market, I am frequently asked how Roth Staffing effectively engages temporary employees — and keeps them engaged. As a values-driven company that operates with the purpose “to make life better for the people we serve,” we have built highly effective systems for keeping our ambassadors — temporary employees — fully engaged. It’s a win-win for everyone; when we respect the dignity and worth of our ambassadors, they are more fulfilled and focused in their work. In turn, our clients benefit from more reliable and productive contingent workers.
You may have noticed I just referred to temporary employees as “ambassadors.” That’s how Roth Staffing refers to them, as it reflects our view that temporary employees are representatives of our organization who bring our shared values and commitment to quality to their assignment. We care about them and set them up for success by focusing on critical factors such as: How can we find them the best position that matches their skills? How can we set them up for success on assignment? How can we ensure they feel cared for and well-supported? How can we continually improve on our processes? It’s an approach that has created many satisfied ambassadors and clients, and has earned us several awards, including SIA’s “Best Staffing Firms to Temp For.”
This philosophy is embedded into the programs we have developed to thoroughly prepare and engage our ambassadors. At the heart of this system is our ambassador program, designed to set the ambassador up for success and provide service that goes “above and beyond.” Before we decide if an applicant would work well for an open position, we first determine if they would make a quality representative of Roth Staffing through our ambassador program process. We meet with the applicant in-person to introduce them to our organization’s mission, vision, values, purpose, and promise, and how these differentiate us within the industry.
We believe it takes more than just skills and experience to excel in an assignment. Through our program, we equip our ambassadors with tools to understand expectations and become personally invested in their performance. This is designed to engage the hearts and minds of our ambassadors, and to enable them to own the outcome of their work assignment. The ambassador gains clarity of focus, which provides a clear path to success on assignment.
In addition to this core program, we are committed to frequent communication with every ambassador. This is accomplished through regularly scheduled calls or meetings throughout the span of an assignment, including performance reviews. We also develop a monthly newsletter for our ambassadors where we provide helpful career tips and recognize outstanding performers. We also work with our clients to create customized recognition programs for ambassadors to celebrate their success and express our appreciation. Again, it all comes down to the simple truth that well-treated and fully appreciated ambassadors deliver the highest quality services to our clients.
Benefits are core to our engagement efforts as well. Our company offers a comprehensive benefits package including medical coverage for all employees. Individuals who reach designated service milestones are also eligible to participate in a retirement savings plan and receive holiday pay.
What is Roth Staffing doing differently? We’re recognizing that temporary employees need to be cared for, appreciated and positioned for success. We’ve formalized that approach into systems and programs that enable us to fulfill our company promise to create remarkable experiences. The results speak for themselves — our surveys and awards demonstrate that our efforts create satisfied ambassadors and happy clients. Staffing firms — and clients that utilize temporary employees — can examine what makes sense for their own organization and develop programs to foster and measure engagement among their temporary labor force to help ensure peak performance.
