Managed Solution Earns 2024 Great Place To Work Certification™
San Diego, CA — Managed Solution is proud to be Certified™ by Great Place To Work®. The prestigious award is based entirely on what current employees say about their experience working at Managed Solution. This year, 98% of employees said it’s a great place To Work – 41 percent higher than the average U.S. company.
Great Place To Work® is the global authority on workplace culture, employee experience, and the leadership behaviors proven to deliver market-leading revenue, employee retention and increased innovation.
"Great Place To Work Certification is a highly coveted achievement that requires consistent and intentional dedication to the overall employee experience," says Sarah Lewis-Kulin, the Vice President of Global Recognition at Great Place To Work. She emphasizes that Certification is the sole official recognition earned by the real-time feedback of employees regarding their company culture. “By successfully earning this recognition, it is evident that Managed Solution stands out as one of the top companies to work for, providing a great workplace environment for its employees."
"Receiving the Great Place to Work-Certification™ is a moment of immense pride and joy for all of us at Managed Solution. It's a reflection of our collective commitment to foster a culture where integrity, heart, innovation, and teamwork are not just valued, they are practiced daily. This achievement is a testament to the spirit of our team—every individual's dedication to not just doing their job, but contributing to a community where everyone feels they belong, can thrive, and grow. Let's use this recognition as a stepping stone to reach even greater heights together." - Sean Ferrel, CEO, Managed Solution
According to Great Place To Work research, job seekers are 4.5 times more likely to find a great boss at a Certified great workplace. Additionally, employees at Certified workplaces are 93% more likely to look forward to coming to work, and are twice as likely to be paid fairly, earn a fair share of the company’s profits and have a fair chance at promotion. Take a look at our Great Place To Work® profile HERE.
Looking to grow your career at a company that puts its people first? Visit our careers page at: https://www.managedsolution.com/careers/
At Managed Solution, our core objective is to empower organizations to thrive by delivering comprehensive and innovative IT services. Leveraging our expertise as a Certified Microsoft partner and Cloud Service provider, we aim to provide seamless managed and professional services, robust backup and disaster recovery solutions, cutting-edge security measures, responsive helpdesk support, strategic staffing consulting, efficient procurement services, and thorough compliance consulting. Through our commitment to excellence, we endeavor to create environments where businesses and individuals flourish, driving sustained growth, resilience, and success for our clients.
Great Place To Work® Certification™ is the most definitive “employer-of-choice” recognition that companies aspire to achieve. It is the only recognition based entirely on what employees report about their workplace experience – specifically, how consistently they experience a high-trust workplace. Great Place to Work Certification is recognized worldwide by employees and employers alike and is the global benchmark for identifying and recognizing outstanding employee experience. Every year, more than 10,000 companies across 60 countries apply to get Great Place To Work-Certified.
As the global authority on workplace culture, Great Place To Work® brings 30 years of groundbreaking research and data to help every place become a great place to work for all. Their proprietary platform and For All™ Model helps companies evaluate the experience of every employee, with exemplary workplaces becoming Great Place To Work Certified™ or receiving recognition on a coveted Best Workplaces™ List.
Learn more at greatplacetowork.com and follow Great Place To Work on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Contact: Amanda Penharlow
Phone: 858-429-3096
Email: ahawthorne@managedsolution.com
04/01/2024
Managed Solution unveils a fresh website on January 17, 2024. This unveiling highlights their dedication to putting people first in the ever-evolving technology sector.
In our ever-evolving digital landscape, staying ahead of the curve is crucial. That's why we are thrilled to announce the launch of our new and improved website in 2024. With a sleek and user-friendly interface, navigating through our services and solutions will be a breeze. If you wish to enhance your digital environment or seek sophisticated tech solutions, our website is your ideal destination.
Our commitment to your success doesn't stop there. We understand that technology is constantly changing, and so are your needs.
We will continue to dedicate resources to research and development. Ensuring our IT solutions remain up-to-date and tailored to your needs. Our experts are always available to provide personalized help and guidance, ensuring your success in the digital world.
We've not only improved aesthetics, but also enriched the functionality and the relevancy of our existing content. As you explore our website, be sure to check out some of our enhanced features and resources:
Launching our new website is just one of the ways we're supporting our clients in their continuous journey towards digital transformation. At the heart of our operations is our unwavering commitment to people. We believe that technology should be inclusive and accessible to all.
As we move forward in the new year, we will enhance our offerings, embrace new challenges and continue to create IT solutions that empower businesses and individuals alike. Our focus on people has been instrumental in reaching our current position. It will also continue to guide our future. Our goal is to create an IT system that is adaptable, attentive, and open to everyone.
In addition to our website, we are excited to bring you a wealth of industry insights and knowledge through our newsletter. When you subscribe to our newsletter, you'll be the first to know about upcoming events, webinars, and workshops that can further enhance your understanding of the ever-evolving IT landscape.
As we embark on this exciting journey into the future, we invite you to stay connected with us. Beyond subscribing to our newsletter, we encourage you to follow us on social and engage with our content. Together, we can drive digital success stories and shape a future where technology empowers and enriches lives. We are grateful for your continued support and look forward to serving you better in the years to come.
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San Diego, CA, October 27, 2023 -- Managed Solution, a leading Microsoft Partner, is thrilled to announce a new partnership with ClickDimensions, a renowned pioneer in Marketing Automation for Microsoft Dynamics 365 users. Known for its unwavering commitment to providing top-tier IT support and a comprehensive suite of premium products and services through strategic alliances, Managed Solution is poised to take its services to the next level.
As a proud participant in the ClickDimensions Partner Program, Managed Solution is now better equipped to seamlessly integrate ClickDimensions' cutting-edge solutions into its clients' business frameworks, facilitating streamlined operations and enhanced marketing performance.
This collaboration marks a significant step forward for Managed Solution, enhancing its ability to cater to the diverse needs of Microsoft Dynamics 365 customers.
By synergizing Managed Solution's extensive proficiency in Microsoft's suite of services with the robust marketing automation capabilities of ClickDimensions, clients can look forward to gaining profound insights into customer behavior, empowering them to make data-driven decisions that fuel business growth and optimize return on investment (ROI).
Through the partnership with ClickDimensions, Managed Solution empowers its Microsoft Dynamics 365 clients to unify their customer data, mitigate lead loss, and harness the full potential of each customer interaction.
Leveraging actionable insights and advanced automation, businesses can streamline their marketing operations with greater efficiency and precision.
"We are excited about our collaboration with ClickDimensions, which enhances our ability to provide our clients with the most advanced digital marketing solutions available," remarked Tina Rountree, VP of Sales and Marketing at Managed Solution. "With ClickDimensions, we aim to deliver an integrated approach to data-driven marketing, enabling our clients to make informed decisions and achieve sustainable business growth."
This strategic partnership between Managed Solution and ClickDimensions promises to deliver even more value-added solutions and services to clients, expanding the horizons of digital marketing for businesses and setting new benchmarks for industry excellence.
Managed Solution is an award-winning direct Tier1 Microsoft Cloud Provider and Gold Partner specializing in cloud services, managed IT help desk services, and professional services.
Managed Solution supports companies with IT discovery, architecture design, best practices, implementation, and support, as well as training. For more information, visit managedsolution.com or call us at 858-429-3067.
ClickDimensions is a leading provider of marketing automation software and services for Microsoft Dynamics 365 users.
With a focus on delivering cutting-edge solutions and exceptional customer experiences, ClickDimensions empowers businesses to drive growth, enhance customer engagement, and achieve their marketing objectives with precision and efficiency.
Managed Solution Goes to Clairmont Highschool
In an empowering session at Clairemont High School, CEO of Managed Solution, Sean Ferrel, recently addressed senior students enrolled in their internship program, delivering a stirring address on entrepreneurship. Sean's wealth of experience and success in the business world provided the students with invaluable insights into the dynamic realm of entrepreneurship.
His engaging talk focused on instilling a mindset that transcends traditional career paths, encouraging the seniors to embrace the entrepreneurial spirit within themselves. During his discussion, Sean emphasized the importance of seeking opportunities to connect people, highlighting how building meaningful relationships can be a driving force in business success.
He shared anecdotes from his own journey, illustrating the impact of fostering genuine connections and collaborative efforts. Furthermore, Sean underscored the significance of ethical business practices, urging students to prioritize doing the right thing in all their professional endeavors.
A central theme of Sean's motivational talk was the encouragement to embrace risk as an essential element of the entrepreneurial journey. He inspired the students to view challenges not as obstacles but as stepping stones to growth and innovation.
By fostering a culture of calculated risk-taking, Sean aimed to empower these young minds to approach their future careers with resilience, adaptability, and an entrepreneurial mindset. The event left a lasting impression on the students, equipping them with the knowledge and inspiration to navigate the ever-evolving landscape of entrepreneurship.
From high school and beyond--with the right resources and purpose, anyone can achieve success in leadership. Check out some of the resources below to learn more about embracing the world of business and entrepreneurship.
Looking to dive deeper into Managed Solution's journey as a company? See where we've come from, and where we're going.Managed Solution Turns 20 in 2022- Cheers to 20 years!
May is a month of blooming flowers and vibrant growth, and it also holds great significance as Mental Health Month. It is an opportune time for businesses and organizations to cultivate open conversations and implement practices that prioritize the mental well-being of their employees.
In this blog, we will explore the importance of recognizing and addressing mental health in the workplace, as well as practical steps that businesses can take to create a supportive environment for their employees.
We’ll also showcase some of the initiatives we’re taking to open the conversation in our own organization and provide our team with access to resources and support.
At Managed Solution we work to promote a fun, healthy culture that enables our employees to succeed because they feel safe, happy, and supported.
That is why this month we dedicated an entire week of activities to promote team bonding, highlight the importance of mental health, share available resources, promote self-care, and open a conversation we hope to keep a special focus on beyond the month of May. Check out some of the activities we initiated below!
We kicked off Mental Health Week with a deep breath and a mindful pause. Encouraging our team to explore the following options to boost their mindfulness and mitigate stress.
We took a note from Parks and Rec royalty, Donna and Tom, for Treat Yo Self Tuesday! Where our team entered a spa-day gift card raffle by listing the things they do for self-care, or to simply “treat” themselves.
On Wednesday we fostered team bonding and connection through a virtual luncheon hosted on Microsoft Teams. Our team had a blast gathering to share stories, meet new members, and catch up on each other’s daily lives.
Thursday was our ‘Mental Health Day of Action’, where we focused on spreading the idea that mental health IS health. We took more time to address the conversation on the importance of mental health and the tangible steps that we can all take to care for ourselves both mentally and physically. We further backed this by sharing more mental health resources offered to our employees and guiding them to places or personnel they could reach to access them.
We finished big with a virtual dance party on Friday. It may sound silly but sometimes letting your team know that they’re safe to let loose and be themselves can be a great way to promote mental health.
Professionalism is of course important, but people are people at the end of the day, and knowing you’re free to bust out the sprinkler amongst your team can serve as a fun mood booster. At least, it sure did for us!
Mental health is an integral part of overall well-being, and businesses have a vital role to play in acknowledging and addressing this reality. By recognizing that mental health impacts employees' productivity, job satisfaction, and overall quality of life, organizations can foster an environment where individuals feel valued and supported.
Encouraging open conversations about mental health is a cornerstone of creating a supportive workplace. Businesses can take proactive steps to destigmatize mental health by:
Use internal communications, newsletters, or workshops to educate employees about mental health issues, symptoms, and available resources. Share personal stories and testimonials to foster empathy and understanding.
Provide managers and employees with training on mental health awareness, recognizing signs of distress, and supporting colleagues in need. This knowledge empowers individuals to offer appropriate support and creates a culture of empathy and compassion.
Encourage the formation of employee resource groups or support networks focused on mental health. These safe spaces allow individuals to share experiences, seek guidance, and build a community of understanding.
In addition to creating open conversations, organizations can implement practical measures that prioritize the mental well-being of their employees. Check out some of the examples we have listed below:
Offer flexible working hours, remote work options, or compressed work weeks to promote work-life balance and reduce stress. Flexibility empowers employees to manage their mental health effectively while fulfilling their professional responsibilities.
Collaborate with mental health professionals to establish EAPs that provide confidential counseling, therapy, and resources for employees seeking support. These programs ensure that employees have access to professional help when needed.
Introduce wellness initiatives such as yoga or meditation classes, mindfulness workshops, or access to wellness apps. Encouraging physical activity and stress reduction techniques can significantly contribute to employees' mental well-being.
Emphasize the importance of taking regular vacations, mental health days, and sick leave without guilt or stigma. Encourage employees to prioritize self-care and model this behavior from leadership positions.
There’s no perfect way to talk about mental health. The important thing is to talk about it in a way that’s authentic to your organization. Mental Health Month presents an invaluable opportunity for businesses and organizations to foster an environment that prioritizes the mental well-being of their employees.
By creating open conversations, implementing supportive practices, and recognizing the importance of mental health, businesses can nurture a workplace where individuals feel valued, supported, and empowered to thrive both professionally and personally. Together, let us embrace the journey toward a mentally healthy and resilient workforce.
By: Amanda Hawthorne, Director of People and Culture
Two years into the pandemic, it’s almost hard to remember life in the “before times.” At this point, it’s probably fair to say that Covid-19 might be our lifetime’s ultimate ‘disruptor’ – a word that, in Silicon Valley at least, usually signifies a unicorn organization poised to create a true paradigm shift in how the world operates. So much as changed in daily life since March 2020 because of the pandemic. Whether it’s new safety measures or even the foregoing of certain regulations (to-go cocktails, anyone?), the change is undeniable.
For many office workers, these changes are most noticeable in how and where we work. Many of us are now working and collaborating in largely digital workplaces. Whether they’re sharing files and trading gifs on Teams, or messaging colleagues over Slack, or spending yet another afternoon on back-to-back ZOOM calls, more people than ever are working remotely… and with yet another surge of cases and the fact that so many have embraced remote work, we don’t see this changing anytime soon. Remote work is here to stay!
As we adapt to these virtual work environments, business leaders had to rethink almost every aspect of their businesses. While this has often been about overcoming obstacles, it’s also been about re-examining what’s possible. In the world of HR, this shift has been perhaps most dramatic in terms of what’s possible with recruiting, and we’re so excited about the possibilities we’ve uncovered in terms of hiring in a remote world!
Managed Solution has long prided itself on being remote-friendly. As a technology services provider, we were early adopters of tools that allowed our team to work anywhere and everywhere. Even before the pandemic, much of our team worked from home a few times a week. Still, though, most of our employees were based in San Diego, CA, and most of us were commuting to a brick-and-mortar office at some point each week.
When we told our team members to start working remotely full-time during the pandemic, many of them began exploring opportunities for relocation – to their dream houses, to be closer to family, and even to be closer to the mountains for rock climbing! Before we knew it, our team was spread out across states and time zones.
Despite some early challenges with adding payroll in new states (who enjoys navigating the red tape of various state agencies?), we quickly realized the numerous advantages of having employees in different locations. For our 24/7 IT helpdesk team, we were able to staff different shifts in time zones that made sense for our clients’ needs – and our employees’ lives. Operating on a more national basis was not only good for our team, but great for our business.
Now, when hiring for our own vacancies, we began advertising our roles to candidates in these various states and were enthusiastic to see such high-quality resumes coming through our applicant tracking systems! Broadening your geographic search criteria gives you access to more candidates, increasing your likelihood of finding that perfect match!
But while we were singing the praises of a broader talent pool, we also realized that phone calls with candidates wasn’t going to cut it in this new world: video interviews were necessary to help us build a level of rapport with candidates that’s on par with the experience of in-person interviewing. Unfortunately, interviewing candidates on a video call isn’t always a no-brainer.
To help you get started on video interviewing (or to help you up your game!), here are some of our tried-and- true tips & tricks to ensure both a strong candidate AND strong employer experience in the interview process…
Ideally, this happens before you’ve even posted a role, but especially before you get to an interview, you’ll need to really understand the job itself: what skills are must-haves, which are on the nice-to-have list? Be sure to also dive into when and where this role could be performed: is this job suited to remote work in the short term, but eventually you’d require a candidate to commute to the office? If so, be sure to communicate that! Is a position remote flexible but the function needs to be performed during specific hours based on the time zone for your home office? Share that, too! Being clear about the role not only lets you recruit among the broadest talent pool, it also helps ensure a strong mutual fit with any prospective candidate -- and avoids an awkward situation down the road. Imagine accepting an offer, quitting your job, and showing up on the first day in your new role… only to discover that your understanding of your work schedule or environment was completely off?! No thank you! You’ll save yourself a lot of heartache as a hiring manager if you can get really clear on your job details before you start interviewing!
Start with the basics: map out your in-person interview strategy, including who was included and what the respective conversations were covering. Now, assess who else a candidate might benefit from speaking to. Perhaps now is the time to include a peer interview so the candidate can start learning who they’d be working with – not just After all, with in-person interviews, a candidate often gets to at least put eyes on the people they’d be working with. You must consciously create those opportunities in a remote work world! While you don’t want your interview process to become excessively slow – especially in today’s fight for talent – but you do want to have enough time for a clear picture of the candidate’s skills… and give them enough time to really learn what it would be like to work with you!
Include all pertinent details in an interview invite, such as the names and positions of those who will be involved in the call. Be sure the candidate has the contact info of at least one interviewer in case something comes up last minute. Consider providing your candidate with the specific goals of each interview phase so they have some idea of what will be covered: is this a technical interview? A hiring manager interview? Peer interview? Let the candidate know what to expect. Clarity is kindness, after all – and being clear about the who/what/why of the interview also gives the candidate the chance to prepare appropriate questions for your team. (And also makes it less ok if they haven’t prepared at least a question or two ahead of time!)
If your team is going to be on camera frequently for interviews, you may want to give them some guidance to help reflect positively on your organization. From displaying the appropriate dress code to a professional, neat background, to joining calls from a quiet space with good lighting… all can make your company appear coordinated and well-adjusted to remote work. Consider offering ring lights or monitor-mounted webcams to provide flattering lighting and angles – your interviewers will be more focused on the candidate if they’re not distracted by their own double chin in the video preview feed! Help your interviewers focus on the candidate’s video feed, or even direct them to look into the camera while speaking to give the feeling of eye contact. (Our Talent Advisor uses a sticker at the top/center of her monitor to give herself something to look at!) Remind your interviewers of good interviewing etiquette: close the door, turn off the laundry, silence your cellphone, have a glass of water nearby, and (at a minimum) have them skim the candidate’s resume in advance!
Help train your interviewers on how to handle the realities of remote work: dogs barking, kids stumbling into the room, lawyers who are definitely not cats… interviewing in this new world is sometimes as weird as it is wonderful. Remind your team to keep it calm and collected, and help put candidates at ease, even when things run awry. The pandemic has reminded us that, at the end of the day, we’re all just doing our best to hold things together. Being flexible when things don’t work out quite like we expected reassures a candidate that your company values authenticity and understands that an employee is a person.
When interviewing people from their home, you may see things in the background that give clues to a candidate’s life in ways you might not if they came into your office. Remind your interviewers to disregard anything they may see in the background which may suggest things about the candidate’s nationality, ethnicity, religious affiliation, marital/parent status, or other protected class status. (Remember, too, not to make assumptions based on what you’re seeing!) Give interviewers guidance on job-related questions to ask and consider rubrics for scoring candidates consistently across interviews. Work with your HR team or an outside consultant to be sure that your hiring criteria are valid and lawful, and to help you identify potential areas for bias.
Following CDC and other relevant guidelines, consider whether meeting a prospective candidate in-person is feasible, prior to issuing an offer. For some candidates, the chance to meet a potential manager gives them a better sense of your leadership style and interpersonal dynamic. For others, it’s reassuring to meet in person to help them trust that a job offer is legitimate before handing over their confidential details for a background check or I-9 form. If an in-person meeting isn’t feasible, you might offer your top candidates the chance to connect on a call with another employee who onboarded remotely or with a top performer in your org – not necessarily so that your employee can weigh in on the candidate, but so that the candidate can get a sense of what it’s like to work on your team – and feel confident that your offer is legit.
Many times, as interviewers, we’re so focused on getting answers to our questions that we may forget to reserve time for the candidate to ask us any questions they may have. Some successful interviewers preface their meetings by letting the candidate know he or she will have time to ask questions at the end: this can help keep a conversation on course while also giving the candidate the floor before wrapping up the call.
Implementing Microsoft Teams? Trying to map out an interview plan for a particular role? Looking for help in technical vetting of your top candidates? Just not getting enough qualified applicants for your open tech roles? Managed Solution offers a range of managed, professional, and technical services – including staffing! Our Talent Advisor can help you look at your hiring needs, improve your interview strategies, and connect you with our targeted solutions for staffing – remote or otherwise. Whether it’s working together on a Direct Hire Recruiting or Staff Augmentation Resourcing basis, or even helping you validate the technical skills of candidates your team has sourced, Managed Solution can take on the heavy lifting of hiring. And we’ll also be there each step of the way making sure you, your candidates, and your interviewing team has everything they need to be successful along the way!
By: Amanda Hawthorne, Director of People and Culture at Managed Solution
So you’ve got an opening or resource need on your team? Exciting! Managed Solution’s Staffing Services can help! But knowing where to start with an outside recruiting firm can be tough, and you may have a lot of questions about the process…
There are plenty of choices for service providers: so how do you know which is going to deliver?
Sometimes the exact resource or budget requirements for your position may be a bit hazy, and you may still be sorting out how exactly a new hire will engage within your team. Who can help you define your needs and understand a market-realistic hiring budget?
Everyone is already stretched thin today, and no one has time to interview a series of candidates who completely miss the mark. Working with a trusted Staffing Service provider like Managed Solution can help you quickly connect with pre-vetted technical talent so you can make efficient staffing decisions and get back to work with the right team!
Managed Solution is an IT service provider – which means IT people are our business. For over 20 years, we’ve been meeting talented engineers and connecting them with our clients across Southern California (and beyond!) to fulfill ongoing support or even project-based needs. In the age of remote work and the “Great Resignation,” it’s more important than ever to hire highly skilled and vetted engineering talent – and even harder to find them!
After hearing from client after client about the challenges they’re having in finding and vetting top talent, we saw an opportunity here: open our Talent Community to our clients, giving them access to the amazing people we’re meeting daily. (And as a bonus, individuals in our Talent Community have already been vetted by our Microsoft-certified engineers!)
Plus, since hiring our Talent Advisor, Kat Grunzinger, we now have a talent concierge to meet with our clients and really dive into their needs, to help define an opportunity for efficient recruiting. Kat has years of experience in the recruiting space and has a true knack for building quick rapport with candidates, diving into what they know (and don’t), as well as understanding what opportunities are truly of interest to them. She leverages this same inquisitive nature to consult with clients to understand what Staffing Services are best-suited to their needs – and which candidates will really fit the bill!
You may be asking, what’s it like to work with Managed Solution’s Talent Advisor?
Here’s what you can expect:
First, Our Talent Advisor will want to interview you! We’ve found the best way to understand the true needs of an organization isn’t to rely on a job description (which may be out of date or miss key aspects of what a position truly requires), but to go straight to the source: you!
As a hiring manager, you’ll have insight into your needs, your team, and your organization – even if you haven’t scoped out a formal job description yet, or if you haven’t gotten the chance yet to update the one that’s been on file for years.
Our Talent Advisor can help you outline the specific function that’s needed. She’ll be aiming to understand the ins and outs of your open role, so she can connect you to the right resources. Key questions she’ll ask include:
Our Talent Advisor will ask these key questions so she understands exactly what this individual will be doing on a day-to-day basis and how their success will be defined. This will help her articulate the opportunity to potential candidates - and help us avoid wasting your time with candidates who would fall short of expectations. This understanding will allow her to scroll through her mental Rolodex of people in our Talent Community so she can quickly connect you with any pre-vetted candidates that might align with your goals.
Understanding your needs can also help us align our Staffing Service offering with your ‘ask’ to ensure we’re helping you meet your need in a cost-effective manner.
Managed Solution offers several different Staffing Services to meet your IT hiring needs:
When our Talent Advisor meets with you to discuss your team’s needs, she’ll help you determine which Staffing Service is right for you.
Once a Staffing Service Agreement is signed, she’ll begin sorting through our existing connections within our Talent Community and will reach out to appropriate passive candidates on your behalf.
When we find suitable candidates – aligned to your role in terms of experience, skills, location, culture, and career goals – we’ll pre-vet them with our Microsoft-certified engineers and then present you with their talent profiles (a fancy term for their resumes, catered to your position). Ideally, they’ll all look good on paper, and then it’s time for you and your teams to interview!
Our Talent Advisor will work with you to define your own vetting process for the opening – who will be involved in the interviews; when/how interviews will be conducted; etc. Then, she’ll coordinate scheduling and share pertinent information to the candidate so they can be on-time and ready to discuss your opportunity, whether that’s in person at your office, or via Microsoft Teams video interview. (We can even send out a Microsoft Teams meeting bridge for you and the candidate to connect on!)
During the interview, you’ll get a sense of your own as to whether the candidate meets the eligibility and suitability requirements of your role. Our Talent Advisor will check in after your interviews to hear about what went well, what concerns still linger, and what next steps look like. Our Talent Advisor will also get feedback from the candidate to ensure a strong mutual fit before moving ahead in the process. This two-way flow of information and feedback is one essential for effective recruiting services – and helps ensure that by the time an offer is issued, you’re confident it will be accepted.
Having a strong rapport with your Talent Advisor can help you move through the hiring process faster, more effectively, and with the outcomes you’re looking for. Sometimes hiring managers hesitate to share negative feedback about a candidate’s skills or experience (because who likes giving bad news?), but we encourage open communication during this process. Understanding exactly what is or isn’t working helps us ensure a better outcome on the next candidate. And if things are going well, timely communication is even more important: you’re more likely to get an enthusiastic “yes!” in response to an offer when the candidate feels the process has moved along at a natural clip, and they’ve received timely, positive feedback. Plus, a strong rapport with your Talent Advisor also allows her to share honest feedback from candidates about your position, interview process, and the candidate experience.
Want the inside scoop about working with our Staffing Services professionals? We sat down recently with Kat Grunzinger, Managed Solution’s Talent Advisor, to talk about her professional background in recruiting and her hopes for Managed Solution’s Staffing Services.
Here’s what Kat Grunzinger, Managed Solution’s Talent Advisor, wants you to know!
A: “I want hiring managers to know that I’ve been in their seat! I know how challenging it can be to find, vet, and hire the right people for the right positions. That level of empathy drives me to move quickly across the process – jumping onto an intake call, running through recent conversations to see if there are any immediately ‘right’ candidates, proactively sourcing talent across multiple platforms, and being timely in scheduling and feedback. I will earn the hiring manager's trust by active listening to quickly understand an opening; by being flexible and available for their calls; by following through on any action items outlined; and by reassuring them that I’m here for them! I feel most successful when I know we’ve done the right thing for the client.”
A: “I love getting to meet talented individuals and hearing their stories and learning what they want out of their careers – and then getting to help make that happen! It’s a privilege to assist in their journeys, and I take seriously that we are talking about a person’s livelihood. The same care I take in building relationships of trust with hiring managers, I apply to our Talent Community. My goal is to facilitate transparent, two-way communication. I’m not afraid to tell a candidate when a job isn’t going to help them meet their goals because it frees them up to find the opportunities that are right.”
A: “Honest and open communication matters. Not only is this aligned with Managed Solution’s values and Code of Conduct, it’s truly critical for recruiting and other Staffing Services. A hiring manager needs to be honest and realistic about budgets, the true needs of their team, – and sometimes as an outside entity, I’m able to help them see another side of the coin. Whether that’s advising the client about the right pay scale for a position with a specific region or helping them see that their job description is unrealistic (or describes three different jobs), I really appreciate when hiring managers value this two-way feedback. I think it brings us more credibility as recruiters and ultimately helps clients fill their needs.
I think it’s also important for a hiring manager to understand that my role as a recruiter is to help sell the value of an organization or position to candidates. The time we invest up front in an intake call positions me to effectively communicate with potential candidates about the roles, and to proactively answer the questions they have. We’ll both spend more time talking to the right people if a hiring manager spends the time with me up front to help me learn how their team functions, what types of soft skills help someone thrive, and what perks/benefits exist within their organizations. I’ll definitely do the right homework on my side to read the job description, the company website, and more before that meeting, but there’s nothing like learning straight from the hiring manager how the team is doing and what it needs.”
A: “My hope is that we can continue building trust with our clients, as we succeed in connecting them with qualified talent. I know I’ve done my job when a client comes back for help with another opening or refers us to their colleague for assistance on a role. Continuing to help good people find fulfilling work with amazing organizations – that’s what it’s all about!”
Ready to hand over the heavy lifting to us? Email us about our Staffing Services today!
By Ashley Triplett
The first of several significant commercial price increases from Microsoft for Office 365 since its launch a decade ago is occurring March 1, 2022. Microsoft plans including business software subscriptions for Microsoft 365 Business (Basic and Premium), Office 365 (E1, E3, and E5), and more will be affected. Businesses that use these products should expect increased charges.
These increases will apply globally with local market adjustments for specific regions. The good news is that the price increases will only affect commercial and business users, with no changes to pricing for education or consumers subscriptions.
There is a silver lining, in March of 2022, Microsoft will be adding Audio Conferencing to all licenses that include Teams, which will include unlimited dial-in capabilities for Microsoft Teams meetings across the enterprise, business, frontline, and government suites.
Here is the official Microsoft announcement of the price changes.
Microsoft 365 Upcoming Price Changes Effective on March 1, 2022
How Will These Changes Affect Managed Solution’s O365 Customers?
Purchasing New Subscriptions after March 2022 – What You Need to Know
Starting in March, new all Microsoft 365 subscriptions must be purchased under the New Commerce Experience. The New Commerce Experience is Microsoft new subscription platform where you will have 2 options when purchasing new subscriptions. New Commerce Experience subscriptions are available to purchase now and currently qualify for promotions, outlined below.
The first option is to purchase an annual subscription. Annual subscriptions will be at a lower price per seat; the subscription is billed 12 months in full at time of purchase, however, some customers may qualify for monthly termed invoicing under the annual commitment. Annual subscriptions do allow you to increase your seat count at any time, but you may not decrease the number of licenses you purchased until the 12 months is met. In addition, Microsoft is offering a 5% promotional discount for any new annual subscriptions purchase before March 31st, 2022.
The second option is to purchase a monthly subscription. Monthly subscriptions, under the New Commerce Experience, are 20% more than the monthly price of the annual subscription. Monthly subscriptions allow you to increase your seat count at any time, but you may not decrease the number of licenses until the end of each month. Microsoft is offering a 16.7% monthly promotional discount for New Commerce Experience Monthly Subscriptions until June 30th, 2022.
Very Important to Note: With the New Commerce Experience, Microsoft is enforcing its cancellation policy that states Cancellations are only possible within the first 72 hours of purchase with a prorated refund (proration is calculated daily). This policy is enforced with both Annual and Monthly subscriptions, when a cancellation request is submitted after 72 hours of purchase, the cancellation will not take effect until the end of the Monthly Term or the Annual Term.
Restrictions:
Additional Microsoft Price Increases That Took Effect in 2021
There was a quiet price increase for the Enterprise Mobility Suite and Intune licenses announced in July and the price increase took effect August 2021. The new pricing will take effect when subscriptions are renewed at their annual term. Managed Solution is sending out notices to our clients before the price increases take effect.
Microsoft also implemented price increases to their Windows Server offering on September 1, 2021, Windows Server Standard, Win Server CAL, and Win Server RDS licenses all received a 10% price increase.
Open Licensing Program is Ending December 31, 2021
As of January 1, 2022, commercial customers will not be able to buy new or renew software licenses or online services through the Microsoft Open License program. New license-only purchases should be transacted through partners in the Cloud Solution Provider program. You will continue to have full rights and access to all perpetual software licenses acquired through the Open License program. There are currently no changes to the Open Value or Open Value Subscription programs.
Managed Solution is happy to provide quotes for any licenses you need. We can offer great pricing on the new Software Perpetual licenses through the Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) program or if you are in need of Software assurance, we can quote the Open Value licensing as well.
For more information on the Open Licensing Program changes, see the Microsoft official announcement here.
Contact Us
If you are a current licensing client and have questions, please reach out to our Cloud Team at o365@managedsolution.com
If you are new to working with Managed Solution, and want to learn more about how we can help you with your Microsoft licensing and other IT needs, please contact us at sales@managedsolution.com
Want to help us petition against the Microsoft Price Increase? Sign the Petition here.
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