Staffing Services: The Details- What you need to know!

Staffing Services: The Details- What you need to know!

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!

Why You Can Trust Managed Solution to Deliver Top Talent

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!

What You Need to Know When Getting Started with Managed Solution’s Talent Advisor

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:

  1. What function or role will this person play in your organization or project? Do you need someone to take charge and lead a team? Someone to execute tasks already outlined in a project plan? Someone your end users can trust to solve their issues in a responsive and friendly manner?
  2. What skills & experience are essential for their success? Are you seeking a well-rounded IT generalist with demonstrated success in a particular industry? A helpdesk superstar already proficient with a specific ticketing system and Office365 administration? An SQL wizard?
  3. Who will this person interact with most often? What people skills would make someone most successful in those interactions? Every team has a different style, and Our Talent Advisor knows a successful candidate will be a value-add to your existing team culture. Is your team highly process oriented or working in a compliance-heavy environment? Operating in a start-up mentality where adaptability is key? Our Talent Advisor wants to know so we can present candidates who are ready to jump in and be successful!
  4. What is the available budget and target market for hiring? Are you looking for an onsite resource in your downtown Los Angeles office, or flexible to find someone fully remote from anywhere in the nation? Do you have budget for a full-time internal hire, or will you be looking to staff a temporary need with an external position on an hourly bill rate?

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.

How Managed Solution Approaches Staffing Services

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.

How a Strong Rapport with Your Talent Advisor Helps You Hire Better, Faster

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.

What details Talent Advisor Wants You to Know

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!

Q: What do you want a hiring manager to know about you?

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.”

Q: What drew you to recruiting and what’s your favorite part of the process?

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.”

Q: What should a hiring manager know about your job to make the relationship more effective?

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.”

Q: What are your hopes for Managed Solution’s Staffing Services?

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!

Managed Service Providers: How Do They Benefit Businesses?

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A managed service provider (MSP) is an organization that manages a company’s IT infrastructure and user systems from a remote location. An MSP is a network administrator, security consultant and disaster recovery expert rolled into one. These professionals handle information services, business-to-business integration, supply chain management, and all the tasks clients don’t want to carry out themselves.
MSP Providers Explained
MSPs streamline a range of business services for clients in various industries, from healthcare to retail. These services include payroll management, human resources, systems operations, compliance and network monitoring. In a recent study, 77 percent of MSPs provided backup and disaster recovery — the most popular service offered by these professionals. Seventy-six percent specialized in remote monitoring and management, and 57 percent provided managed network security. Other popular MSP services include mobile device management, payment processing, and hosted and cloud video surveillance.
MSPs serve an important function. They execute functions that organizations don’t have the time — or the resources — to complete themselves. Fifty-six percent of companies with 100 or more employees who used managed IT services said they chose an MSP to improve the efficiency and reliability of their IT operations. Moreover, 38 percent of companies said enhanced security and compliance was a motivating factor for choosing an MSP. As more organizations worry about IT security — 60 percent of small brands go out of business within six months of a cyber attack, according to one study — it makes sense to choose an MSP that has experience and knowledge in this field.
MSPs date back to the 1990s. Back then, they were called Application Service Providers (ASPs) — companies that hosted and maintained applications for other businesses. Today, MSPs are used by more people than ever before. Research suggests that global managed IT services spending will reach $193 billion by 2019 — double the amount organizations spent on these services in 2014.
How an IT Managed Services Provider Works
Most MSPs operate on a subscription-based model. Clients pay monthly or annual fees for services, and costs vary depending on the MSP. One study suggests that MSPs in the United States charge clients $65 per desktop, on average, for IT support and maintenance. After agreeing on costs, the MSP and the client will come up with a service-level agreement (SLA) — a contract that defines the roles and the responsibilities of each party. The SLA will stipulate factors like performance benchmarks, availability, and uptime.
There are lots of customization options, too. Typically, clients just pay for the services they require — procurement or employee management, for example — instead of expensive packages that include services they don’t need. Communication between the MSP and the client is critical, however. “To fully take advantage of the available managed services options, an IT department must become adept at managing relationships, not only with external providers but also with internal users, who are increasingly being seen as customers,” says Danny Bradbury from CenturyLink, writing for Forbes magazine.
The Benefits of an MSP Managed Service Provider
MSP IT providers optimize various business processes. Clients relinquish control of their operations, but MSPs take care of all the time-consuming and repetitive tasks. This provides clients with more time to focus on other business-related duties. Outsourcing IT services to a third party suits organizations that have a small team of staff or want to drive business growth. They can reduce labor costs by delegating IT services to an MSP, for example.
MSPs save clients money, too. These professionals search for ways to cut spending and improve cost management. Forty-six percent of managed IT service users have reduced IT costs by 25 percent or more; 50 percent have reduced IT costs by between one and 24 percent.
Network security is one of the most popular managed services. MSPs upgrade IT services, manage IT infrastructure and ensure systems aren’t compromised by malicious parties. They often have specialist IT skills, providing the client with peace of mind.
Also, MSPs are familiar with federal and state legislation and PCI compliance standards. This reduces the likelihood of clients receiving hefty fines for non-compliance.
What are Cloud Managed Service Providers?
Cloud managed service providers are a type of MSP that deliver managed IT services via the cloud. These companies centralize network services and applications from a single data center, allowing users to access data quickly. Other benefits include data recovery: Cloud managed service providers store data in the cloud, so users have access to files after a natural disaster or another emergency. More than half of all MSPs now offer cloud managed services to clients.
Businesses are under pressure to provide customers with high-quality IT services. Thirty-six percent of brands want to deliver IT services faster, and 16 percent hope to increase the quality of IT services. Managed IT service providers offer a solution. Clients can deploy services these professionals to better manage their everyday business operations.

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Managed Solution offers support services to organizations with dedicated IT consulting and managed services – helping improve productivity, setting predictable controlled costs and reducing the impact of infrastructure challenges on daily operations.

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Optimize your existing resources and put more focus on Strategic IT projects while we provide quality support through our award winning US-based Help Desk located in Southern California


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Our Managed Services Portfolio includes offerings that cover a wide range of technology’s – choose from one of our packaged offerings or pick and choose the specific services and applications that fit your business needs. The first step will be a Network Assessment with one of our infrastructure experts that will provide you a network inventory analysis, identify any and all network issues and correlate data collected to provide you extensive insight into your network and its performance.

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Managed Solution Named to 2017 CRN Fast Growth 150 List

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San Diego, CA – CRN®, a brand of The Channel Company, has named Managed Solution to its 2017 Fast Growth 150 list. The list is CRN’s annual ranking of North America-based technology integrators, solution providers and IT consultants with gross sales of at least $1 million that have experienced significant economic growth over the past two years. The 2017 list is based on gains in gross revenue between 2014 and 2016, and the companies recognized represent a total, combined revenue of more than $16,717,688,643.
“The companies on CRN’s 2017 Fast Growth 150 list are thriving in what is now a very tumultuous, demanding IT channel climate,” said Robert Faletra, CEO of The Channel Company. “This remarkable group of solution providers has successfully adapted to a landmark industry shift away from the traditional VAR business model to a more services-driven approach, outpacing competitors and emerging as true channel leaders. We congratulate each of the Fast Growth 150 honorees and look forward to their continued success.”
Managed Solution is proud to receive this acknowledgment of the company's continuing success. Managed Solution is a Technology as a Service (TaaS) company, offering hardware, software and premium service tiers and specializes in forecasting technology infrastructure for small to enterprise sized businesses. Managed Solution provides a full spectrum of managed and professional services with an award-winning US-based 24/7 Help Desk headquartered in Southern California.  Managed Solution provides IT services nationwide and is recognized as one of the top 10 National Cloud Service Providers.

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Shawn Weebe: January Player of the Month

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CONGRATULATIONS TO SHAWN WEEBE:  JANUARY 2017 PLAYER OF THE MONTH

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This award is given on a monthly basis to a Managed Solution employee who has done an amazing job of exemplifying and living up to the Managed Solution Core Values.
The Managed Solution leadership team selected Shawn Weebe as Player of the Month because he has shown outstanding determination and initiative with both his team and clients.
For starters, Shawn has shown incredible leadership by volunteering to lead and overtake some major projects. Shawn went above and beyond when he showed independent leadership to bring client-focused training to the PMO.  Not only is Shawn a great person to work with, he has also shown a great work ethic and built relationships with clients.  He advanced our Client Roadmapping Initiative to allow our clients to have a timeline of events to reach their goals.  As a result, Shawn  continues to receive high survey marks from his customers.
Shawn's positive attitude and dedication to the company, his team, and his clients, is greatly appreciated by everyone here at Managed Solution.  Leadership is excited to award his dedication and hard work with this month’s Player of the Month. Congratulations Shawn!
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At Managed Solution, we strive to be the best technology based company by investing in our top assets; our people!

Here at Managed Solution we thrive in an energetic, performance-driven environment where results, teamwork, and quality of customer satisfaction are recognized and rewarded. Our corporate culture is diverse, open and creative. We look for team members with proven experience, a strong sense of passion and dedication to the highest levels of excellence, technology and business ethics.
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New Employee Announcement: Catherine Andersen

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New Employee Announcement: Catherine Andersen

 

Catherine Andersen joins the Managed Solution team as a Channel Manager on February 2, 2017.  Catherine started her career as a sales rep for a Distributor and worked her way up to a Storage Specialist. From there, Catherine progressed to becoming a Distribution Channel Manager for a storage manufacturer.  With over 15 years of experience in the technology industry, Catherine is passionate about delivering the best customer outcome and retaining relationships.
When not working hard, Catherine can be found going on family hikes at Torrey Pines or fishing on the Mississippi River. Back on her parents' farm in Wisconsin, she enjoys Morel mushroom hunting.  For the past four seasons, Catherine has been the "Dugout Director" for her son's LYCO Baseball team!

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Catherine has a daughter, Savannah, and a son, Jake. Over the summer, she turned her neighborhood into a "Ghost Town" for Halloween, complete with storefront themes and design concepts for each homeowner. The neighborhood attracted over 1,600 people Halloween night and even received a write up in Bressi Living Magazine!
Joining the sales team, Catherine is looking forward to embracing the services side of sales and parlaying her channel experience into this role. We are beyond excited to welcome Catherine, and we cannot wait to see what great things she brings to our ballgame!

Player of the Month, November 2016: Sean Andrews

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CONGRATULATIONS TO SEAN ANDREWS:  NOVEMBER 2016 PLAYER OF THE MONTH

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This award is given on a monthly basis to a Managed Solution employee who has done an amazing job of exemplifying and living up to the Managed Solution Core Values.
The Managed Solution leadership team selected Sean Andrews as November's Player of the Month because he has been doing a phenomenal job working with our top client and his incredible work ethic is an inspiration to the entire company. Sean is a Systems Engineer working with our Systems Integration team and a key contributor responsible for the success of SCCM deployments to our top client sites worldwide.  Sean has created a custom application named SHARC that receives constant accolades from the customer and is a major factor that has significantly led to successful SCCM implementations. His knowledge of System Center, his tenacity in overcoming technical issues and his willingness to take on new and unexpected challenges makes him one of the most respected team members, both internally and from the customer’s perspective.   Sean is always a pleasure to work with, facing challenges head on with determination and commitment.
Sean's incredible work ethic is an inspiration to the entire company. His determination and passion for every project is remarkable.  Therefore, leadership is excited to award his dedication and hard work as our November Player of the Month.
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At Managed Solution, we strive to be the best technology based company by investing in our top assets; our people!

Here at Managed Solution we thrive in an energetic, performance-driven environment where results, teamwork, and quality of customer satisfaction are recognized and rewarded. Our corporate culture is diverse, open and creative. We look for team members with proven experience, a strong sense of passion and dedication to the highest levels of excellence, technology and business ethics.
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New Employee Announcement: Topher Thomas, Field Engineer

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Topher Thomas joins Managed Solution as one of our new Field Engineers. Topher first discovered his love for the IT industry when he worked for a 2 person MSP in Phoenix, AZ. Most recently he worked as a Systems Administrator at Pain Doctor Management Company, but moved further west to be closer to the water.
Topher grew up in a small border town named Douglas, which is in southeast Arizona. Although he doesn't currently have any pets, he loves dogs and hopes to get one sometime very soon.
Outside of work, Topher is an avid fan of trying new things and is always looking to exercise both his mind and body. He loves playing soccer and keeping up with all of his favorite sports teams. We are so excited to welcome Topher to our team, and we can't wait to see all of the unique experiences he'll bring to the table!

Welcome to the Managed Solution team, Topher Thomas!

New Employee Announcement: Don Theriault, Project Manager

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Don Theriault joins Managed Solution as a Project Manager. Don grew up in the province of Alberta, Canada. Born in Edmonton, and grew up in both Edmonton and Calgary, but he considers Calgary home having spent most of his life in Calgary and this is where most of my family reside.  Don is happy to have made the move to sunny San Diego, where he hopes to some day retire.
After receiving his college education in Information Technology, Don started his career in 1981 in the telecommunications industry.  Since then, he has had various roles throughout the technology industry, including Programmer Analyst, Systems Analyst, Business Analyst, Team Manager, and IT Project Manager.
Outside of work, Don lives an active lifestyle.  Some of his many activities to stay in shape include playing hockey, biking, hiking, golfing, scuba diving, and walking on the beach.  We are so excited to welcome Don to our team, and we can't wait to see what experiences he can bring for us.

Welcome to the Managed Solution team, Don Theriault!