Advice for Job Seekers on How to Partner with Staffing Firms Right Now:

1. Position yourself with clarity

   • Define what you want (type of role, contract vs permanent, skill-level, location). The more precise you are, the easier a staffing‐firm recruiter can match you appropriately.

   • Keep your resume updated and tailored. Since staffing firms may have multiple clients and roles, clear signals (skills, certifications, availability) help you surface faster.

2. Engage proactively with your recruiter

   • Treat your staffing-firm recruiter as a partner: share your timeline, constraints, what you bring, what you’re looking for.

   • Ask how they work: Do they focus on high-volume placements or speciality roles? What clients do they serve? If they have insights about upcoming openings, ask.

   • Stay responsive. If an opportunity comes from the firm, being fast and communicative increases your chances. In tighter demand environments, responsiveness counts.

3. Be open to “bridge” roles

   • With the market more cautious, it may help to consider contract/temporary roles (short-term assignments) as stepping-stones into full-time work, especially if you’re changing sectors or skill‐levels.

   • Use these assignments to build the client’s trust, gain experience, and position yourself for conversion.

4. Build your value beyond the posting

   • Ask your recruiter where clients are feeling pain (e.g., remote/hybrid flexibility, fast onboarding, specialized skill sets) and emphasize how you meet those needs.

   • Think about adjacent skills: With rising demand for analytics/automation, even roles that seemed “basic” may now favor candidates comfortable with tech or multi-tasking.

5. Stay visible and engaged

   • Periodically check in with your staffing firm recruiter—even if you’re not actively job hunting—to keep your profile “top of mind.”

   • Let them know about new certifications, training, availability changes, or if you’re willing to expand scope.

Advice for Employers To Strengthen Staffing-Firm Relationships

Staffing firms aren’t just transactional vendors—they can be strategic workforce-partners if you treat them that way. Here are steps:

1. Select partners aligned with your strategy

   • If your staffing needs are shifting (e.g., more contract/hybrid/skill-specialized), ensure your staffing-firm partner has the competencies and client exposure in that space.

   • Review what types of placements they’ve done recently, their candidate pipeline, their tech/tools.

2. Share workforce-forecasting and context

   • Provide the staffing firm with upcoming projects, anticipated head-count needs, preferred skill sets, timeline, budget/pricing parameters. The more context they have, the better match they can deliver.

   • If you anticipate shifts (e.g., holiday surge, outsourcing, flexible staffing), flag this early so the firm can prep.

3. Engage in joint planning, not just order taking

   • Ask your staffing partner: what’s the talent market like right now in our skill-area/region? Are there gaps, cost pressures, competition from other employers?

   • Use this intelligence to shape your job specs and pricing/offering. A good staffing firm will bring market-insight back to you.

4. Design for agility

   • Given the modest growth and potential caution in Q4, consider flexible staffing models: short-term contracts, temp-to-hire, hybrid remote/onsite, project-based teams.

   • Staffing firms often can ramp faster for contract models; leveraging that agility can give you a competitive advantage vs hiring full-time only.

5. Build relationships for the long‐term

   • The best staffing-firm partnerships are built over time: consistent communication, feedback loops (what worked, what didn’t), runway for candidate conversion or transition to full-time.

   • Measure outcomes together: quality of placements, retention, cost per hire, time to fill.