Contingent staffing is a broad term that refers to the practice of hiring workers to temporarily fulfill specific roles within an organization. These workers are not permanent employees but are engaged on a temporary basis to meet short-term needs or to provide specialized skills that may not be available within the organization. Often this classification of workers is called an external workforce, a temporary workforce, or by such terms as independent contractors, freelancers, or seasonal employees.
However, in order to better delineate functions in the SAP Fieldglass application, the term ‘Contingent’ is used a bit more strictly to define workers who are procured from a supplier using a job posting and are placed into an existing team and/or report directly to a manager within the organization. This term is used in the application to draw a distinction from the other ways a worker can be classified: as either a services worker (a worker hired to perform a specific service defined by a specific contract) or a profile worker (a worker who is not paid by or report to the organization).
Watch the video to learn how the term ‘Contingent’ is used by SAP Fieldglass to define the relationship between buyer, supplier, and a worker.
Benefits of Procuring Contingent Workers Using SAP Fieldglass
As a result of using SAP Fieldglass to procure the temporary worker for the network engineering team, WorkingNet saw the following benefits:
- Clear Classification of Workers: SAP Fieldglass distinguishes between different types of workers (Services, Contingent, Profile) based on their management and payment structure. This clarity helps in better workforce management and reduces confusion.
- Access to specialized skills: By engaging contingent workers, organizations can tap into a pool of specialized skills that may not be available internally. This allows them to quickly fill skill gaps and meet short-term needs without the need for long-term commitments.
- Flexibility and scalability: Contingent workers provide organizations with the flexibility to scale their workforce up or down based on demand. They can be easily onboarded and offboarded as needed, allowing organizations to adapt to changing business requirements.
- Cost savings: Hiring contingent workers can be more cost-effective than hiring permanent employees. Organizations can avoid the costs associated with benefits, training, and overhead expenses that come with permanent employees. They can also negotiate competitive rates with suppliers, ensuring cost savings.
- Enhanced productivity: By leveraging the specialized skills of contingent workers, organizations can improve productivity and efficiency. These workers can bring fresh perspectives and expertise to projects, contributing to better outcomes and faster delivery.
- Reduced administrative burden: SAP Fieldglass streamlines the procurement process for contingent workers, automating tasks such as job postings, supplier selection, and contract management. This reduces the administrative burden on HR and procurement teams, allowing them to focus on strategic initiatives.