A Fast Turnaround Solution To Ensure The Continuation Of An Important NHS Project

The client’s challenge …

After noticing there would be a significant skills shortage in a particular project once a few exiting employees left, our existing NHS Trust client approached us and two other agencies to find two relevant contractors to cover the skills gap and release pressure on the department, until they could find a permanent replacement.

Due to the urgency of the role, the Trust chose to approach VIQU and two other agencies they had previously worked with. However, thanks to our speed and efficiency, we were able to qualify the role immediately and offer a shortlist of candidates within 24 hours. Within the same amount of time, the Trust hadn’t even heard back from the two other agencies they had contacted.

During the initial call as we qualified the role, we realised that the two contractors they were looking for would take longer to source as they both needed lots of experience in multiple network specialisms. We suggested splitting the specialisms between the two contractors and finding individuals who excelled in each area and would fill all the client’s requirements. Doing so would mean that they would have more experienced candidates quicker, which the client was very pleased with. We asked them which skills and specialisms were more urgent, and we would work to fill that role first so that there would be a quicker turnaround and the client would have their most urgent needs met faster.

Our strong existing relationship with the Trust, meant that we already knew how to effectively work together, and we understood what their team needed. This enabled us to have the real insights into which contractors would work best in the team.

Additionally, as we are a Crown Commercial Service Supplier for a number of frameworks including G Cloud 13 and RM6277, it gave the Trust a number of avenues to go down to secure and sign off a budget quickly, ensuring full compliance and a speedy resolution.

Our actions…

• Contacted the hiring managers as soon as we could and fully qualified the roles, so we understood the exact requirements they needed
• Offered our expert insights and advised that from the long list of skills needed for the role and to make sure the Trust could fill the skills gap as soon as possible
• Asked which specialisms were most urgent so we could focus on filling that resource first to ensure a quicker turnaround and relieve pressure as soon as possible
• Took control over the recruitment process and enquired about the hiring managers availabilities in the first call to secure candidates early on and eliminate the need to go back and forth with the client to set up interviews
• Asked for access to the hiring manager’s diaries and took the responsibility to send invites out ensuring that they were not having to waste their day performing admin

The outcomes...

As the roles were fully qualified from the beginning of the engagement, we were able to identify a shortlist of contractors from our extensive system of over 140,000 active candidates within 24 hours. We knew these contractors had the right set of skills and experience and were available to start immediately. From that shortlist, we were able to arrange and set up 1^st stage interviews – all within 48 hours of our call with the hiring managers.

Then, within a week both positions had been offered, and we ensured that the contractors were set up with compliant umbrella agencies to guarantee a smooth transition and full compliancy. Whilst we had everything in place to have the two contractors onsite within 24 hours of them receiving the offer, there was a short delay with the Trust to get their paperwork in place, due to it being the Christmas period. However, we made sure that communication was kept open between the Trust and the contractors so that the contractors were informed, engaged and ready to start as soon as possible.

We have continued to stay in touch with the contractors and managers since the placements, with daily and then weekly check-ins both virtually and onsite to ensure a positive onboarding experience.