The staffing & recruiting industry provides companies with talented professionals for contract and permanent roles. Despite continual growth and immense contributions to the world since its inception, it remained lesser known than other industries for a long time. The recent pandemic intensely affected the job market, bringing the staffing industry more popularity as it filled desperately needed roles across many industries. Learn more about the past, present, and future of the industry.
History of the Staffing Industry
Labor and workforces have taken many different shapes throughout human history. The modern staffing industry began gaining traction during WWII, where similar to the Covid-19 pandemic, they provided needed support to companies experiencing vacancies en masse. Soldiers deploying for the war left many jobs open, sometimes on very short notice. Staffing agencies found people to fill these roles as quickly as possible, providing relief to many industries during a crucial point in history. As a result, these employment agencies saw healthy growth and cemented their value in the future of business.
Following decades generated many standards that have been improved on to build the current methods of the staffing & recruiting industry. The industry introduced contract employment and proliferated many business sectors with it. Staff management and candidate search processes were studied and improved in order to provide better work conditions for consultants and better staff performance for the clients they served.
Building on momentum of the past century, the staffing industry saw significant growth over the past 20 years. The exponential boom of technology and innovation brought intense demand for highly-qualified professionals. Companies needed both quality and breadth in their projects, and they needed to hire for this based also on budgetary and time-based restrictions. Staffing agencies provided solutions to these pressing issues, and thus, both industries enjoyed massive growth throughout the 2000s and 2010s. The Covid-19 pandemic, as mentioned above, further catalyzed the industry due to the unique and challenging changes to the workforce, which staffing agencies helped to navigate. This increased demand also helped many employment agencies expand their specialization and serve more business sectors, particularly healthcare.
Current State of the Staffing Industry
The pandemic further grew large staffing agencies and helped establish smaller ones. While many practices like remote work were adopted out of necessity, many organizations are retaining them indefinitely amid observations of higher efficiency and team satisfaction. This shift in employment could have been troublesome for businesses, requiring additional hiring efforts and restructuring of management. Fortunately, staffing firms have extensive networks and are able to find the perfect candidates to fit into your company. Recruiters are adaptable and quickly understand your needs so they can reflect them in the applicants they select.
According to data from the American Staffing Association, the staffing & recruiting industry has weathered recent economic conditions reasonably well. It has remained ahead of the overall market in terms of both headcount and revenue. Dips from the initial toll of Covid-19 have recovered in a very strong 2021 performance; expectations are also high for this year’s report. Staffing agencies today are offering more attractive roles across more sectors than ever before, and both organizations and consultants are benefiting greatly from it.
Future of the Staffing Industry
Businesses leaned on work-from-home and contract/temporary work heavily during the pandemic. Many employers realized the future potential of these practices even in the absence of a pandemic. As a result, remote work and contract work are both expected to continue to challenge in-person work and permanent roles, respectively, in the future.
As time goes on, more sectors of business and professions will become supported by employment agencies. This is especially true for sub-sectors that stem off of industries traditionally serviced by staffing firms, such as fintech and telehealth, since there is a solid foundation of experience and talent in the needed areas. As more industries sub-divide and innovate, more services and staffing solutions will be provided to such companies by staffing agencies.
Where blueStone Fits In
blueStone Staffing Solutions has been a part of this amazing industry for over 20 years, originally specializing in the information technology sector. As we grew, so too did our scope and expertise. We now serve the engineering, healthcare, finance, and accounting industries as well, providing top tier professionals and trusted employment support to countless mid-market and Fortune 500 organizations.
About Us
blueStone Staffing is a Certified Woman-Owned IT Staffing Company. We were founded in 2002. One of North America’s premier staffing firms, we assist mid-tier to Fortune 500 clients. We find talented candidates that can help complete your project on time and within budget. Our company is transforming the staffing industry. blueStone has excelled over the last 19 years, becoming the vendor of choice for many of the Fortune 1000 companies located in the United States. We hope to be the consultant that you trust your professional IT project needs to! We will surround you with meaningful attention. Our team creates long-term relationships with our clients, candidates, and associates. In brief, we help great people execute their vision.
Secure Top Talent Now
Contact us to learn how we can help your company fill roles that seem impossible to staff. Or come see us to find your next role!
Phone: 888-363-4800
Email: sales@bluestonestaffing.com