The goal of a staffing plan is to ensure you have the right legal support talent in the right positions at the right time. It sounds straightforward enough. To get you off to a great staffing start in 2017, here are five quick steps to help you develop your plan.
Evaluate your needs.
Before you can create a staffing plan, you need to define your needs in 2017, and even beyond. Take a look at recent performance reviews to identify weak links and top performers, and assess specialties or areas that are understaffed. If you do have an immediate hiring need, connect with the department’s manager and staff members to get a sense of the key tasks and responsibilities, along with the type of person who’d be successful in that position.
Look at the numbers (i.e., anticipated growth, goals and budgets).
Creating a staffing plan means you need to take into account financial goals and limits, as well as expectations for your legal department. For instance, you need to know what your staffing budget is so you can define in your plan how and where you will recruit. Also, do you anticipate a lot of growth in 2017? If so, how many legal support employees do you think you’ll need to accommodate the new business? This all needs to be thought through and spelled out in your staffing plan.
Consider how business trends can impact your staffing needs.
When it comes to trends, take a look at both internal and external factors. Internal trends can include things like downsizing, turnover and workplace demographics. External factors, on the other hand, include legislation, industry mergers and acquisitions, and other issues outside your company that can impact it.
Take a proactive approach.
The last thing you want to do is hire out of a sense of desperation. To avoid doing that, it’s important to regularly invest time and resources into staffing, networking and recruiting, not just when you need to hire. Keep lines of communication open with your legal support recruiter and keep them informed about your organization and any business changes. If they are kept in the loop, this knowledge will help them in their quest to find you top talent that will be a perfect fit for your company.
Partner with a legal support recruiter.
A recruiter that specializes in the legal support field has valuable information about the industry and can help you craft and execute your staffing plan. They can work with you to learn about your needs, goals and company culture, and then offer their insight to help you develop a strategic staffing plan that ensures your business is optimally staffed at all times. They can also help with hiring tasks ranging from sourcing, screening and interviewing candidates to conducting background and reference checks.
Do you need to hire legal support talent in Toronto? Kent Legal can help. As Toronto’s leading legal support recruiting firm we can help you find and hire the industry’s top talent. If you’re looking for a partner you can trust, contact us today!