A combination of deep experience, an extensive temp network, and technology delivers high volume of workers
Executive Summary
This client conducts large numbers of market research studies involving sensory testing of food, beverages, and fragrances. Their business growth was constrained by their inability to find experienced hospitality workers who could help prepare and serve the products being tested to their consumer panels. Having used one staffing agency that couldn’t meet their needs, they engaged Malone’s Hospitality staffing services for help. By alerting its vast network of hospitality workers to work opportunities using its online scheduling web portal/smartphone app Shiftboard, Malone was able to provide this client with all the hospitality workers required, allowing them to double the number of studies they were able to conduct.
The Client
Market research firm conducts a variety of “sensory” product tests.
This client conducts market research primarily in the food and beverage, personal care, and fine fragrance industries. They rely on consumer panels to assist with their research studies, which consist of taste tests and other sensory testing. They are one of the most renowned research firms of their type in the U.S.
The Challenge
An inability to find enough trained hospitality staff constrained business operations.
Much of the research this client performs is taste testing of various products. This entails serving panels of consumers samples of food and beverages to acquire their opinions and feedback. To perform their research, the firm requires hosts to greet the research participants and direct them to their appropriate locations; kitchen workers who help prepare and plate the products; and servers who deliver the products to the participants. Given the type of research they conduct, this firm needs sufficient numbers of hospitality workers to perform their studies. They can’t take on more projects if they don’t have enough help, which directly affects their bottom line.
Complicating the scheduling of help is that the numbers and types of temp workers vary from week to week, depending on the number of studies. The client had been working with a staffing agency that proved unable to consistently provide sufficient numbers of high quality hospitality workers. After learning of Malone’s hospitality staffing capabilities, the client turned to them to fulfill all their requirements.
The Approach
Malone couples its large network of hospitality workers with efficient work scheduling technology to help the client grow
Our methodology allows them to provide large numbers of qualified workers quickly. Although the client and Malone communicate daily, every Thursday the client provides Malone a schedule for the following week of the numbers and types of workers they will need. Having offered hospitality staffing for many years, Malone has assembled a network of large group of experienced event workers. Malone enters the client’s openings for the upcoming week into its automated scheduling app/portal, Shiftboard.
All of the event workers in their database who have been pre-qualified to work for this client receive an email or text informing them of the types and timing of openings. Using a computer or smartphone, workers can then sign up for the shifts/assignments they want until all openings are filled. The committed workers receive email/text confirmation of their assignments/schedules. Shiftboard allows Malone to quickly acquire enough workers for events of all sizes.
Malone takes no shortcuts in finding and qualifying the people they offer these types of hospitality assignments. Unlike other hospitality staffing firms, Malone never relies on online hiring. First, each candidate undergoes a phone interview and, if qualified, then a personal interview. Candidate vetting also includes background screening and drug testing. Clients can also interview candidates themselves. Malone frequently offers workers, primarily servers, an orientation/training session to sharpen their skills.
The Results
Three years later, access to staff has helped the client double its product testing capacity.
For the past three years, this client has turned to Malone for its entire event staffing needs and has been fully satisfied with the value they received from this relationship:
- The client has been able to leverage access to more workers to take on more assignments. Over the past three years, their needs have grown from five to 15 people needed daily, to now 20 to 30.
- Their workload has increased so dramatically that they’ve had to open another kitchen to fulfill additional research assignments.
- Malone’s success in finding this client the numbers of hospitality workers they need has led to other staffing assignments. Malone successfully filled a sales position and an administrative position for another of this client’s offices.
