Bridging the Talent Gap with Fractional Source
In the normal course of business, even a well-planned staffing requirement takes time to fill. After all, hiring the right person is one of the most important thing leaders will do during their career. In the public sector, when we think of hiring the right person, that path can be especially difficult. From securing budget to limited options for incentives in public sector employment, by the time you’re ready to hire, the talent pool may suddenly feel smaller than it did when you first set out to find the right candidate.
That job gets even harder when you think about placing executive positions for your lower levels of government. City Managers, for instance, make just around $115,000 a year on average, and most government agencies’ access to annual incentives such as performance-based bonuses or 401(k) contributions don’t stand up to the private sector. Chief Operating Officers – a likely comparison for the role of City Manager, with its scope of responsibilities and authority – make almost $500,000 a year on average, and that’s before additional incentives.
There are several factors that lead to this disparity, but the fact is since 2013, the public sector has seen an 8% drop in applicants. Attracting top talent to public sector positions has always been a challenge, but with the number of job openings nationwide going up by 29%, that creates an almost 40% gap between the number of open positions, and the number of people seeking to fill them, according to a report from Neogov.
The private sector certainly has its own challenges as well when it comes to recruiting and filling positions with top talent, but those challenges are often offset by the ability of private companies to react to changing market dynamics far more quickly than state and local agencies. Sudden shifts in budget constraints can lead to layoffs. Companies can simply acquire other companies to meet a new demand. Executives can receive significant payouts to move along, opening the door for new leadership and new direction. And, of course, you can hire fractional staff to meet temporary or emerging requirements that maybe you weren’t able to plan for, even at the executive level.
That last option is incredibly appealing, especially to companies facing short term uncertainty. Fractional executives offer flexibility by allowing companies to scale their leadership resources up or down as needed. This is especially useful during times of growth, restructuring, or when specific expertise is required for short-term projects. Businesses can bring in fractional leaders to address immediate needs without committing to a long-term employment contract. This helps with cost commitments, lowering the company’s overall risk if the person doesn’t work out or the needs for that position change, but also provides an opportunity to assess the individual in the role real-time. If the fractional period ends, and the company wants to make that position a full-time spot, they can.
And yet, the fractional staffing approach remains rare in the public sector. All the conditions that lead private companies to pursue fractional sourcing solutions exist in the public sector as well, they’re just nowhere near as acute. Think about budget constraints for state and local government over time; government doesn’t lay thousands of workers off overnight like a large corporation might. Instead, cuts occur over years. Elected officials, playing the government Chief Executive role, may come in and reshape agencies based on their parochial priorities – like results from one company acquiring or merging with another. What about the time to hire full-time staff in government? On average, it takes 3 times as long to hire in the public sector than the private sector.
Fractional staffing is a great way to shore up some of the risks and constraints within government systems. Whether it’s for a discrete piece of work or high-profile project, or to support a leadership transition while searching for a full-time candidate, fractional staffing can help your agency bear the weight of any particular burden while also allowing long-term flexibility in your budget. With every fractional staffing decision, there is a planned and agreed upon end date for the position, saving agencies the unnecessary drag of full-time, long-term employment.
Government agencies should be able to hire who they want, when they want to meet their mission when it matters most. Fractional staffing affords them that opportunity, taking the best lessons from the private sector while maintaining operational status quo for the rest of the workforce. Incorporating fractional staffing into the public sector could be the key to bridging the talent gap, offering agencies the flexibility they need to adapt quickly while ensuring they remain focused on their mission—efficiently serving the public when it matters most.
