Pontoon had operated a strong MSP programme for our customer in the UK, and they expanded our scope with US contingent roles.
Our experts consulted the customer and deployed our direct sourcing model – Pontoon Direct – for the expanded remit.
The challenge was to design a direct sourcing model that seamlessly integrates with our customer’s contingent hiring. We proposed Pontoon Direct which would accelerate time-to-fill while reducing the agency spend and ultimately saving on our customer’s bottom line.
Our goal was to increase direct sourcing hires which would deliver cost-saving back to our customer and tap into new talent pools.
We leveraged sourcers, screeners and a recruiter in our Toledo Hub to support candidate attraction, sourcing, and screening.
New KPIs were defined, communicated and monitored for the US team similar to how the programme operated in the UK. We aimed for three candidate submissions within 48 hours of the sourcing team receiving the requisition which was piloted for three roles – Financial Analyst, Data Analyst, and Strategic Sourcing Specialist. The sourcing team was given exclusivity to all roles for a 48-hour period.
Our sourcers tailored specific candidate outreach strategies to tap the right pockets of talent, depending on the role requirements and desired seniority. Pontoon Analytics was used to identify real-time talent availability for niche skillsets and quickly approach individuals who matched the role specs.
Once the recruiter reviewed the resumes and identified candidates that matched the roles, a phone conversation was scheduled with our screener and the candidate. If the candidate passed the initial phone screen, they were shortlisted for hiring manager reviews.
The team also developed a talent community for silver-medallist candidates where they curate the known candidates to reengage them for future openings.
Resumes began coming through from the direct sourcing channel much more quickly. In fact, 78% of requisitions received resumes within 48 hours, and 100% received 3 resumes within 72 hours.
The team rolled out Pontoon Direct in July 2020, and within the first six months of deployment, our customer saved $23,483 in recruiting costs. This translated to $1,468 per worker in cost savings compared to traditional supplier-based hiring. In 2021, we filled 20% of the customer’s requisitions through Pontoon Direct, resulting in $256,385 annual projected cost savings.
The full-year results for US direct sourcing in 2022 have shown excellent improvements. Last year’s fulfilment ratio has risen to 24.4%, up from 20% in 2021. This is a significant rise, reflecting the effectiveness of our direct sourcing strategy when it comes to fulfilling roles.
Furthermore, cost savings have been substantial. In 2022, we saved our client $649K, significantly boosting the previous year’s figure of $256K. This means that not only are we fulfilling roles more effectively, but we are doing so cost-efficiently.
Compared to agency candidates, our direct candidates have an average submit-to-offer time two days faster (July 2021 – Dec 2022). We are seeing our submit-to-offer conversion rates rise to new heights, which is impressive. 15% of directly sourced candidates were offered roles, compared to only 8% of agencies.
In addition to significant cost savings and our customer-centric approach, hiring managers are seeing the benefits of direct sourcing.
Our direct sourcing team has built reliable and trusting relationships with the hiring managers at our client. To better source for their requirements and role intricacies, the sourcing team asks excellent questions and acquires a far deeper understanding of the requisition – hiring managers are delighted!
