The business of consulting firms has always been based on providing highly skilled, specialized personnel to drive their clients’ success. Yet, while these firms have always dealt in delivering people as their product, the competitive nature of the market has led them to seek new and innovative ways to streamline operations and gain visibility into their contingent workforce. One global management consulting firm realized the challenges it was facing would not be resolved without a solution that would optimize its contingent workforce management. Without a viable solution in place, this firm experienced a decentralized infrastructure, undeveloped internal processes and tools across independently managed global offices, minimal visibility into workforce activities, and more. This consulting firm chose the vendor-neutral and integrated Managed Service Provider (MSP) and Vendor Management Software (VMS) model to start their journey toward total contingent workforce management. By choosing this approach over other MSP-staffing aligned models, this firm is achieving successes in several areas: Program Growth: Implemented a VMS across 106 suppliers in 17 countries Visibility: Enabled global access to contingent workforce activity across offices Process Rationalization: Transitioned all external workers off internal timekeeping tool and on to a VMS Governance: Performed 100 one-on-one hiring manager meetings to support streamlined consistent processes Compliance and Qualified Talent: Conducted screening of approximately 100 consultants across global locations Download the case study to find out more about the successes that this global consulting firm achieved by partnering with PRO. If you’re interested in learning more about how PRO is helping organizations implement winning contingent workforce programs globally, please contact a PRO representative at 800.291.1099 or email at info@prounlimited.com.   Disclaimer: The content in this blog post is for informational purposes only and cannot be construed as specific legal advice or as a substitute for legal advice. The blog post reflects the opinion of PRO Unlimited and is not to be construed as legal solutions and positions. Contact an attorney for specific advice and guidance for specific issues or questions.

With influence from competitors and technology at an all-time high, finding the right talent at the right time for your business is more challenging than ever. Discover the advantages you can gain by using business intelligence (BI) tools in your contingent resource planning strategy in our latest piece with Forbes, featuring PRO Unlimited’s Ted Sergott, EVP of Product Development. Gaining visibility across your workforce, including contingent and full-time workers, to achieve total talent management can help you make smarter decisions — by driving cost savings and program efficiencies. BI tools translate vital workforce data into actionable visualizations that illuminate highlight important insights, including supply and demand, and worker details. By embracing business intelligence-based tools and optimizing your resource planning strategy, you realize the following benefits: Understanding supply and demand opportunities on a global scale Leveraging your existing talent pool to reapply them to open positions Building your talent network by enabling workers to stay engaged Releasing workers using an understanding of their performance and other external factors The clear advantages you gain by applying BI tools to your resource planning strategy should not be overlooked, but taking the right steps toward choosing a vendor to suite your needs can be challenging. To find out more about the benefits and the questions you should ask when selecting the BI tools that are right for you, read the full Forbes article here. If you’re interested in learning more about how PRO is helping organizations implement winning contingent workforce programs globally, please contact a PRO representative at 800.291.1099 or email at info@prounlimited.com.   Disclaimer: The content in this blog post is for informational purposes only and cannot be construed as specific legal advice or as a substitute for legal advice. The blog post reflects the opinion of PRO Unlimited and is not to be construed as legal solutions and positions. Contact an attorney for specific advice and guidance for specific issues or questions.

In the latest of HR.com’s Talent Acquisition Excellence ePublication, PRO Unlimited’s EVP of Product Development, Ted Sergott discusses Artificial Intelligence (AI) and its impact on contingent labor management. As 74% of employers claim they’ve hired the wrong person for a position, losing an average of nearly $15,000 on every bad hire, there is an immense need for new and innovative technology that can support an altogether better sourcing process. In fact, nearly 3 in 4 business leaders consider AI a “business advantage” that will be fundamental to their future operations. The adoption of AI into contingent workforce management is just beginning and it will enable organizations to make smarter hiring decisions through a combination of machine learning, predictive analytics and augmented reality to increase efficiency, reduce operational costs, grow revenue and improve talent quality. While AI is a broad and well-known topic across organizations and industries, there are four areas of focus for contingent workforce management: Embedded Intelligence Adaptive job assessments Social and behavioral mining Augmented reality Combined with human expertise, AI promises to enable faster, more efficient decision-making for a more optimized sourcing process that will drive cost savings and improve the end user experience. With the right organizational support, the strategic use of AI could lead to greater hiring successes and a deeper understanding of the workforce. To learn more about AI’s impact on contingent labor management, read the full article here. If you’re interested in learning more about how PRO is helping organizations implement winning contingent workforce programs globally, please contact a PRO representative at 800.291.1099 or email at info@prounlimited.com.   Disclaimer: The content in this blog post is for informational purposes only and cannot be construed as specific legal advice or as a substitute for legal advice. The blog post reflects the opinion of PRO Unlimited and is not to be construed as legal solutions and positions. Contact an attorney for specific advice and guidance for specific issues or questions.

Since 1991, PRO Unlimited has been a leading contingent workforce management provider for Fortune 1000 clients around the world. Top brands have chosen PRO as their partner to help them navigate the complex contingent labor landscape – this is due to our exceptional services, solutions, and most of all, our employees’ level of commitment and expertise. While our clients have recognized the value in what PRO delivers to their bottom line, so have organizations like the Great Place to Work Institute (GPTW), which recently certified PRO as a “Great Place to Work.” This award is a direct result of our company culture. We continually strive for new and smarter approaches to forge ahead, driving change while championing innovation. The criteria for an organization such as PRO to win this award consists of employee input on a wide range of criteria including: Leadership Integrity Competence Camaraderie Engagement Credibility And that’s what you can expect to experience while working at PRO – being a part of a team that leads the way in an ever-growing industry. Whether you are a recent college grad, mid-career or tenured professional, we are committed to supporting your career path every step of the way. Our employees solve some of the most complex problems facing our Fortune 1000 clients, shaping the contingent workforce management landscape. They have the opportunity to thrive in a professional, dynamic and creative environment. We couldn’t be more pleased that organizations like GPTW recognize the measures we have taken to make PRO a great partner for our clients and a place where our valued employees make a positive impact every day! If you’re interested in learning more about how PRO is helping organizations implement winning contingent workforce programs globally, please contact a PRO representative at 800.291.1099 or email at info@prounlimited.com.   Disclaimer: The content in this blog post is for informational purposes only and cannot be construed as specific legal advice or as a substitute for legal advice. The blog post reflects the opinion of PRO Unlimited and is not to be construed as legal solutions and positions. Contact an attorney for specific advice and guidance for specific issues or questions.

In 2018, PRO Unlimited published dozens of white papers, case studies, podcasts, infographics, data sheets and more aimed at helping organizations optimize their contingent workforce management. Here are the top 5 most viewed pieces of collateral from the past year – we hope they inspire new ideas and approaches as you’re managing your contingent workforce in 2019 and beyond! 5) “Analytics and Contingent Workforce Management: 7 Real-World Success Stories” (white paper) Your organization probably has access to plenty of data, but actually harnessing it is a whole different challenge. Read about seven leading companies who have used workforce data to drive actionable intelligence in areas such as enhancing workforce visibility, improving worker retention, minimizing unnecessary overtime, and much more. 4) “SOW Management: How to effectively drive unmatched value and savings with a proven MSP” (fact sheet) Procurement professionals are often too short on resources to optimally manage all the projects coming through the pipeline. Check out this fact sheet and discover how a Managed Services Provider (MSP) can help with SOW management in areas such as accurate rate benchmarking, active renegotiation of extensions, and more. 3) “7 Contingent Workforce Questions That Wand VMS Can Help You Answer” (white paper) Which areas of the requisition process can we tweak to improve time to fill? What engagement type and location will yield the best worker quality for the lowest cost? Are we paying competitive rates for contingent workers? Discover how a leading-edge VMS can help answer critical questions like these. 2) “Artificial Intelligence and Its Impact on Contingent Workforce Management” (white paper) In 2018, artificial intelligence and its impact on both the personal and professional worlds was a hot topic, and this was true of contingent workforce management as well. Several of our AI-related pieces, including this fact sheet and this podcast, ranked among our most popular content pieces in 2018, but this white paper was the most viewed of the bunch. 1) “Company Deploys Self-Sourcing Strategy Resulting in $1.6M in Savings in Five Months” (case study) The concept of self-sourcing has been a hot topic in contingent workforce management for a while now – see our related infographic for more – but what about real-world application? Learn how this organization achieved major wins through self-sourcing, and then use their example as a jumping-off point for your own program. For more thought leadership from PRO, please visit our Resources page. If you’re interested in learning more about how PRO is helping organizations implement winning contingent workforce programs globally, please contact a PRO representative at 800.291.1099 or email at info@prounlimited.com. Disclaimer: The content in this blog post is for informational purposes only and cannot be construed as specific legal advice or as a substitute for legal advice. The blog post reflects the opinion of PRO Unlimited and is not to be construed as legal solutions and positions. Contact an attorney for specific advice and guidance for specific issues or questions.

Today, 40% of the total global workforce is comprised of non-employee talent, including independent contractors, freelancers, professional services and temporary workers. The gig economy is growing beyond organizational capabilities to manage it, causing individual departments and managers to directly engage staffing suppliers to meet their contingent workforce needs without a centralized process to track and control spend. Without standardization of and visibility into their workforce, organizations that rely on professional, white-collar workers are exposed to higher costs, increased taxes and looming regulatory risks. This influx of contingent workers that fall outside the lines of the typical full-time job is creating a new set of challenges for organizations, pushing them to reach outside of their internal resources for an external partner – a Managed Service Provider (MSP). When an organization chooses an MSP to outsource its contingent labor management, it becomes the responsibility of the MSP to leverage its expertise to combine best practices and process with technology to centralize and optimize the non-employee workforce, for increased visibility and control while realizing cost savings. However, all MSPs are not created equal when delivering the greatest value from your contingent workforce management program. While the traditional MSP aligns to a specific staffing provider to deliver talent, this practice isolates other suppliers, creating missed quality talent opportunities and rate markups. Instead, an MSP that is purely vendor-neutral, not aligned with any staffing provider, has an inclusive model that allows all staffing providers to participate, which ensures the presentation of the best qualified candidates on the market for organizations to choose from. Benefits of outsourcing to a vendor-neutral Managed Service Provider With a vendor-neutral MSP, organizations gain access to an expert partner with the task to deliver on your workforce goals. At a high level, MSP services include: Dedicated team of resources: An expert team that is fully dedicated, acting as an extension of your organization – consistently accessible to your internal team, driving strategic initiatives, change management, supplier management, and resolution of critical escalations and non-employee relations. Access to the highest quality candidate pool: Facilitated by the vendor-neutral MSP and delivered by staffing providers, talent is sourced and managed through a streamlined process and presented to the organization based on their internal needs. Interactive supplier engagement and management: In a vendor-neutral MSP model, a level playing field is created among suppliers to proactively communicate requisitions at market-driven worker rates. The MSP drives program adoption, compliance and more effective management of labor spend. Holistic workforce planning: The MSP acts as a partner to the organization, providing strategic, consultative recommendations on regulatory changes, and securing and engaging top-quality workers. In-depth benchmarking, analytics and reporting: Access KPIs and performance metrics via analytics and reporting created by the MSP that deliver valuable insights for making better business decisions. Increased overall cost savings: Achieved through streamlined operational processes and the submission of high-quality candidates at rates that are competitive in the market, ensuring that organizations don’t overpay for talent, but also pay talent to the full extent of

We’re thrilled to announce that PRO Unlimited has been named a 2018 Brandon Hall Group Excellence in Technology Awards winner in the following categories: “Best Advance in HR or Workforce Management Technology” “Best Advance in HR Predictive Analytics Technology” A panel of veteran, independent senior industry experts, along with Brandon Hall Group senior analysts and executives, evaluated the entries based upon the following criteria: Product: What was the product’s breakthrough innovation? Unique differentiators: What makes the product unique and how does it differ from any competing products? Value proposition: What problem does the product solve and/or what need does this product address? Measurable results: What are the benefits customers can expect to experience as a result of using this product? PRO’s Wand Vendor Management System (VMS) was honored with a Silver Award in the “Best Advance in HR or Workforce Management Technology” category. Key innovations recognized by the judges include: Wand Mobile Boasting true native apps on the iPhone and Android devices, Apple iPad and even the Apple Watch, Wand Mobile allows users (managers, suppliers, workers) to manage their contingent workforce lifecycle items from anywhere. The user benefit: total freedom of mobility and a seamless omnichannel experience. Learn more: “5 Ways Mobile Improves the Contingent Workforce Management Experience” Wand Talent Network This feature allows clients to create their own private, self-sourced candidate pool from which they can self-source. Furthermore, Wand uses industry-first, resume-parsing and Candidate Matching technologies to automatically match and suggest candidates to managers based on a robust, proprietary algorithm. The user benefit: gives organizations a competitive advantage when it comes to sourcing talent and helps increase cost savings and talent quality. View the infographic: “Using Wand’s Talent Network to Direct Source Job Openings” Wand AI Platform This suite of offerings includes a virtual assistant that uses real-time analytics to help make users’ workflows easier, simpler and more efficient. The user benefit: Fuels faster execution and smarter decision-making during the sourcing and requisition processes. Listen to the podcast: “How Artificial Intelligence Is Changing Contingent Workforce Management” Wand Discovery, PRO’s business intelligence and data visualization tool, won a Silver 2018 Brandon Hall Group Award in the “Best Advance in HR Predictive Analytics Technology” category. This reporting and analytics suite captures contingent workforce data, processes it and produces actionable analytics to help businesses drive significant cost savings, boost efficiency and empower executives to make critical workforce planning decisions. (Related reading: “Analytics and Contingent Workforce Management: 7 Real-World Success Stories.” “We’re proud to honor the innovators,” said Rachel Cooke, Chief Operating Officer of Brandon Hall Group and head of the awards program. “As human capital management continues to evolve, the creativity of the award winners is breathtaking. Organizations of all sizes showed that creativity and technology can create new and better work experiences for businesses and their employees.” For more on the 2018 Brandon Hall Group Excellence in Technology Awards, visit the Brandon Hall Group awards page. If you’re interested in learning more about how PRO is helping organizations implement winning contingent workforce programs globally,

PRO Unlimited published more than 60 blog posts in 2018 with an eye toward keeping organizations abreast of the latest contingent workforce management trends, as well as providing companies with tools and tactics they could use to help optimize contingent labor programs. Here are the top 10 PRO blog posts of the past year, based on page views. We hope they provide you with ideas and inspiration for the year ahead! 10) “3 Ways Analytics Can Help Optimize Contingent Workforce Management” There’s so much data out there today, but how can you use it to improve program performance? This post shares three ways workforce analytics can help organizations. 9) “Accomplishing More with the Wand Mobile Supplier App” Account managers, recruiters and sourcers – like just about everyone these days – are frequently on the go. This post highlights the release of the Wand Mobile Supplier App, the first mobile app designed specifically with supplier workflows in mind. 8) “Infographic: Artificial Intelligence and Contingent Workforce Management” AI can be an intimidating topic, so this infographic distills some key factoids into a viewer-friendly visual overview of the most exciting areas of AI as it relates to contingent workforce management. 7) “Contingent Workforce Management Industry: Global Supplier Awards” Each year, PRO honors outstanding staffing agencies that consistently meet and exceed the talent and project requirements of our customers worldwide. Learn more about the 2018 winners in this post. 6) “Artificial Intelligence – Its Impact on Contingent Workforce Labor” From embedded intelligence to augmented reality – and much more – discover how AI is reshaping contingent workforce management. 5) “Infographic: How Millennials Are Changing the Workforce” Ever since millennials became the largest generation at the workplace a few years back, businesses have been grappling with how to adjust. This infographic shares some of the most fascinating stats regarding this demographic. 4) “California Supreme Court: Adopts Stringent ‘ABC’ Test for Independent Contractor Status” Earlier this year the California Supreme Court issued its much-anticipated decision in Dynamex Operations West, Inc., v. Superior Court, and this post shares the key takeaways from this ruling. 3) “5 Overlooked Gig Economy Trends” There have been so many conflicting reports about the gig economy that it can be tough understand its real implications. This infographic take a visual look at five underreported, overlooked gig economy trends to consider. 2) “2018 Contingent Workforce Management Trends: 3 Areas to Watch” AI, total talent management and increasingly complex compliance laws were hot topics in 2018, and all three will continue to impact the landscape in 2019. 1) “What Is a Vendor Management System (VMS), and Why Use It?” Get a quick overview on what a VMS does and the benefits it offers, and then drill down further into related resources. If you’re interested in learning more about how PRO is helping organizations implement winning contingent workforce programs globally, please contact a PRO representative at 800.291.1099 or email at info@prounlimited.com. Disclaimer: The content in this blog post is for informational purposes only and cannot

Working Americans in 2018 generally enjoyed many highs and, unlike previous years, minimal lows when it came to earning a living. Among the promise of this upward climb, key themes have emerged as we prepare for the new year. There are more jobs than qualified people One of the prevailing themes that topped 2018 is the job surplus that the U.S. labor market is experiencing – there are simply more job opportunities than qualified workers to fill them. The opportunity to work was shared across gender, racial and educational lines as the unemployment rate, at 3.7%, hit its lowest point since 1969. More broadly, monthly job increases have averaged more than 200,000, and hourly wages have even seen a marginal increase as employers look more to worker retention than acquisition as the qualified worker pool shrinks. While these signs of growth are good, the shortage of qualified workers is projected to continue to increase. Between now and 2030, the prime-working-age population of 25 to 54-year-olds is projected to grow just 0.5% per year – much slower than previous decades when baby boomers dominated, and the working-age population growth averaged 1.8% per year. With fewer people to choose from, the question for 2019 and beyond becomes whether the U.S. can continue to successfully grow as the gap widens between job openings and worker population. Technology’s sustained influence As technology affects everything we do today, workers expect a superior digital experience when searching for, accepting and conducting work. Having the right processes and technologies in place to effectively enable employees, as well as constantly pursuing digital innovation, is critical for companies looking to stay ahead of the competition. Complimenting the effective use of technology is the growing adoption of flexible work environments and hours by companies. With work-life balance becoming an increasing priority for a shrinking qualified workforce, companies have become more willing to adapt to their needs to help retain talent. Companies must also leverage technology to ensure that their employees invest in their mission and culture and provide regular opportunities for growth to achieve retention goals. In 2019 and beyond, the pursuit of innovative technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI), will help sustain employment success. AI has made a sweeping impact on human-oriented functions across many industries — 72% of business executives believe AI will be the business advantage of the future. Companies can enable more informed business decisions, process massive amounts of data, and drive faster, more realistic experiences for creating a synergy between enterprise processes and system usability for companies and workers alike. (Learn how AI is driving more informed sourcing and management decisions.) The Gig economy Beyond talent shortages and technology, this year also brought more government attention to the gig economy, including how to categorize it in labor reports, how to regulate it, and how to get gig economy workers’ benefits. A common challenge is that while some categorize gig economy workers with independent contractors, others question grouping them together at all, and many aren’t sure

We’re excited to announce that Wand VMS has been has been named a gold winner in the “Most Innovative Product Feature of the Year – Enterprise/SMB” category in Best in Biz Awards 2018. This independent business awards program is judged each year by prominent editors and reporters from top-tier publications in North America. This year, nearly 700 entries competed for awards. (Read PRO’s official press release.) Wand was recognized for Total Talent Solutions, an extension of our award-winning Wand Discovery business intelligence platform. In short, Total Talent Solutions provides clients with total visibility into both contingent AND full-time resources across the entire organization, which yields a host of benefits, such as: Improved Workforce Understanding and Compliance As organizations expand and (in some cases) branch out globally, it can be challenging to maintain visibility across a worldwide workforce. Total Talent Solutions allows for global visibility to all workers (including full time-employees, agency-recruited workers, consultants, freelancers, etc.) across the organization, helping ensure all workers are accounted for and compliant with any laws and/or policies. Enhanced Cost Savings and Worker Quality When organizations look to fill a position, they have to decide whether supplier-sourced, self-sourced, SOW or full-time talent will offer the best quality at the lowest rate. By providing users with a way to couple rate information and quality scores with job titles across employee categories, Total Talent Solutions provides actionable insights for driving cost savings and talent quality. (Related reading: “7 Contingent Workforce Questions That Wand VMS Can Help You Answer.”) Better Employee Retention With the war for talent high, companies can’t afford to see good talent walk out the door. Total Talent Solutions enables organizations to pull in voluntary worker early termination data from internal and external sources. This provides a window into worker satisfaction and retention from both a contingent and full-time perspective. For more on the 2018 Best in Biz Awards, read our official press release and visit the Best in Biz Awards page. For more on Total Talent Solutions and how leading-edge analytics can help your organization, check out these resources: 1) White Paper: “Analytics and Contingent Workforce Management: 7 Real-World Success Stories” 2) Podcast: “4 Key Workforce Questions That Business Intelligence Can Help You Answer” 3) Fact Sheet: “Total Talent Solutions” If you’re interested in learning more about how PRO is helping organizations implement winning contingent workforce programs globally, please contact a PRO representative at 800.291.1099 or email at info@prounlimited.com. Disclaimer: The content in this blog post is for informational purposes only and cannot be construed as specific legal advice or as a substitute for legal advice. The blog post reflects the opinion of PRO Unlimited and is not to be construed as legal solutions and positions. Contact an attorney for specific advice and guidance for specific issues or questions.