Types of RPO Engagements: Point-of-Service RPO (Part 3 of 5)

In the first two blog posts of this series we covered enterprise RPO and short-term RPO. These are two RPO engagements that are a fit for those that need help with the entire recruiting process (enterprise RPO), or those that need help for a short time period or aren't comfortable with complete outsourcing (short-term RPO). In the third part of our series on recruitment process outsourcing services and engagements, we'll cover an RPO solution, point-of-service RPO, which is perfect for those who want to outsource a specific step in the recruiting process.

What is Point-of-Service RPO?

Point-of-service RPO is better known as limited RPO or selective RPO in the industry, but this type of recruitment process outsourcing service means that the RPO provider is taking responsibility for one component of the recruiting process. It’s very similar to short-term project RPO, but point-of-service RPO is an ongoing service as it involves a much more sustained effort and hand off on the part of the provider. This hand off is where the client's HR department or internal recruiting staff needs to be ready to work with whatever the provider delivers. If an RPO provider is focusing on applicant intake, for example, then the client needs to have protocols in place to work with those applicants for screening, data entry, interviewing etc.

"This is exactly what it says. It's going to be a part, a piece, or a component of the sourcing or recruiting process," said Matt Rivera, director of customer services at Yoh. "You have a provider take over a certain process and provide the same expertise, best practices, and components that go along with it."

Examples of point-of-service RPO arrangements include applicant intake, applicant screening, social media outsourcing/recruiting (developing a social media recruiting program is a popular need right now), or putting this data into the applicant tracking system.

Which Clients are Best Suited for Point-of-Service RPO?

Although point-of-service RPO is very similar to project RPO, those that would benefit from project would not necessarily benefit from point-of-service, and vice versa. Essentially, it’s having the provider working with you on one part of the recruiting process so that the overall process is much more efficient. It’s a partnership where success depends on the agreed-upon work and how it’s completed. Which category do you fall in? Here’s who would be best suited for point-of-service RPO:

• Companies large and small that have a consistent volume of recruiting work
• Any company that needs to outsource in a certain area
• Companies that experience fluctuations in volume, where scalability would be tough to do on one’s own
• Mid-sized and large companies are more likely to have the volume and the need to outsource one area
• Companies with a defined process in place – no need for the RPO provider to design a program or process for the client - just need throughput and help in a specific area
• Companies that don't want to fully outsource their recruiting process, but would like help with one part or piece of the process

Rivera says that point-of-service RPO is much better for established companies than startups because startups lack the recruiting infrastructure necessary to receive value from this type of RPO service.

"If you don't have some of the infrastructure to take [the recruiting process] from that point, then you're not going to get the value," he said. "[The candidates] aren't going to turn into hires, which is the ultimate goal."

Previously, we covered enterprise RPO and short-term project RPO, and we'll cover the other type of RPO services in other parts of this series. To learn more about point-of-service RPO, or the other recruitment process outsourcing engagements that providers offer, then view this hour-long webinar now.