Hiring Freezes Overcome by Agile Staffing

The Client

A globally recognized public relations firm that is known for its strategic communications expertise across various industries. With a staff of 800 full-time employees, our client services a diverse clientele that spans biotech, healthcare, entertainment, government, finance, and telecommunications sectors. The agency has a significant presence across North America, with major hubs in Washington, D.C., Boston, NYC, Chicago, Seattle, and Los Angeles. The agency’s focus on production-based work, including experiential marketing, event marketing, digital asset production, and social media content creation, has established them as a leader in the PR industry.

Profiles and this agency celebrate a trusted partnership for 10+ years.

The Challenge

The agency has faced several challenges that have required a strategic staffing partner like Profiles to navigate effectively:

1. Hiring Freezes and Staff Reductions: Due to industry regulations and market conditions, the agency encountered periods of hiring freezes, particularly affecting their direct hire process, which required C-suite approval. This led them to rely heavily on contract staffing to meet their immediate and evolving talent needs.
2. Losing Major Clients: The loss of one of their largest clients, a federal public health bureau, posed a significant challenge for the agency. They needed to quickly ramp up their team to secure new clients and deliver on high-stakes projects, all while maintaining quality and trust with their existing clients.
3. Increased Workload Due to Client Layoffs: A 20% layoff at America’s largest 5G network and cell phone provider, one of their major accounts, increased the workload on the agency’s team, particularly on the West Coast. This required swift staffing solutions to handle the overspill of work without compromising service quality.

The Solution

Profiles has been an essential partner, providing contract staffing solutions that have helped the agency overcome these challenges. With a 60% fill rate on contract positions, Profiles has penetrated the agency’s entire North American contract hiring needs, particularly in the Creative space. The key to this successful partnership has been Profiles’ ability to deliver quality talent quickly and efficiently, supported by the strong relationship between the agency’s key hiring managers and Profiles’ dedicated account team.

Key Roles Filled:

• Creative Producers
• Art Directors
• Project Managers
• Copywriters
• Social Media Content Producers

Service:

• Contract Staffing

Key Achievements:

• When our client lost the CDC account, Profiles stepped in to rapidly staff up to eight key roles, enable the agency to secure new clients and deliver on their promises.
• Following the cell provider layoffs, Profiles quickly provided Creative Project Managers and Digital Content Producers to absorb the additional workload, ensuring the agency’s continued success.

The Results

Profiles contributions have been instrumental in this agency’s ability to navigate challenging market conditions and grow their business:

• Placements: 84 contract positions filled, with a conversion rate of 2 interviews per placement.
• Time to Hire: An average of 28 days.
• Client Impact: The placements made by Profiles, such as the Art Directors and Creative Project Managers, have directly contributed to the agency landing new clients and successfully pitching for new business.
• Revenue Growth: The involvement of Profiles contractors within the agency’s key projects and client pitches has helped the agency grow their revenue by enabling them to meet tight deadlines and exceed client expectations.