The explosion of demand incited a company to integrate its subcontractors and temporary personnel to rapidly fill 200 positions. The applicants and the needs were identified - BPI had to qualify them and organise the "best match" process by reconciling the HR department's priorities and those of the line management.

Context
Two Hundred Positions to Fill ASAP
This company is the French anchor-point of a group that has become multinational.
Recentred on a high-growth sector, the enterprise discovered new-found growth - large new markets were filling the order book. To organise its development, the company created 200 new positions, to be filled as quickly as possible. On the margins of the company, subcontractors and temporary staff were already technically involved in the company's activity. Once integrated they would participate fully in the firm's development.

Task
Designate the Positions to Fill
The number of positions was significant. The decisions would be a strong commitment on the part of the company. Management and unions were demanding guarantees of objectivity. These three criteria convinced the Human Resources management to involve a consulting firm in the operation. On the site, the consultants from the BPI regional office first met all of the line managers and determined with them the positions to be filled.

Best Match People/Positions/Company Objectives
Over a five-month period, the BPI team interviewed the 400 people who had applied for the positions created. Observations were cross-referenced with a series of behavioural questionnaires that established profiles in a reliable fashion. These were placed on the same grid as that used to define the prerequisites for the position. This made it easier to analyse the correspondences between the people and the positions. Each week, the consultants and the HR department reviewed the applicants that had been interviewed. Position by position, they transmitted a dossier presenting several applicants and a comparative appraisal of their match with the position to the line manager concerned. On this basis, the line manager conducted the necessary technical interviews. The final decision had to be based on consensus. At the beginning, the departments often gave precedence to technical and short term aspects, whereas the HR department intended to implement a consistent policy of human resources planning in terms of jobs and skills. Occasionally opinions were divided, in which case the consultants looked for compromise solutions.

perspectives
Mission Accomplished
The 200 positions were filled in the necessary timeframe - a third by subcontractors and another third by temporary personnel. The remaining third? The broadcasting of positions within the company created internal mobility, and, in some cases, external recruitment was necessary.