The rise of the Supersub

Manchester United are losing one-nil, defeat looming on the horizon. Their fortunes turned around however, with two substitutes famously saving the day for the reds, Teddy Sheringham scoring the equaliser in injury time and Ole Gunnar Solskjær snatching another in the 92nd minute to win the title at the last gasp. After the game everyone marvelled at the talent available to Sir Alex Ferguson on his substitutes’ bench, after all Solskjaer was brought on ten minutes before the end of the game, to replace Andy Cole, himself no stranger to scoring. But does your company have access to the business equivalent of a Sheringham & Solskjaer when you need it? There is a huge advantage in having access to interim & contract professionals when you have a position that needs covering or a short term project requiring someone to take ownership. Progressive businesses have woken up to the benefits of using Supersubs, and research shows that these types of skilled professionals are increasingly in demand. A recent report from APSCo earlier this year indicated that interim & contract positions have increased by 7.7% across the board. Our own experience in our specialist sectors of procurement, buying, supply chain and logistics has shown a 45% increase in these types of roles. What type of scenarios require a Solskjaer quality “Supersub”?

• Specialist knowledge – where due to business expansion there is a requirement for skills not currently in the company
• A solution to an immediate requirement – to cover maternity leave or long term sickness of a key team member
• Short term or one-off specialist projects – such as setting up a new site
• Managing peak workloads

Meanwhile, figures from the 2016 Job’s Outlook Report by The Recruitment & Employment Confederation show that 94% of employers have no spare workforce capacity, while the latest employment statistics from the ONS show the level of people in employment stands at a record 74.2%.  So if you need to move fast, interim or contractor “Super-subs” are definitely worth considering first over permanent hires.