About
The SourceCrowd team have worked for some of the biggest consultancies and their biggest customers. We also spent five years building our own consultancy.
We know what matters and makes a difference to companies delivering expertise.
Utilisation: Is everyone busy
The only thing more worrying for a consultancy than not having enough people is having too many people. Carrying a bench is a balance sheet risk that can only be maintained for so long.
Medium term
In the medium term, excessive bench results in lowered rates, which, once lowered, are never raised, impacting long-term profitability and accelerating a race to the bottom.
Long term
Ultimately, carrying a bench becomes untenable, and quality people who have cost a great deal of time and money to hire have to be let go, impacting future delivery potential.
Delivery: Are the clients happy
We’ve landed a big deal. How are we going to deliver it? There are worse problems to have, but it’s still a problem.
Hire fast
You can try to hire a team quickly, but that's costly (25% recruiter tax), and quick hires under pressure are rarely good hires, so there will be HR issues in the future.
If the large project is a flash in the pan, then you are stuck with a bench and the associated risk to the balance sheet.
Use contractors
Contractors are helpful, but are expensive, so all of the profit from the new work will be absorbed. Unless the contractors are from a pre-vetted pool, a recruiter tax of 25% will need to be paid. With limited commitment contractors need to be managed really closely.
A solution
Work with a network of other agencies and consultancies, cover bench costs, and deliver projects, thereby reducing risk for both companies. Companies can retain their top talent and expand with reduced risk.