For any business to be successful, it needs to not only survive but thrive. However, challenging economic times brought on by a global pandemic have made that more difficult than ever.

When managing the risk of engaging contractors, prequalification may be one of the first things you think of. The process enables you to ensure that potential contractors have all the necessary experience, qualifications and insurances to perform the work to your required standards.

For many of our businesses, contractors are essential to day to day operations, providing specialist skills and enabling us to scale capacity to meet changing demands. What’s more, our requirement for a contingent workforce may well rise in the coming months as we resume operations, rebuild and restructure.

For many companies, contractors are essential to the smooth operation of the business. They are an integral part of the workforce, providing specialist skills and additional resources that those companies can’t do without.

Like most organisations, you’re most likely managing the compliance standards of third-party contractors via manual processes. Whether you’re using spreadsheets, project management tools or even an archaic paper-based model, ensuring all contractors and suppliers remain compliant with your requirements as well as industry best practices can be difficult... not to mention boring.

If your organisation engages contractors, you’ll know there is a considerable amount of administration required to get them prequalified and compliant with your required criteria, prior to commencing work. From the contractor’s perspective, they too have their work cut out for them through this process.

Managing a growing contractor workforce is a significant logistical challenge. You need to consider the legal and safety implications of having them on-site and weigh this against the value that they bring to your operations.

Contractor management is a complex process that takes a considerable amount of time. You need to hire contractors who are licenced, qualified and insured. It’s important to communicate with them regularly and keep on top of their supporting documentation.

Engaging the right contractors can make a big impact on the success of your business, but they can also introduce significant risk. If we choose the wrong company for the project, not only can it impact the timelines and quality of work, but it can affect workplace health and safety.

As organisations start to reopen and enter the “next normal” phase, the COVID-19 pandemic will continue to significantly affect the global economy and how organisations resume business.

For any business, it’s highly useful to have a pool of reliable, pre-approved contractors at your fingertips. It means that you can quickly find the right company for the task when the need arises and keep your operations and projects running smoothly. That is what prequalification is all about, assessing contractors before they are hired.

When you think about engaging contractors on a project, you no doubt hope you’ll find the perfect blend of quality and price. And, the result will be that you can meet your deadlines and deliver on the overall project objectives.

While contractors can at times seem indispensable in achieving our objectives, just like any of us, they are not irreplaceable. In fact, keeping on a contractor who isn’t performing as well as we would like will negatively impact the business in the long run.

Contractors are a huge asset to an organisation. They enable us to meet the demands of varying workloads and recruit specialist skill sets to fulfil our projects. But, while they solve many problems, they can also create new ones.

Hopefully, you are aware of your responsibility for the health and safety of your workers. It is important to note that the same responsibility extends to your contractors. Before they turn up on-site, you have a legal obligation to ensure that they have completed the necessary inductions.

Realising that using contractor management software will save your firm time and money is one thing, working out which one to buy is a whole different ball game. There are many options available offering different features and benefits. The question is, how do you come to a decision, especially if you’re new to contractor management software?

Contractors may form a valuable addition to your workforce, however, the unfortunate truth is that their work is more likely to be risky to your business. By having high-risk work conducted by your contractors, you are likely to feel an impact on your overall costs due to increased safety measures and training.

Contractors are a valuable resource; they can enable you to hire project-specific expertise and meet varying workload demands. However, managing contractors, especially if your business works with a large number providing various types of services, can be an ongoing and complex task.

Choosing the right contractor for your business or project might seem like an easy task at first glance. The contractor in question may have come highly recommended, they might provide services at a very competitive price, or they might be available at the perfect time. However, there are many more things that you need to consider before you let them turn up on site.