How engaged, returning “temps” are revolutionizing university staffing in 2023 — Compass Case Study

Compass @ UNC Charlotte — University food service

4.86 rating of Upshifters

85% return rate

5288 hours worked

Challenges

❌ Difficult to manage UNC Charlotte’s own student staff

60% of Jason’s staff at his unit at UNC Charlotte are international students. “But the thing is, they're not skilled.” Jason says it’s difficult to manage the large amount of student staff population because of their limited and varying schedules.

❌ Traditional staffing agencies running old-school operations

“I have to call them and I have to track them down or leave voicemails and you know, they're only a nine-to-five operation Monday through Friday. It’s very challenging sometimes.”

Solution

1. A team of flexible, returning “temps” that feel like their own staff

No one likes to babysit and train new staff that don’t know their way around a campus only to have them disappear 2 days later.

Jason has had great success building a team of engaged and trained Upshifters who like to come back.

“I use the same people over and over, so they kind of become part of our staff, they kind of blend in with my staff.”

How does it work?

Jason can see who’s applying and choose who’s coming to his shifts and pick the ones who have already worked there.

“If two people claim the same shift and I know one of them better than the other, I'd have the opportunity to decline one of them and get the one that's more familiar with the business. It's a lot harder to take time to train somebody new.”

Option to favorite the best workers.

Upshift has the functionality to “like” the best workers. It makes it easier to keep them engaged and retain them.

This way, Jason has a big group of people who already worked there and keep returning.

“I like the fact that there's a pool of favorite Upshifters to pick from.”

2. More control with Upshift’s Staffing Platform

Jason found it challenging to work with other traditional staffing agencies operating in the old-school model. With Upshift, he can use the platform himself to post his own shifts, set the schedule and pay.

“It's just much easier to do it because I know what I need [...] Upshift is my primary because I have more control on a platform.”

Jason Ritter, Director of Catering at Chart-wells (Compass Group) at UNC Charlotte.

3. Picking and choosing the best candidates

Jason says he likes having the ability to see who applies for jobs and picking the candidates that seem to be the best fit.

“Today, I got two brand new people I don’t know. But one of them has a hundred hours of work. The other one has 5 hours of work, so I'm going to go with the one that has 100 hours worth first.”

4. High-caliber workers

“I don't know what you all do as far as your hiring process goes, but you, you seem to have more people that are skilled and actually are there to work, not just to collect a paycheck.” - Jason Ritter further explains.”

What we do is conduct a rigorous screening process and meet our workers in person before they get hired. Because our workers choose their own shifts, get rated, and feel accountable to perform - Jason's shifts are filled with workers who want to be there.

5. Quick support

“It's getting an instant response… It’s been very easy to communicate when I need things.”

Our account managers are dedicated to supporting Jason to get the most out of Upshift. Whether helping him post shifts, review candidates, or just answering everyday questions - Jason can use as little or as much support as he needs.

What are Jason and UNC Charlotte's team doing to keep “temps” engaged and returning?

We were amazed how awesome Jason Ritter’s approach is to retaining contract labor.

Their return rate speaks for themselves - 91% (this means that in that week 91% of the workers had previously worked). This number is very high and shows great engagement.

“We treat 'em like they're one of our own associates.”

Jason realized how important this is when he was a substitute teacher working at different schools. There were some schools he wanted to return to and others that he didn’t. The difference was that he felt welcome and appreciated in the schools that he returned to.

“Yes, they're temp, but if you don't treat them with respect like a decent human being and make them feel part of your team, then they're not gonna come back and work for you, then you have to start all over again, retrain and find that person.”