Outsourcing provides antidote to credit crunch

17th December 2008 Outsourcing Provides Antidote to Credit Crunch A charity is urging businesses and organisations to considering outsourcing their human resources departments to save costs during the credit crunch. Surrey Alcohol and Drugs Advisory Service (SADAS) has saved £40,000 a year after taking the step to hire Right Hand HR to run its human resources. The organisation believes outsourcing HR is a sustainable way for businesses to reduce their budgets during the difficult financial climate and to avoid large-scale redundancies. SADAS, based in Surrey supports those with drug and alcohol problems. The organisation brought in human resources consultancy Right Hand HR in January 2008 following identification of areas within departments where outlay could be appropriately reduced. The charity has 50 employees and 40 volunteers. It wanted to reduce costs but at the same time increase its level of support to staff and volunteers. Now it benefits from a full HR team with expertise in employment and training providing support 52 weeks of the year. It has made savings which are the equivalent to hiring a full time front line worker. Director of Right Hand HR, Sam Colquhoun, said: "We have seen the number of enquiries increase significantly from businesses that currently have an internal HR department and are looking for sustainable ways to significantly reduce their costs, but still maintain professional HR support." During the past month enquiries of this nature have accounted for 40% of all new business calls. The management team and trustees at SADAS saw the opportunity early in 2008, and so have had the benefit of their outsourced HR function throughout the year. She added: "Organisations are starting to look at long term planning and are looking for sustainable ways to cut their budgets. They are looking for more than a quick fix and want to make sure the level of service they provide stays high." HR Advisor Emily Gibson from Right Hand HR's Surrey base said: "Outsourcing the human resources function can be the perfect antidote for businesses looking to reduce costs in a more challenging economic climate. We can provide a professional service to fulfil all the businesses HR needs while the core of the company can concentrate on running the business." Chief Executive of SADAS, Mike Blank added: "Charities are facing tremendous pressure in the current economic climate and many organisations will be under more pressure than usual to deliver a high standard of service. However, outsourcing non-core services such as HR provides an ideal opportunity to manage budgets more carefully and ensure organisations like ours are in the best shape possible to meet the challenges ahead. In under a year Right Hand HR has helped us to make considerable savings and have improved our HR service for employees and trustees."