The conundrum of talent outsourcing for operations and maintenance—and how to solve it

The 3 ways to tell if you really need talent outsourcing, the 3 biggest benefits of it and what to look for when selecting a facility services partner to take care of your entire multifamily portfolio.

Today’s multifamily building owners and managers have to keep more valuable plates spinning than ever before:

1. Understand what your residents want and need—then deliver it.
2. Get the greatest ROI possible—so you can counteract rising business costs.
3. Know your facility and its systems inside and out—and optimize them all for efficiency and sustainability.

One solution can help on all these fronts: Skilled labor. But finding the right maintenance and operations professionals is far more complex than simply filling open positions. You have to make sure that workers are properly trained, can be retained for the long term and are actively engaged in and accountable for their work.

Now, here’s the good news: Your in-house maintenance and operations team doesn’t have to handle everything alone.

Do all signs point to talent outsourcing?

While balancing your mounting workloads with the reality of today’s labor market, 
ask yourself honestly: “Will my multifamily building benefit from talent outsourcing?” To get the answer you need, watch for these critical indicators.

1. You struggle to hire the right people
   If it’s difficult to find reliable skilled labor, and you’re constantly working to fill open positions, outsourcing can bring high-quality candidates to your site while saving you from sifting through less-than-stellar resumes and lowering your overhead costs. According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), when it comes to recruitment, the average cost per hire is nearly $4,700—but can reach up to three or four times higher than 
the position’s salary itself.
2. The level of service you offer is wavering
   Frequent complaints about response times, or repeated maintenance issues that require an outside contractor to complete repair work, are concerning. Outsourcing can help you improve maintenance response time and deploy a preventative maintenance program to proactively decrease service slowdowns and facility system failures.
3. Apartment turns take too long
   Unorganized and lengthy turn processes lead to lost revenue. Working with 
an outsourced partner streamlines apartment turns by better activating and synchronizing talent resources as needed so your units are ready for new tenants sooner.

If you answered “YES” to any of the above, then keep reading.

3 biggest benefits of talent outsourcing

Tapping into outsourced maintenance and operations talent can transform how your multifamily facilities operate in many ways—as well as complement the capabilities 
of your existing team.

1. Expand your capabilities without hiring
   Outsourcing widens the pool of resources, reduces workloads for existing team members and brings a wider variety of skillsets to your table. In-house workers can focus on tasks and projects that capitalize on their strengths, while outsourced professionals bring their own talents and connections to the site to create a robust, cross-functional and collaborative facilities team.
   
   In fact, ABM cross-trained employees result in a 25% decrease in hiring spend. And since working with a trusted third-party talent provider like ABM removes burden from your employees, it can also improve their satisfaction and help you retain the talented in-house workers you already employ.
2. Decrease your expenses
   In addition to eliminating the costs associated with recruiting, training, hiring and onboarding, talent outsourcing also leads to other cost benefits. For instance, general liability insurance costs decrease for multifamily properties once a provider assumes liability. And by accurately determining demand planning at your building, ABM can staff only as needed—ensuring that employee overtime is correctly managed to help reduce unnecessary 
overhead costs.
   
   Plus, depending on the scale of your talent outsourcing partner, you may be able to use their volume buying and group bargaining powers to purchase facility products and systems for lower prices.
3. Alleviate your administration burdens
   When you outsource your maintenance and operations labor needs, a trusted third party vets the talent to select people who will work well with your tenants and property. These professionals can also manage other administrative responsibilities that come along with managing a team. 
   
   As a result, you no longer need to worry about the hiring and onboarding process, skills training and certification, employee healthcare and benefits, union accruals, workers’ compensation risks, OSHA compliance or labor revenue management.

Having an operations and maintenance partner who knows how to talk the talk—and both attract and keep the right, skilled labor for your property—makes all the difference for the ROI throughout your multifamily portfolio.

What to look for when outsourcing operations and maintenance talent

To ensure a seamless relationship between your in-house team and outsourced workers, look for a proven partner that can provide all of the following for your operation.

1. A wide variety of service offerings
   Multifamily facilities often need support that extends beyond maintenance and operations to include front door and mailroom services, security, cleaning and even specialized services and infrastructure for facility systems, such as EV charging. A single facility services partner that offers all these services can streamline operations and minimize the number of vendors and middlemen you need to manage.
2. The ability to mesh with your team
   Just because you outsource doesn’t mean it should be obvious that a third party is onsite. Look for a partner that can quickly and seamlessly become part of your property’s culture and team. For example, ABM experts are regularly onsite to take accountability for and ownership of their work, as well as to serve as a recognizable, reassuring presence for tenants.
3. Specialized industry knowledge
   Look for a provider that will bring tried-and-true maintenance and operations standards to your site to ensure quality and consistency across both a single facility and your entire portfolio. Building on decades of experience, ABM engineers have honed a set of best practices and standard operational procedures specifically developed for residential multifamily facilities. 
4. Continuous training
   Maintenance and operations professionals must be able to work with all kinds of people—from building owners and tenants to janitors and technicians. Find a partner that prioritizes ongoing training to improve technical skills and soft skills for everyone working at your properties. They can also share this knowledge with your in-house teams to improve their skillsets as well. 

All in all, customized maintenance and operations solutions—and the outsourced talent that delivers it—help you develop a competitive edge, attract and retain tenants and drive up the value of your multifamily properties. Choose wisely when selecting your facility services partner: They can create critical differences for your entire operation.