Partner Article

Skillsets the Important Factor for Businesses Choosing Contractors

Just 4% of UK businesses consider cost the most important factor when making a procurement decision according to a global study into contracting carried out by ClickSoftware. Businesses in Britain are instead prioritising matching skillsets (30%) over every other factor when selecting contractors for tasks, however there are still ongoing issues around customer service.

Customer satisfaction has become a major concern with more than one in ten (16%) seeing it as the critical element of a bidding contractor’s proposal. Virtually all (98%) businesses now track customer satisfaction, increasing its importance in the procurement process. More than three quarters (77%) of companies that took part in the study have received a complaint about contractors or subcontractors in the past. Worryingly, more than one in ten (12%) complaints are happening on a regular basis. In comparison, the global results showed 95% of US businesses have received complaints about contractor service.

UK businesses are now seeking contractors that will provide peace of mind that they are equipped to handle the job and reduce the number of complaints received around arriving late for jobs (40%), leaving a mess (28%), or delivering an overall poor service (24%).

“Decision makers need to strike the balance with having the best skillset available coupled with subcontractors that will represent the company to the same standards as any regular employee,” said Dr. Moshe BenBassat, Founder and CEO of ClickSoftware. “With more businesses moving towards a marketplace model, procurement is going the same way. Companies can now collect proposals and make better informed decisions by comparing and contrasting proposals and we will see more procurement handled in this way.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Gemalto .