Managing a workforce today is no small task, especially in sectors like Facilities Management and Property, where finding and retaining skilled professionals can feel like a constant uphill battle.
At Boden Group, we see this every day. That’s why we’ve launched Boden Outsourced Solutions, a flexible service offering that includes Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO), Managed Service Provider (MSP) solutions, and short-term Project Packages. But what do RPO and MSP actually mean? And which one might work best for your organisation?
Let’s break it down…
what is RPO?
RPO (Recruitment Process Outsourcing) is when a business hands over some or all of its permanent recruitment function to an external provider. This means we handle everything from job descriptions and sourcing to interviews and onboarding, acting as an extension of your internal team.
This approach is perfect if you’re:
- Scaling up quickly
- Struggling to attract top talent
- Looking to reduce hiring costs and time-to-hire
- Wanting consistency and better candidate quality
According to the ONS, there are now two people for every job vacancy in the UK, up from 1.6 a year ago. While this might suggest it’s easier to hire, many sectors, like construction and skilled trades, are still facing serious talent shortages. This gap between available workers and the skills employers need shows why a well-planned, strategic approach to permanent recruitment is essential. Businesses using models like RPO are better placed to attract the right people and stay competitive.
what is msp?
MSP (Managed Service Provider) is a different kind of solution. Whilst RPO focuses on permanent hires, MSP is designed to manage your contingent workforce: temporary, contract and freelance workers.
An MSP looks after everything from supplier management and onboarding to compliance and cost control. It’s an ideal choice if you rely heavily on contractors, shift-based workers or specialist temporary staff.
In fact, a recent RICS Facilities Management survey found that 86% of FM employers are struggling to fill technical roles, such as HVAC engineers and maintenance operatives. With that kind of pressure, having a streamlined approach to managing temporary workers is crucial.
RPO vs MSP: The Key Differences
feature
RPO (recruitment process outsourcing)
msp (managed service provider
workforce focus
Permanent staff
Temporary and contract staff
who manages it
External team runs your recruitment process
External team manages recruitment aswell as your suppliers and contractors
best for
Growing companies hiring long-term roles
Businesses with lots of flexible / temporary staff
While the models serve different purposes, they can also work well together, especially in fast-paced sectors like Facilities Management, where the mix of permanent and temporary workers is constantly shifting.
Why Boden Outsourced Solutions?
At Boden Group, we specialise in recruitment for the Facilities Management and Property sectors. We understand the challenges you face – tight deadlines, demanding clients, hard-to-fill roles – and our solutions are built to help you tackle them head-on.
Our services are:
- Flexible - tailored around your project or long-term needs
- Scalable - easily ramped up or down based on demand
- Compliant - helping you stay on top of regulations and supplier risks
- Efficient - saving time, reducing costs and improving quality of hire
Whether you need help managing your entire contingent workforce or just want a smarter way to recruit permanent staff, we’ll work with you to build a solution that fits.
why now?
Workforce challenges aren’t going away. A recent survey showed that over half of UK employers expect to struggle with retention this year. And according to Reuters, the UK will need over 250,000 additional construction and FM workers in the next few years just to meet decarbonisation targets.
With competition for talent only getting fiercer, now is the time to get ahead.