Staffing Solution of the Year 
Staffing Solution of the Year 

How to apply

Entries are now closed

Getting and keeping the right workforce has become one of the NHS’s biggest priorities – especially in light of difficulties for NHS workers from overseas due to Brexit, and pandemic-induced staff burnout leading to early retirements or moves out of the health service.

Although organisations have been trying to reduce reliance on agency staff, temporary workers will remain an important part of the workforce. Recruiting from overseas has been helping with nursing shortages while at the more senior level, the NHS often turns to recruitment specialists to help with board level appointments. Retaining staff is also crucial – especially as recruitment from the rest of the EU becomes harder.

The winner of this award will have helped in one or more of these areas. They are likely to have provided a cost-effective service which helped NHS organisations with hard-to-fill gaps in its workforce, or to have provided a service which reduced the cost of using temporary staff. Judges will be looking for evidence of innovation, value for money service and of a deep understanding of the needs of the NHS organisations the winner has worked with.  

Eligibility

  • Entrants will be recruitment consultants, executive search providers and professional service firms
  • Judges will be looking for evidence from a single client or multiple clients with testimonials to show best practice, good customer service, excellent care for the workforce and value for money 
  • Evidence should relate to services delivered in the past 2 years up until the awards entry deadline 

Ambition

  • Describe the detail of the proposition between the provider and customer - how is the appointment of a provider decided, what is the engagement process and why is this partner the preferred choice?  
  • What challenges impact the NHS’ ability to recruit alone, and what is the value proposition of this specific provider?
  • Describe any targets or goals surrounding provider service delivery, value for money and other relevant metrics.  

Outcome

  • Describe the successes generated as a direct result of working with the provider, and provide testimonial or other qualitative evidence displaying good working relationships, and a deep understanding by the provider of their customers’ needs
  • Judges will also be looking for providers who offer value for money, flexibility and regular reviews of best practice.  
  • Outline how staff are managed within ethical and legal parameters - special consideration will be given to providers who work with customers to create a positive and beneficial working environment for all involved.  

Spread

  • How has success with clients been mirrored across the customer base?  
  • What best practice benchmarks have been applied with other customers and what has been learned that can be shared across the sector?  
  • How are the NHS organisations adopting best practice learned from the provider and applying to other areas of recruitment?  

Involvement 

  • How have recruitment teams worked with the provider to drive best practice employment and how have both parties worked with staff to reinforce standards and maintain results.  
  • What recourse programmes exist for staff to address issues and how does the recruiter work with customers on creating a supportive culture.  
  • Judges will be looking for examples of fully integrated best practice which ensures good working environments, positive and supportive cultures and fair pay.  

Value

  • What value does the recruiter/provider add to the NHS, and how do they work with their customers over and above the primary role of appointments?  
  • What additional services, for example analytics, employment trend reporting or sharing of data does the provider offer to help customers with decisions?
  • Judges are looking for great working relationships with leading recruitment providers which offer their NHS customers value which demonstrably improves the ability to provide care and deliver services. 

To find out more

Partnership opportunities:  Sponsorship Sales Team
Awards entry enquiries: Delegate Sales Team
Judging and event management: Awards Support