The ideal team: combining flexibility with continuity to help labour shortages

Labour shortages are a major challenge in the construction, installation and civil engineering sectors. Flexibility is crucial to meet deadlines, but monitoring costs and securing knowledge should not be lost sight of. How do you create the ideal balance between using freelancers and building a strong permanent core? This article offers strategic insights for CEOs and CFOs who want to strengthen and future-proof their personnel policy.

Self-employed versus in-house staff: the strategic trade-off

The difference between self-employed and in-house staff goes beyond an employment contract. It determines how you organise your capacity and manage risks:

• Self-employed persons: offer flexibility and often specialise in specific projects or peak periods. This is usually associated with higher rates and less commitment to the organisation.
• In-house employees: offer stability and build valuable knowledge within the organisation. However, this requires fixed costs for salaries, insurance and training.

In times of high workload, self-employed people can offer a solution. But without clear control, costs can rise and valuable knowledge disappears from the organisation.

The art of balance: flexibility and continuity

In sectors where the market is volatile, such as seasonal construction projects or large infrastructure assignments, it is all about finding a hybrid personnel model: a strong core of own employees for stability, complemented by a flexible shell of freelancers and other external forces to respond quickly to peaks in demand and specialist needs.

Inspiration from Scandinavia

The Scandinavian construction industry has been working with flexible models for years. Large companies in Finland and Sweden combine internal teams with a flexible pool of on-call specialists. This strikes a good balance between long-term knowledge retention and cost control during peak times.

Avoid fragmentation: streamline your workforce management

A common challenge is fragmented personnel management: loose contracts, manual schedules and fragmented data. This makes it difficult to quickly anticipate staffing needs and avoid budget overruns.

Key questions for executives:

• Do we have insight into the ratio of freelance hours to permanent staff costs per project?
• How do we prevent knowledge disappearing after a project ends?
• Can we timely identify cost overruns by monitoring fluctuations in staff deployment?

Implement uniform data flows and monitor project progress centrally to keep a grip on capacity and costs. This requires a clear vision in which staff deployment and objectives are closely linked.

Data as a driver for better decisions

Research shows that companies that actively manage staff data data operate up to 20% more efficiently in terms of construction time, costs and planning (source: McKinsey, Deloitte). A strong example is the use of resource analytics: this not only gives you insight into current capacity needs, but also allows you to predict what is needed to keep future projects running smoothly.

Case study: A European contractor with large projects implemented a data-driven strategy to reduce delays. Because they knew exactly which professionals were available, the number of unexpected delays fell by 15%. This not only improved the use of freelancers, but also strengthened the commitment of the permanent team, which could focus on knowledge-intensive tasks.

The future of workforce strategies in construction, installation and civil engineering

The demand for flexible labour models will continue to grow, as will the need for knowledge assurance and cost control. Successful companies therefore focus on three spearheads:

1. Flexibility: anticipate market fluctuations and effortlessly switch on and off staffing requirements.
2. Transparency: ensure full insight into the cost structure of both internal and external forces.
3. Knowledge management: establish processes and share expertise within the organisation to prevent knowledge loss.

With a smart strategy, you create a personnel structure that not only manages costs, but also ensures project continuity.

Conclusion: build a resilient organisation

The choice between self-employed and in-house staff is not a question of either-or, but of a smart combination. A balanced staffing model makes your organisation more resilient, prevents financial surprises and ensures a scalable future. Companies that invest in data insights and data-driven decisions remain competitive, even with increasing pressure on the labour market.

Wondering how these strategies can strengthen your organisation? Get in touch and discover how international best practices can be applied within your business structure. Together, we will future-proof your workforce model.