Third-party logistics service provider Orange County 3PL (OC3PL) was struggling with recruitment costs and finding reliable employees to tackle large fulfillment opportunities, especially during peak shipping seasons and as the company worked to rapidly scale its business. To meet those shifting requirements and prepare for growth, OC3PL turned to workforce-as-a-service provider Bluecrew, a technology platform that provides companies with instant access to qualified, pre-screened W-2 workers.
“[Our solution] gives [companies] the ability to place orders on the platform and [then] connects them with highly skilled workers in their market,” explains Bluecrew’s chief customer officer, Matt Laurinas.
The platform also gives business leaders the flexibility to manage a roster, along with access to real-time reporting tools so they can flex up and down as business needs change—a key benefit, according to Laurinas, because “supply chain people have a lot to do these days.”
The partnership has helped OC3PL reduce high recruitment costs, find the quality people needed to grow the business, and take on ever-increasing fulfillment opportunities.
THE RIGHT SOLUTION
OC3PL provides fulfillment services for apparel companies, startups, retailers, and wholesalers. The company’s motto is “You secure the order, we’ll take care of the rest.” Accelerating e-commerce activity and the need for ever-faster deliveries have pushed those capabilities to the limit recently, spurring demand for OC3PL to bring on more workers for warehouse tasks—like picking, packing, and shipping orders or driving forklifts. Because OC3PL caters to customers with peak-season demands as well as those who create “mini-peaks” by offering special promotions throughout the year, company leaders needed an alternative to the in-house recruiting and hiring they had long relied upon. That’s when they turned to Bluecrew to supplement their workforce.
Bluecrew’s workforce-as-a-service technology platform provides OC3PL with hourly workers from its nationwide database of employees with experience in light industrial work, including those with picking and packing skills, workers with account management experience, and people trained and certified to operate warehouse equipment. It then matches OC3PL’s needs with workers based on their location, experience, and skill level. Using the technology platform, OC3PL can see its positions filled in real time.
“I’m passionate about helping small businesses scale—and by partnering with Bluecrew, we’re doing exactly that,” says Cole Pinder, OC3PL’s founder and CEO, referring to the 3PL’s growing roster of small-business clients. “We fulfill millions of packages each year from our fulfillment centers and offer best-in-class customer service. Our customers choose us because we provide the small-business experience and deliver big-business results.”
BIG BENEFITS
The Bluecrew partnership is yielding strong results for OC3PL, first and foremost in cost savings. Bluecrew’s leaders say their service saves companies an average of $6,000 per worker—in the form of recruitment costs and in benefits and protections. That’s because the workers on Bluecrew’s roster of “crew members” are employed by Bluecrew and receive W-2 benefits and other protections. OC3PL has channeled those savings into higher wages that help the company attract best-in-class talent, according to both companies.
Perhaps best of all, OC3PL never has to turn down business, no matter how large the client.
“Bluecrew was founded in 2015 … to revolutionize the way companies think about their temp staffing and improving the worker experience,” Laurinas says, adding that business partners that embrace the same philosophy will see the biggest impact. “We know that workers in the hourly space have said that wages are important, flexibility is important, advancement opportunities are important, and being treated with respect [is important]. OC3PL has all four of those elements. Sometimes you see a company doing two or three of those things really great, but when you look at OC3PL, they’re doing all four of those really great. It makes a difference.”
Gartner, Inc.