In this episode, I’m joined by Dean Watmough, an expert on MSP people power. He’s the CEO and co-founder of Humnize, a UK-based business that is focused on empowering MSPs to build, develop, and retain highly skilled teams.
An Interview with Dean Watmough
How Humnize Help Their MSP Clients to Leverage People Power
Dean says it’s not easy to describe what they do: “We try to avoid the word recruitment. We find that people have had bad experiences with recruiters, and we don’t want to be damaged by association.
“And similarly with HR – it’s a term that’s clinical and impersonal and doesn’t reflect what good HR should be. So for us, we’ve coined the term “people partner.” It’s about dealing with your people in a more human way and not just ticking boxes.
“We help MSPs find solutions to their people challenges and to be proactive rather than reactive. Recruitment is just one of the services we provide and ways we support our clients. We do so much more besides.”
Where MSPs Go Wrong with Recruitment
Anyone who’s done recruitment for an MSP business knows how hard it is. It’s time consuming, but you also don’t want to pay a recruiter a fee if all they do is send you candidate CVs to choose from.
Dean explains: “The biggest mistake that you can make in an MSP when you’re hiring people is to not give it the time and effort it needs. It’s a full-time job, and it’s not enough just to post an ad on LinkedIn or a job board and wait for the applications.
“And today, you’ve also got to make your business attractive to candidates. If you can’t compete on salary, what else can you offer to make your MSP somewhere they want to work? Is it a shorter working week, bonuses or learning opportunities? It’s getting harder to find the top candidates in the industry.”
How Humnize Find the Right Candidates for Their MSP Clients
Humnize make working with them a positive experience, both for the MSP and the candidates. They also strive to understand their clients’ requirements and the business problems that will be solved when they find the right person.
“We like to deep dive into what they’re looking for and the qualities the person needs to have. We make a really detailed brief, and we also meet the existing team and experience the culture. Because we don’t believe we can promote a business without having experience of it.
“Then, we build talent pools of potential candidates and thoroughly screen them. We recruit for sales and marketing as well as tech roles, and our team has experience in all of those fields themselves, which is a big advantage. We really understand what the MSP needs. That’s people power.”
The Aspects of Recruitment That Humnize Want to Change
Dean wants to change the way MSPs think about recruitment. “So for us, it’s about credibility. We’ve been employers looking for staff, and we want to dispel the idea of snake-oil salesmen.
“We’re trying to build awareness that there are other ways of doing it. Recruiters get a bad name, but most of them are working hard, and they do it all up front. So they don’t get paid until an employment offer is made, and then it’s a commission.
“But at Humnize, we have several options. For instance, our larger clients have us on a retainer because they’re growing so quickly. We do market research first, and if we can’t fill a role, we say so. We want to be a professional partner for the MSP.”
How MSPs Can Leverage People Power for Staff Retention
We all know that the most successful MSPs retain their staff, while others have a high turnover. Dean says no company can retain everybody, but if you treat them well, it won’t be a surprise when they do leave.
“An annual one-to-one isn’t enough. Instead, you need regular touchpoints and a more personable approach to management. Because people stay in places they enjoy working in.
“We come across MSPs who had great retention rates in the early years. But because of mergers, the environment changes and people leave. When a company is too big and you lose the human touch, people don’t want to stay.”
How MSPs Can Support Their Team’s Mental Wellbeing
Mental health is top of the list for many business owners, but Dean says that someone is five times more likely to have a mental health issue if they work in the tech sector.
And as MSPs are becoming more in demand in the digital age, having conversations about wellbeing is more important than ever. HR departments need to be supportive, because employees tend to know their rights.
“The younger generation is much more open about talking about mental health. Because in the past it was seen as a weakness, a vulnerability. But that’s what makes us human. You can’t give people everything, so do as much as you can.”
How to Connect With Dean Watmough
- Humnize
- email Dean
- Connect with Dean on LinkedIn
- Like Humnize on Facebook
- Follow Humnize on LinkedIn
How to Connect With Me
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Mentioned in This Episode
- Job listings website: Indeed
- Company review website: Glassdoor
- Entrepreneur and businessman: Richard Branson
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Richard Tubb is one of the best-known experts within the global IT Managed Service Provider (MSP) community. He launched and sold his own MSP business before creating a leading MSP media and consultancy practice. Richard helps IT business owner’s take back control by freeing up their time and building a business that can run without them. He’s the author of the book “The IT Business Owner’s Survival Guide” and writer of the award-winning blog www.tubblog.co.uk
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