SevenStar HR

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m CEO of a marketing consulting company.

What challenge were you trying to address with SevenStar HR?

I don't have an in-house HR staff. I needed an external partner to do recruitment for me, and then manage those workers.

What was the scope of their involvement?

SevenStar HR provides recruitment services. I gave them job descriptions but their team goes a lot deeper to look at attitudes and values. They also provide a fractional HR person for the management of those people as well as any HR issues or regulations within the company.

What is the team composition?

I do recruitment through Jackie (President, SevenStar HR). I work with a number of their HR consultants as fractional hires.

How did you come to work with SevenStar HR?

Jackie's been a coach and consultant for me for 6–7 years. So when it came time for me to use a third-party resource for HR, there was no one else I looked at.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working together off and on for 10–12 months.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

They’ve successfully recruited four people to my company: a technical person, a couple of account service people, and a designer. Knowledge workers are key to the success of our organization. From a productivity standpoint, I hear anecdotal takes that my staff is really happy with the various hires. Overall I'm pretty pleased with how well they're doing. Quite frankly, as a CEO, probably the most difficult part of a business is handling HR. One of my jobs is to bring in business. The business that I brought in and assigned to SevenStar HR is being handled just fine.

How did SevenStar HR perform from a project management standpoint?

Their fractional HR staff comes into the office one day per week or every two weeks. Their time is organized, well-planned, and concentrated. As a result, I save a lot of money and heartache by doing it that way. The model definitely works.

For recruitment, they use a proprietary system called Effective Hiring. They found a tremendous number of qualified candidates for each job. The vetting process was lengthy but the opportunity to see many more candidates than I typically would have was well worth it. Any delays were on my end.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They not only have great knowledge and creativity, but they’re also able to quickly deliver their knowledge and creativity to us.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I was pretty happy with everything.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Trust the collaborative process. If you can't describe exactly what you're looking for, let them draw that information out of you. They know how to derive your true needs out of what you're saying. They'll get the best candidates for you even if you might not understand the process.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am a business advisor for clients whose revenues or profits have plateaued. I suggest solutions to improve their teams and/or their processes to return them to a pattern of growth.

What challenge were you trying to address with SevenStar HR?

Several of my clients are medium-sized businesses with underdeveloped HR practices. I reached out to SevenStar HR to utilize what they call an HR MRI assessment.

What was the scope of their involvement?

The assessment asks a number of questions that relate to all aspects of HR, employee handbooks, OSHA compliance, and the hiring and selection process. It reviews 10–12 related categories to make sure the client is adhering to important federal regulations. The end goal is to improve the overall health of the client’s organization, and human resources is an important piece of that.

We just completed the first assessment with one of our clients a few weeks ago. The process took about two hours, and we sat with our client as they answered each question. SevenStar HR then analyzed their answers and made recommendations for improvements. We then had a working session with the client on how to turn those recommendations into action points.

What is the team composition?

We worked with an executive VP and another team member. They were both very responsive and receptive to suggestions or questions.

How did you come to work with SevenStar HR?

I met the owner a number of years ago through a board we were both members of. We worked together on various projects and committees. When I found out about SevenStar HR, it seemed to tie in nicely with our client needs. I felt comfortable with her, so I moved forward and we started working together.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in August 2018, and the engagement is ongoing.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

It’s too early to give any concrete evidence to the impact of the assessment, but we have several other clients we plan to walk through the process. The experience with the first client was good, and they appreciated the opportunities for improvement the assessment uncovered. They didn’t realize how important some of the action items that came to light were and are considering ways to implement SevenStar HR’s recommendations.

How did SevenStar HR perform from a project management standpoint?

Since I’m in Texas and they’re on the East Coast, all of our meetings were through webinars, phone calls, or email exchanges. Communication went very well. This was the first project we had together, so there was a lot of iteration as we got to know each other and the process.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their timeliness, responsiveness, and communication were all very strong. I am very particular when it comes to understanding all the details. They were always considerate, patiently answered my questions, and helped with any learning curve.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We made some suggestions to improve the assessment. They were receptive to all our propositions and are already considering implementations to improve some of their processes.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Ask as many questions as possible. That will minimize the possibility of misunderstanding or confusion.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the president of a company that distributes and imports office and school supplies nationwide through a network of resellers.

What challenge were you trying to address with SevenStar HR?

We used to use our controller for HR services, but we needed a team that would act as our HR link.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We began utilizing SevenStar HR for their recruiting services. We needed a salesperson in Chicago. Their team compiled candidates, interviewed and determined who among them were the best choices, and administered assessments. Their recruitment service was used once since we’re a smaller company. They were able to identify and hire the correct candidate for our team.

SevenStar HR is performing consulting in regards to changes in HR law. There is now a mandatory sexual harassment training for companies in New York. Their team gave us the criteria for the policy, but the training won’t be until next year. They keep us aware of the status.

Their team is also performing what they refer to as an “HR MRI.” At the beginning of the new year, SevenStar HR will review our HR policies, make sure our company is compliant, and make recommendations.

What is the team composition?

In the beginning, we worked with a recruiter that performed all the groundwork. Their consulting team hasn’t begun their work.

How did you come to work with SevenStar HR?

SevenStar HR came to me through a recommendation from an organization I’m involved in. There’s a relationship between the two, and knowing my relationship with the organization, I knew SevenStar HR was credible.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with SevenStar in May 2018, and the work is ongoing.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Their recruitment work was critical. Our new employee’s performance is an upgrade. SevenStar HR succeeds at finding the right people and accessing them in a specific way. We would use them again for their recruitment services when we need it.

How did SevenStar HR perform from a project management standpoint?

SevenStar HR’s communication has been excellent. Their timeliness is also great. They’ve met nearly every deadline, and haven’t set us back. The project moves at a pace we’ve expected. We generally communicate with SevenStar HR through phone calls and email.

What did you find most impressive about them?

SevenStar HR delivers on expectations. Their team doesn’t oversell or undersell. It’s good to work with an honest, straightforward company that doesn’t lower the bar.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Based on the experience I’ve had so far, nothing.

Any advice for potential customers?

It is an HR partnership. My work with them has been limited, but I’ve been pleased with what I’ve received.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I own The Alternative Board, a peer advisory, executive coaching, and business consulting firm.

For what projects/services did your company hire SevenStar HR?

SevenStar HR provides outsourced HR services for one of my clients.

What were your goals for this engagement?

Our goals are to provide solutions and develop a priority list of HR needs. 

How did you select this vendor?

I interviewed the owner about outsourced HR services. They had a great reputation, and I was impressed with their strong knowledge and skills. 

Describe the engagement in detail.

They conducted an HR evaluation for a company that never had a professional HR team. Then they gave many helpful suggestions and recruited an HR professional to work on-site. They improve safety and training, recruit professionals for high-level positions, and write job descriptions.

Can you share any outcomes from the engagement that demonstrate progress or success?

They're addressing key HR areas in a stellar way. Their professionals are knowledgeable, and their recruiters are skilled in job posting creation and candidate sourcing.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

It's highly effective. They use a project management tool and schedule frequent phone discussions.

What did you find most impressive about this vendor?

They have an excellent follow-up and a strong focus on customer solutions.

Are there any areas for improvement?

I have nothing to suggest.