The range of Up&Up Talent Solutions is expanding. In addition to Recruitment Solutions, the group's activities now also include HR Solutions, Business Solutions, and Interim Solutions. For the latter, Noëlle van Rijsoort-de Baan, well known in the fresh produce world, has been brought on board to take the lead. "We are increasingly becoming a one-stop shop for companies in fresh produce and horticulture in the field of personnel and business," says founder Taco van der Louw.
Meanwhile, Up&Up has built a pool of interim professionals, some with the necessary fresh produce experience and others with backgrounds in trade marketing and category management outside the sector. "Somehow, the distrust towards interim professionals in fresh produce is quite high. Companies sometimes seem afraid of information leaking from a company, but an interim professional has absolutely no interest in that, and besides, you can also cover it by contract," says Taco.
© Up & UpTaco van der Louw and Noëlle van Rijsoort-de Baan
Instant relief
Instead, he sees great advantages in using interim staff. "Often these people are of a high calibre and also have the necessary entrepreneurial spirit, which fits well with fresh produce companies. For instance, I currently have quite a few retail vacancies open. For these, we can perfectly deploy people from our pool who are immediately employable and already have their connections in the supermarket world. More and more experienced staff are retiring, while young talent remains scarce. The result: work pressure increases, knowledge disappears, and daily operations begin to falter. Still, finding reinforcements remains difficult, especially if you don't have the time to recruit or train for months. An interim professional brings instant relief. Within a week, the team regains overview, structure, and calm."
Noëlle agrees. "Many companies think that an interim first takes time, but it is precisely in that first week that the difference is made. I notice that many companies are surprised by the speed with which an interim really adds value. A fresh perspective immediately brings calm and overview. I think interim staff can make a lot of impact in a short period of time. People who have been with a company for years can sometimes fall into tunnel vision. An interim person doesn't suffer from that; they can oversee the whole organisation with a fresh perspective from a helicopter view." She sees three months as a minimum period for an interim. "But you also see that if people are well-liked, companies quickly tend to keep them longer. Still, it is precisely that flexible nature that makes it so interesting for companies."
Flying in hours
"The reason for choosing interim solutions can vary. Sometimes companies are looking for a temporary solution to replace someone who is sick, on maternity leave, or after dismissal. But we also see that filling vacancies takes longer than in the past. In that case, it can be a great opportunity to bring in someone with the necessary flight hours immediately so that no time is lost. Another reason could be the summer holidays; by appointing someone on an interim basis, companies have to do less juggling to keep operations running."
"We see the biggest opportunities for interim staff in executive and management positions, but also in commerce, marketing, and HR," says Taco. He does not foresee any problems filling the pool. "There are more and more people with fresh produce experience who want to work independently. Interims are plentiful; the biggest challenge will be getting companies to make use of them. We will be actively offering our interim solutions from now on, both in the Dutch market and internationally, as we operate with Up&Up for companies worldwide. For example, we recently hired colleagues who specifically focus on the UK, Belgian, and ornamental plant cultivation markets."
For more information:
Noëlle van Rijsoort-de Baan
Up & Up
Mob: +31(0)6 51 40 98 89
[email protected]
www.up-up-go.com