As the North American lead, contractor program, at BMO, Richard Wiskin governs the contingent workforce management program for North America through the company’s MSP, VMS, and staffing supplier relationships. Wiskin was in agency recruitment for 11 years; upon joining BMO in 2014, he started in talent acquisition and then transitioned to his current role four years ago.

A recent notable achievement of the program involved rolling out a supplier average markup (SAM) at the end of 2020, which provides greater transparency into various components of the bill rate and an increase in supplier NPS scores. “The SAM benefits were further realized as we rationalized our supply base by 50% to go ‘deeper with fewer,’” Wiskin says.

One major benefit of the program, Wiskin points out, is all the recently built integrations with HR, procurement, and project management systems that makes using the program efficient and creates a better UX. As for challenges, the biggest are constructing processes and policies that work for all users across the enterprise and differing geographies, he says.

Wiskin expects more service-based work to enter the program in the next couple of years. He also sees the program moving to more of a digital service model that will use market intelligence, coupled with automation and direct sourcing tools to help hiring managers get the best talent, at the best price, in the right location.