When Is the Best Time To Hire Contract Staff?

Global commerce in 2025 is anything but predictable, so it’s not surprising to see flexible contract-to-hire models become one of the year’s biggest staffing trends. Temporary contractors help enterprises respond quickly to evolving needs. And if you choose the right time to hire contract staff, your organization can save a lot of money, too.

IS THERE A BEST TIME OF YEAR TO HIRE CONTRACT STAFF AND FULL-TIME EMPLOYEES?

The laws of supply and demand apply to contract staff just as much as other professional services and commercial transactions. Think about it this way: The market for data center GPUs in 2018 was just $2.9 billion, a far cry from 2024’s $15 billion (and rising) share. Timing is everything, and hiring costs are no exception.

College Graduation

Some organizations save money by hiring IT technicians who are fresh out of college. This approach can lower costs and allow for specialized training in organization-specific AI, cybersecurity, and data center objectives.

College graduations happen in May, so early summer is an ideal time for recruiting new talent. The pool of candidates is larger, meaning you probably don’t need to offer as many perks to persuade bright-eyed IT workers to sign.

The Fiscal Year for Corporations

Depending on stock performance and profit outlooks, corporate America does most of its hiring in January and February. The fiscal year usually ends in December (though sometimes in March or September), so the beginning of the year means budgets newly flush with capital. If your organization looks for candidates in September and October instead, you can have your pick of talent.

Other Annual Hiring Factors

December is one of the worst times to hire contract staff, mainly because of disruptions caused by the holidays. Even a good recruiter can have trouble coordinating interviews as travel plans and last-minute cancellations happen.

The fiscal budget year for many government agencies gets into swing around October. This makes fall typically an expensive time to fill positions in this sector.

WHEN SHOULD YOUR BUSINESS HIRE CONTRACT STAFF?

The calendar isn’t the only factor that influences hiring practices. The best time to hire contract staff depends on your company’s goals, plans, needs, and industry recruitment challenges:

• Seasonal surges in site traffic: IT maintenance needs often increase in preparation for holidays and other key purchasing periods.
• Data center migration or scaling: Migrating data from on-premises servers or outdated hardware to the cloud is a complex process, and having specialized assistance can make a huge difference.
• Cybersecurity compliance goals: Qualified IT personnel and data security professionals can help your organization achieve compliance more efficiently with SOC 2, ISO 27001, or HITRUST frameworks.

The Amazon.com website saw roughly 5.5 trillion extra read/write requests on Prime Day 2024 and nearly 450 petabytes of additional data transfers. With the help of an IT recruitment agency, dealing with these temporary surges is simple and cost-effective.

HIRE THE CONTRACT STAFF YOU NEED AT THE RIGHT TIME

The traditional hiring process takes over a month on average, way too long for priority projects. On the other hand, with TSP’s expert IT workers, you can hire contract staff at the perfect time. Make your operations more agile with our customized IT recruitment solutions.