Build, Borrow, Buy – Which Talent Model Suits Your Hiring Challenge?

Organisations today face three interconnected talent challenges: building teams for the long term, borrowing skills quickly, and buying access to specialist supply chains. Understanding which approach to take - and which solution fits - can save time, reduce costs, and improve workforce outcomes.

The Build, Borrow, Buy model provides a simple framework for thinking about workforce strategy:

• Build – invest in permanent talent pipelines
• Borrow – access contingent skills quickly
• Buy – leverage external supply chains to meet specialist needs

In this guide, we explain how RPO, MSP, and Outsource/SPO map to these strategies and how each can support your hiring goals.

Build: Permanent Talent with RPO

“Build” focuses on creating and maintaining a strong permanent workforce. Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO) is the ideal solution here.

Key benefits of RPO:

• Scales your permanent recruitment function without increasing internal headcount
• Provides access to talent pipelines and market intelligence
• Aligns hiring with long-term workforce planning and culture fit
• Enables you to leverage external support to build and optimise your employer brand

Use cases:

• A tech company growing its permanent engineering team for product development
• Organisations needing structured talent pipelines for future leadership roles

Borrow: Contingent Talent with MSP

“Borrow” is about accessing skills on demand, typically through a contingent workforce. Managed Service Programmes (MSP) provide centralised management of contractors and temporary staff.

Key benefits of MSP:

• Manages high-volume hiring quickly and efficiently
• Consolidates suppliers and standardises processes
• Ensures compliance and risk management across multiple sites

Use cases:

• Engineering teams requiring 50+ temporary contractors for a project
• Organisations needing rapid workforce scaling for short-term initiatives

MSP is ideal for borrowing talent without the long-term cost of permanent hires.

Buy: Supply Chain Access with Outsource/SPO

“Buy” focuses on leveraging external supply chains to deliver skills, resources, or project-based teams. Specialist Procurement Outsource (SPO), or Outsource, allows organisations to access a managed network of suppliers and contractors for complex or niche requirements.

Key benefits of Outsource/SPO:

• Provides access to specialist skills via a structured, managed supply chain
• Reduces duplication and inefficiency in multi-supplier environments
• Improves cost visibility and governance

Use cases:

• Aerospace or defence teams needing niche contractors with security clearances
• Large projects requiring structured supplier management across multiple sites
• Organisations looking to consolidate and optimise their contingent supply chain

Comparing the Three Models

How to Choose the Right Model

1. Assess your hiring volume: High-volume, short-term needs point to MSP, permanent growth to RPO, and specialist projects to Outsource.
2. Identify skills gaps: Niche or hard-to-find skills often require Outsource/SPO.
3. Evaluate time sensitivity: Contingent hiring is faster with MSP, permanent hires take longer with RPO.
4. Consider governance and cost control: Outsource provides clarity across supplier networks, MSP provides compliance at scale, and RPO ensures strategic alignment.

Pro tip: Many organisations adopt a hybrid approach. Permanent talent is built with RPO, immediate skills borrowed via MSP, and complex supply chains managed through Outsource. This approach optimises speed, cost, quality and total talent.

Conclusion

The Build, Borrow, Buy framework makes workforce strategy simple: build permanent capability with RPO, borrow skills when speed is essential with MSP, and buy access to structured supply chains with Outsource/SPO.

Understanding these distinctions ensures organisations make informed decisions, reduce overspend, improve project delivery, and access the right talent at the right time.

Next step: Evaluate your workforce strategy and identify which mix of RPO, MSP, and Outsource solutions aligns with your projects and business objectives.

Explore Matchtech Outsource services to see how SPO can optimise your supply chain and contractor delivery.