The Necessity of Hiring Freelancers in the Future Workplace
The future of the workplace continues to evolve at a staggering pace. New trends, technologies and innovations, in volatile and competitive industries, have necessitated the need for improved and agile workforce planning, strategic adaptability and better talent acquisition and management. Clients around the world tell us that Strategic Workforce Planning remains a major challenge, as skills shortages, particularly in digital and organisational transformation, continue to decelerate development.
Whilst some businesses have acted quickly to close this skills gap, embracing the opportunity to stretch beyond the org chart and build an external talent pool of highly skilled professionals, there remains some reluctance to tap into this growing global network. Much of this stems from an ingrained stigma attached to the term ‘freelancer’. Many hear the word ‘freelancer’ and assume a lesser skilled, low-end, unprofessional basement-dwelling millennial. Perhaps it’s time to do away with old jargon and view this network of talent for what they are: highly-skilled, highly-experienced and highly-professional short or long-term solutions to business requirements.
It’s time to debunk the myth of the freelancer and begin the journey of creating connections to the best talent, to get the job done.
- “External talent won’t fit in”.
The most popular misconception. The conviction that traditional employees will work harder and will better understand the culture of the company, whilst outsourced professionals will take too long to adapt to the new environment.
REALITY
Freelancers are predominantly highly skilled, extensively experienced and deeply disciplined professionals, who generally choose to go independent, simply because they feel limited in their skill growth and crave more work/life flexibility. The talent they are able to bring to the workplace remain unparalleled; they are experts in their required field or skillset, and this wealth of expertise ensures smooth adaptability to the work-space and the culture of the company. According to WorkMarket’s Workforce Productivity Report, 83% of business leaders believe that independent contractors are more productive than their current employees. Don’t forget, freelancers are reliant upon positive feedback to maintain success, making them ideal candidates for critical business requirements that necessitate dedicated application. At Talmix, we have a global talent network of over 60,000 of the most highly skilled professionals, with up to 40 years of experience in their chosen fields.
- “The Hiring Process will be slow and tedious”.
Many companies believe that finding the “perfect” candidate is a laborious task, assuming that the niche talents that they require are even less likely to be found through external talent networks.
REALITY
Building an extensive pool of talent connections at your fingertips is what makes finding that ideal candidate a much easier process when the time does come to search for the candidate. The process itself is simple and effective, and much faster than traditional methods. At Talmix, telling us your requirements online will connect you with the ideal candidate in under 24 hours. We also reach beyond geographical remits if required, locating talent solutions in over 150 countries across the globe.
- “Freelancers are only good for short-term projects”.
If you’re looking to plug a talent gap, or find unique talent for a short-term project, then seeking independent talent remains, of course, an ideal platform to achieve this solution. Yet there is a preconception that independent consultants can only ever be used for short-term projects, as is the nature of their role as ‘freelancers’.
REALITY
There are no limits to the requirements set in seeking to acquire business talent, and client retention beyond the remits of the initial project advertised is not a myth. It is better to maintain relationships with skilled talent than limit your business by disregarding it. There are some companies who might require an expert to undergo a simple two-week research role. There are other businesses who may need to replace their C-suite executives and undergo major organizational re-structuring in the workplace. Either way, there are solutions available for any requirement, reactive or ongoing, short or long-term. Talmix offers connections for any such requirement, so that you can connect quickly and efficiently to exactly what you need now, or may need in the future.
*
Differentiated skill-sets are now integral to the modern work-force, and the growth of the freelance economy in recent years has opened the door for businesses to engage with a plethora of elite independent professionals, to successfully close the talent gap in the workplace. Companies that encourage this interaction will thrive in the future fluid workforce, whilst those that continue to ignore these changes and opportunities, will begin to fall behind the leading pack. Make your talent connections at Talmix to hit the ground running.
