“The traditional model of lifetime employment, so well-suited to periods of relative stability, is too rigid for today’s networked age,” wrote LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman in his book The Alliance.
Adam Poswolsky, the author of The Quarter-Life Breakthrough, writes in Quartz that, as a result, “millennials are not motivated by money. Rather, they are driven to make the world more compassionate, free, innovative, and sustainable. This isn’t a stereotype; it’s simply the truth”.
Reimagining the Value of Contingent Work: What Are Contingent Workers?
Before going further, let’s clarify what a contingent worker is.
Unlike traditional employees, who live in the shadow of insecurity shaped by Employment at Will, contingent talent has no illusions about the permanence of their positions. They are brought in to tackle a project, and they move on. They’re more likely to stick out the assignment. They are not motivated by the fear of termination. They are driven to learn new skills, gain new insights, help clients innovate solutions and then transfer those accomplishments to the next project.
A contingent workforce is a labor pool whose members are hired by an organization on an on-demand basis. A contingent workforce consists of freelancers, independent contractors, and consultants who are not on the company’s payroll because they are not full-time employees of the organization. Organizations can hire a contingent worker directly or from a staffing agency. Such workers are usually added on an ad-hoc basis to a company’s workforce and work either onsite or remotely.
You can think of them like Avengers who only comes in when you need help or there’s a Thanos crisis!
The Rise Of Contingent Workforce: How millennials are changing the Workforce?
Professionals are rejecting traditional jobs for the life of a freelancer. India has been ranked among the top five nations globally in terms of contingent workforce engagement. According to ManpowerGroup Solutions’ fourth Contingent Workforce Index (CWI), which tracks the relative ease of sourcing, hiring and retaining the contingent workforce in 75 countries, India has been ranked in the top five nations. Nearly 4 out of 10 workers in the U.S. are freelancers. That’s a 55 million strong workforce — and it’s growing.
This growing subset of the working population is in response to a variety of factors such as rising labor and benefits costs, a need for flexibility in budget and staffing, and the rising importance of specialized skill sets. Plus, 69 percent of freelancers have indicated that they feel technology has expanded their ability to find contingent work. For these reasons, organizations have made a shift from hiring almost exclusively “traditional” full-time workforce to employing greater numbers of freelance, temporary and part-time talent.
The contingent workforce, the gig economy, contractors, freelancers — whatever your preferred term for this category of workers, there’s no doubt that they’re on the rise, particularly in hiring for tech jobs. And businesses are starting to realize how these types of non-traditional hires can offer a lot of value.
Pay attention. This is what the future looks like. Smart organizations are looking for ways to access and engage talented millennial workers right now.
Why this shift? Contract work is becoming the new Normal In Tech!
Contract work is no longer a luxury or a cost-savings strategy for organizations. It’s a new way of business, and companies really are prepared.
In our fast-paced, tech-driven world, contingent workers can provide companies with significant flexibility and advantages. Many companies make this workforce part of their growth strategy. Hiring contingent workers can provide so many advantages, over half of the companies report that’s how they plan to get more done. Contract workers may seem more expensive to hire, thanks to an often-higher hourly cost. But they’re inherently less expensive to hire than full-time employees. Most companies recognize it’s a cost-effective way to fill skills gaps, foster innovation, and remain competitive as work needs change.
A contingent employment arrangement is beneficial for both companies and contractors. Contractors, particularly in IT, often receive huge quick compensation and have the opportunity to work on challenging projects that provide valuable work experience and help make themselves more marketable. They also tend to enjoy increased flexibility, autonomy, place, new technology, Networking, work-life balance, and the learning that comes working with diverse teams & leaders. Meanwhile, businesses cut many of the costs associated with bringing on full-time staff and also enable their organization to be more efficient and responsive.
From the point of view of the employee, he or she gains an opportunity to try out a company or a new role, and build their resume. For some, this may lead to a full-time job down the road. Businesses are able to fill needs while workers gain skills and open their options.
The notion of a traditional career is becoming a quaint tale. If you don’t want yourself ending up as a page in that bedtime story, it’s time to open yourself to contingent requirements. All it will take is a little planning, a lot of work and a willingness to understand this shift. Talent sourcing is changing. There is no doubt about it. The only question is, “Will you change with the times, or get left behind?”
Is it time to mold into a contingent worker?
The reality is, you may not have a choice. More companies are embracing the contingent workforce. And they’re making the transition to contingent workers easier by using specialized freelancer platforms. Sourcing, vetting, contracting, and paying a flow of contingent workers take a lot of time. Therefore, many companies use third-party platforms to help process a flow of freelancers and other contingent workers quickly and accurately.
That’s why many medium- to large-sized companies turn to gig solutions such as gigHub.ai, an AI-powered Marketplace cum SaaS platform to Source & Manage Gig Talent.
gigHub.ai is helping companies connect with talented tech millennials. They have seen these trends and probabilities and are at the forefront of the industry in engaging corporates with the huge talent pool on our platform. This platform automates contracting and payment processes to reduce administrative time and provide optional compliance services to classify workers. Above all, the talent pool is already curated, vetted, screened, and are ready to join as a contingent worker.
As the independent workforce continues to evolve, and new generations like the Millennials emerge, gigHub.ai is here to help professionals & corporates adapt and thrive in the new economy.