Is this the death-knell for the “job for life” era?

The combined factors of automation, globalisation and job instability has led to more people becoming more flexible in what they deliver, and how they deliver it. As a result, many have chosen a freelance career. This gives them control, choice, higher pay and freedom to manage their work/life balance.

According to Charles Handy (the globally recognised philosopher/thinker specialising in organisational behaviour and management): there is a new type of career – the “Portfolio Career”. It means that individuals will maintain portfolios of their skills, abilities and achievements and use them to find and agree project-based work in a variety of organisations, rather than being “classic” employees on a payroll.

Many of the best resources have gone independent as it provides better life style for them, higher earnings and full control. Wingham Rowan defined it as “a new kind of job market” (Click here for his talk at TED, London 2012).

The “Future of Work” white paper by authors Richard Watson and Andrew Crosthwaite estimates that by 2015 around 40% of the total workforce will be in this category; businesses will increasingly use freelance talent as and when they need it.

So how is your business geared up to facing this new reality? Is your company already hiring freelancers as part of your teams? Here are some key reasons why other successful companies already do this:

–       You save on salary, training, and benefits costs

–       You attract talent when and where you need it

–       Some of the best people work freelance and can’t be tempted by a fulltime job

–       You pay for resource only when you need it and have no risk of people on the bench

–       You don’t have the same worry about motivation, career development, etc.

–       Your company can scale up or down instantly without the worry of hiring people or going through redundancies, etc.

365 Freelance (www.365freelance.com ) can help you embrace this new market shift. We provide an online platform connecting Microsoft Dynamics freelancers with partners and customers. Register for free this month and search through the hundreds of specialists that can help your company deliver successful Microsoft Dynamics projects.