|
The ability to match the right person to the right task is the biggest draw of freelance talent with more than half small/medium businesses predicting they will employ more freelancers than permanent staff by 2020.
According to a survey of more than 1,000 SMEs/companies, businesses of the near future are likely to rely more heavily on freelance and contracted talent than a permanent workforce. In the research conducted by freelance marketplace, PeoplePerHour (PPH), 57 per cent of all respondents stated their intention to employ more freelancers than permanent employees by 2020, with just 12 per cent stating the reverse.
Advertisement 
The increased flexibility offered by a freelance workforce followed close behind, appealing to 59 per cent of respondents. Other reasons given were:
- Access to talent on-demand - 51 per cent
- Access to a wider pool of talent - 50 per cent
- Faster access to talent - 44 per cent
- Better value than full-time employees - 30 per cent
- Increased efficiency - 19 per cent
- Without freelancers it would be difficult to keep up to date with the latest skill requirements - 19 per cent.
Availability
These figures were reinforced by the fact that almost half of the employers interviewed admitted to being either quite or very concerned about the current availability of skills and talent in the UK, while 58 per cent said that getting the best talent available, regardless of location, was the key benefit of being able to access the global freelance market.
The ‘on-demand’ nature of a 24-hour workforce also appealed to more than half of respondents, while 45 per cent believed that access to international talent allowed them to get the best skills with no geographical boundaries.
Further reasons given for valuing access to international freelancers were:
- It’s more efficient - 37 per cent
- To get a different perspective - 22 per cent
- To gain access to new markets - 21 per cent
- To overcome language barriers - nine per cent
For more than a third of employers, the ability to access the freelance workforce was considered ‘very important’ to the future growth ambitions of their company. A further 17 per cent took that sentiment a step further, saying that the freelance workforce was ‘essential’ to the fulfilment of their plans, while only two per cent stated that freelancers were not important to their company’s future.
Just over half went on to add that on-demand talent offers their company ‘a big competitive advantage’, while only three per cent considered it any kind of disadvantage.
Xenios Thrasyvoulou, founder and CEO of PeoplePerHour said: "Thirty per cent of the British workforce is now freelancing in some capacity. This isn’t just because workers have switched on to the benefits of being their own boss, or because post-recession Britain offers fewer permanent employment opportunities; it’s because the use of a blended talent pool is mutually beneficial.
"While, of course, some positions benefit from the continuity that a permanent workforce brings, niche freelance experts can bring a freshness and vitality to a company, not just delivering the new perspective that 22 per cent of our respondents valued, but the latest skills and specialist knowledge. Business also benefits from the flexibility delivered by a blended talent pool, and more and more companies are realising this."
--
If you wish to comment on this article, please log in and use the Reply button below. Registering is free and easy - see 'Join Shout99'.
-
Susie Hughes © Shout99 2017
|
