The world of work is changing … fast.
“Contingent work force.” “Agile talent.” “Freelancing.” “On-demand talent.” “Contract workers.” And of course, “the gig economy.”
Those are a few of the ways experts label the shift. My personal favorite comes from Accenture, where they talk about “the liquid workforce.”
Whatever you call it, I’m part of it, and the odds are decent you are too, or at some point you will be. (What? You thought you were going to go to the same office every day for 40-odd years and retire with a gold watch?)
Already close to a third of the American workforce is freelancing by choice. Although my guess is, they’re using a loose definition of choice. Plenty of people hang out a shingle because their full-time position evaporated and another one never showed up despite a diligent search.
And that may contribute to another shift. Traditionally, temporary employees did administrative or operational work, or they were hired for a holiday season. That’s all changed. Today, companies are using on-demand talent for strategic work too, year-round.
So, some 49-MILLION individuals are calling their own tune when it comes to work. And that number’s only growing. The experts predict more than half of workers in the U.S. will be independent by 2027.
And no, we’re not all slackers who couldn’t cut it in a corporate job. Millennials, especially, are choosing independent work in larger numbers every year.
Companies are preparing in all kinds of ways. They have to figure out what work will be needed, look for someone who can do the work, and in some cases outbid other employers for that talent.
It’s a big change from the days when somebody in HR hired and fired people and made sure they got paid every two weeks in the interim.
Now companies are “managing beyond the enterprise.” B-school lingo for dealing with a workforce ecosystem of traditional full-time employees sitting right down the hall, employees who work at home and show up at the office for an occasional meeting, and contract workers brought in for a specific project who may not know or care much about the organization’s long-term goals.
The varied arrangements can present problems for employers.
There are challenges for the agile/contingent/freelancer types too.
Deloitte’s experts say if you choose independent work, the big benefit is a sense of complete control over the kind of work you do, along with how much you work, where and with whom. You’re not just a cog—you’re the whole wheel. And that can be very satisfying.
The downside is, of course, you’re the whole wheel. So, when things don’t go well, it’s not about the organization, it’s about you. That can be a crushing blow.
Since work is a big way we create a sense of identity and meaning, those of us who don’t “go to work” at some company every day would be wise to emulate some of what goes on for those who do.
Yale’s Dr. Amy Wrzesniewski says we organize our work lives around place, routines, people, and purpose. Companies take care of these things. They set us up in an office or cubicle; tell us when to come to work and when to leave, provide coworkers to keep us company at the water cooler, and they at least try to convey a sense of meaning about what the organization does.
Solo professionals have to take care of ourselves.
So we need a Place to work—a home office or a co-working space, the local library or a coffeeshop. It’s somewhere we associate with getting down to business and getting things done.
Routine is connected to the place: arriving, focusing, getting into the mindset of the workday.
Professor Wrzesniewski says the most important People for agile workers are the ones who can calm us or excite us. Who help us manage highs and lows that come with working solo. We need the folks who remind us why we started this independent work in the first place.
And she says Purpose is fundamental, especially for independent workers who take on a certain amount of risk by working on their own.
There are also some practical implications for freelancers.
Corporate employees have whole human resources departments to support them. Those of us who work on our own have to take responsibility for our own careers.
- We’re on our own for health insurance.
- There’s no pension or 401K plan—if we don’t want to wind up broke in our old age, we have to set up a savings plan and stick to it.
- Paid time off? Not likely for a freelancer. Taking a vacation means planning ahead and socking away the money we won’t be earning while we’re gone.
- Professional development is important, absolutely necessary in some fields. But nobody’s bringing in trainers and coaches and consultants for us.
- In the gig economy, if we want to learn a new skill or develop our talent, we have to find the person who can help us do it. And we have to invest the time and money to make it happen.
- And the social aspect of work? We’re on our own there too. It’s smart to join a professional association, or otherwise team up with people who can cheer us on, prop us up, or offer a referral now and again.
In my Chicago neighborhood, a group has started lunching once a month. We’re all remote employees or freelancers who work at home—it’s good to get together for mutual support and plain old fun.
And there’s my monthly Roundtable with other “agile talent” types. We exchange information and ideas and have the kind of conversations corporate employees might have in the coffee room at the office.
I’m naturally social; I’ve needed to structure my work-at-home life so I’m not climbing the walls for lack of connection.
And what about you?
Maybe you’re happily ensconced in a corporate office, working your way up the ladder and getting your needs met. Maybe you’ve struck out on your own … or you’re thinking about it.
What makes working alone work for you? Or what scares you into sticking with the company, and hoping they’ll stick by you?
Post a comment about your foothold in the changing world of work.
Great article, Catherine! It’s key to establish routine connections with bright and passionate professionals to share ideas, challenges, and lessons learned. Establishing various communities of support can positively influence your motivation, creativity, and courage to push outside your comfort zone.
Yes, Kris, we need those “communities of support.” In my experience, it took a while to settle on groups that offered the right mix of business connections and ideas AND some fun. The ones I’ve stuck with are important to me.
Great article, Catherine! It’s key to establish routine connections with bright and passionate professionals to share ideas, challenges, and lessons learned. Establishing various communities of support can positively influence your motivation, creativity, and courage to push outside your comfort zone.
Yes, Kris, we need those “communities of support.” In my experience, it took a while to settle on groups that offered the right mix of business connections and ideas AND some fun. The ones I’ve stuck with are important to me.
Catherine,
This is an incredible thought provoking article. It could be the basis for many more insights about working in the ‘gig’ economy. A full career could be based on this single article.
I am sure all your fans appreciate the amount of time and effort you must have devoted to the content. I am certainly very impressed.
Well thank you, Jim. I did do some serious research on this one, along with sharing my own experience transitioning from corporate gigs to a freelance career. There’s a lot to learn and a lot to consider in making that kind of move.
Catherine,
This is an incredible thought provoking article. It could be the basis for many more insights about working in the ‘gig’ economy. A full career could be based on this single article.
I am sure all your fans appreciate the amount of time and effort you must have devoted to the content. I am certainly very impressed.
W?hen I broke out of the corporate life my observations were
– managing my own time is more difficult that I expected,
– I really missed the social aspect of being around co-workers and
– how much I disdain the weight of corporate stock holders on the life of managers and employees.
I do not want to be misunderstood. Our capitalist system, empowered by public ownership and the right to buy or sell at will is a source of our freedom. Stock owners generally have no moral purpose, just want of money, which is a good thing. Read Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations.
What I escaped by leaving the corporate world is the weight of having to make decision about my life and the lives of subordinates due to stock values.
Heh, it must far worse for bureaucrats in socialist dominated countries.
About your article, I used to read Harvard Business Review. Your article could be expanded and should be published in HBR.
Funny what you say about making decisions based on stock values, Jim. Entercom just laid off a bunch of people here in Chicago, even though they own some of the most successful and profitable stations in the city. They also own CBS Radio, and that’s been a drag on their stock price. Robert Feder attributed the people-purge to that stock price plummet.
Bless your heart for thinking I could get something published in Harvard Business Review. That’s where I did some of my research for this piece.
It is becoming so much more common! Both my husband and I own our own businesses.
For us the biggest issue is healthcare. Scary!
For sure. Health care is a looming threat for self employed. My wife suddenly had an emergency appendectomy operation 2 years ago. The bills approached $6,000. We had not planned for that. This was a couple months after hospital bills due to a distracted drive hitting her auto head on with bills for that, too, that were covered by the distracted drivers insurer. Fortunately, we still have her employer’s group plan. But I can tell, you from experience, that no insurer is very excited about paying quickly so you gotta pay to protect your valuable credit rating.
Here is another thing to consider. When both my parents passed within a year of each other, the med bills were around $200K each. $400K. They had a supplemental health policy and the insurer informed me to not pay more than $4,900 each per year of billing.
My point is, self employed people such as us have to put money away because it will come due when we least expect it whether we plan or not.
Health care is a huge problem for most of us in the “liquid work force,” Ellen. Many are lucky enough to have a spouse with company-funded insurance. Without that it can be a struggle.
Adrift?
Catherine, you really hit on a subject of personal interest to me. I thought of a couple other things to mention.
Employers of remote, gig, workers must plan to provide union events. Left alone, gig workers may, will, become feeling adrift. Emails, websites and phone calls may convey the corporate mission but they are not enough. PEOPLE need to see and touch each other to stay connected.
It is a scientifically proven fact that we all evolved with identity to tribes and families for survival. Gig workers try to avoid that fact but we cannot.
It also means that gig workers must carefully choose the associations they make outside of the work environment. And, does that not suggest some other opportunities for coaches such as Catherine.
Adrift?
Catherine, you really hit on a subject of personal interest to me. I thought of a couple other things to mention.
Employers of remote, gig, workers must plan to provide union events. Left alone, gig workers may, will, become feeling adrift. Emails, websites and phone calls may convey the corporate mission but they are not enough. PEOPLE need to see and touch each other to stay connected.
It is a scientifically proven fact that we all evolved with identity to tribes and families for survival. Gig workers try to avoid that fact but we cannot.
It also means that gig workers must carefully choose the associations they make outside of the work environment. And, does that not suggest some other opportunities for coaches such as Catherine.
Another timely mention, Jim. Uber just tried to do that … throwing a party at the Museum of Science and Industry for Uber drivers and their families. It didn’t go well.
Good idea to bring the on-demand talent together once in a while. And, execution matters.
It takes professionals to strategize and plan an event, 2 different things. Strategy is up to a CEO. Too bad Uber did not go well. That is a CEO failure. Maybe the CEO has a messaging problem too.
An example I like is how Enterprise Rental gets their young managers to Disney World, leading to a lot of marriages and loyalty from a lot of families.I was in a remote engineering office and our Toronto owner got us all, with spouse, to visit Toronto for Christmas.My wife’s boss got us all to Key West. Bahama and Tahiti with other employees. Don’t you think we talked about business.
Point is, the owners created tribal membership.
An Uber failure is a CEO failure. Too bad.I have run large events and mine succeeded because I controlled the message.
Well this one took me a bit to chew on 🙂 I am usually one of the first to comment.
I fantasized most of the night about being self employed, the INSURANCE issue and a steady pay check are scary!
hats off to you that took the plunge.
I would love to be able to be in front of business owners and tell them where they are going wrong and how to treat employees to make them want to stay and be happy to come to work, ( I have gotten some nice bonuses, but never a family vacation! Jim talking about that make me want to know what employer that is. Sign me up!
the down sides of working in a close group though is in fact people you will either love or loath them if you spend too much time together and when loath kicks in watch out!
although the comfort of a 9 to 5 stable job is easy to digest for most, the adventurers need to expand and not be caged in. You are free to work how you want and with whom you want 🙂
Thanks Catherine for this spark.
Well, Jacques, I took the plunge because my first career caved in. And my second career turned out to be no more stable than the first. And then my THIRD career, well that didn’t turn out so well either. (You sense a theme developing here?)
I like being part of the liquid workforce (and I love that expression), choosing the clients I want to work with, setting my own schedule — all the freedoms that come with self-employment. And I completely understand your concern about insurance. It keeps a lot of people from making a move toward freelancing. I love the idea of you as a consultant to businesses that want to keep their employees AND keep them happy.
You’re certainly personable enough to do that kind of work, you have plenty of personal experience to draw on, and there’s a lot of research on employee engagement you could draw on. Plus, when you decide you’re ready to stand in front of business owners and deliver that message … you know a damn good speaking coach. 😉
Another practical implication for freelancers: you have to keep marketing until the day you close up shop. And the time spent marketing is not paid time.
-d
You are so right, Diana. I’m doing a lot of work for clients right now, and it’s WONDERFUL. It will also end at some point, and I’ll need new dates with new people on my calendar. Which means I have to find time for marketing the work (and yes, even selling the work) now, while I’m busy DOING the work. That’s a challenge.