“Flexible and open talent” resolves remote work demands and staff shortage

“Flexible and open talent” resolves remote work demands and staff shortage
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While the hybrid and remote work models seem to have been institutionalized, new employment and recruitment approaches continue to emerge. Flexible and open talent model, the latest to join the list, combines hybrid work with outsourcing and freelance staff hiring to give employers malleability.

Flexible and open talent marries the concept of hybrid and remote work with concepts like outsourcing and hiring freelance staff all while answering employees’ work from home demands. And the best takeaway employees can get is the freedom to scale their business to size whenever they need to. 

Harvard Business Review says that the defining feature of this concept is project-based or temporary work that is staffed with workers who are not permanently attached to a company. If done correctly, these ways of working can help organizations access skilled talent while providing the flexibility that many workers increasingly crave.

So what are the advantages of flexible and open talent?

  • It offers the ability to accommodate labor demand variability.
  • It allows small-task outsourcing for situations where hiring a full-time equivalent would not be justified and where the overhead requirements of traditional temporary staffing solutions would slow the project or be cost-prohibitive.
  • Flexible talent strategies provide access to innovative or diverse skill sets beyond traditional recruiting pipelines. 

However, Harvard Business Review said that although this emerging model fully integrates the demands of the pivotal time in workforce history many companies still have reservations about adopting it.

Labor market platform Upwork notes some stumbling blocks in implementing this model immediately. 

  • Flexible talent is disproportionately remote. 
  • IP and security risks
  • Employees’ lack of familiarity with new tools

Furthermore, Upwork’s survey found that more than 50 per cent of hiring managers indicated that remote work opened up their willingness to utilize or on-board remote freelancers..

Respondents reported both opportunities for and interest in using more freelance options. Respondents who had worked with or hired independent staff in the last year said that, without the external help, they would have done the work themselves (35%) or asked their teams to do it (28%) — options that could contribute to burnout. 

Twenty percent said they would have hired an outside service company; 3% would have hired a staffing firm. Just 8% said they would have made new full-time hires, and 6% said the work simply wouldn’t have been done.

Read more here. 

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Philippines United Kingdom Australia United States
Software Developer
$7,221
$39,913
$62,653
$81,994
HR Manager
$9,506
$46,669
$66,518
$78,007
Team Leader
$7,152
$31,174
$45,428
$75,823
Accountant
$5,959
$58,479
$67,190
$72,923
Copy Writer
$4,767
$52,088
$56,600
$62,653
Customer Service
$3,337
$22,137
$29,717
$35,275
Virtual Assistance
$2,285
$39,066
$42,240
$31,797
Select a role to view salaries
Philippines $7,221
United Kingdom $39,913
Australia $62,653
United States $81,994

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About OA

Outsource Accelerator is the trusted source of independent information, advisory and expert implementation of Business Process Outsourcing (BPO).

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Outsource Accelerator offers the world’s leading aggregator marketplace for outsourcing. It specifically provides the conduit between world-leading outsourcing suppliers and the businesses – clients – across the globe.

The Outsource Accelerator website has over 5,000 articles, 450+ podcast episodes, and a comprehensive directory with 4,000+ BPO companies… all designed to make it easier for clients to learn about – and engage with – outsourcing.

About Derek Gallimore

Derek Gallimore has been in business for 20 years, outsourcing for over eight years, and has been living in Manila (the heart of global outsourcing) since 2014. Derek is the founder and CEO of Outsource Accelerator, and is regarded as a leading expert on all things outsourcing.