There are many reasons why people might want to be independent workers or freelancers. For employees, this means greater flexibility, especially when deciding on the most suitable schedule, whether it is full-time, part-time or around other duties.
It can also give employees the opportunity to gain more experience in a specific field, increase their income, or turn their passion into a sideline—or even their main job. As the demand for independent workers grows, so do opportunities.
The coronavirus pandemic has accelerated the pace of remote work.The percentage of workers who may need to change career paths has increased 25% more than previously estimated Before the epidemic.
At the same time, companies facing headwinds are embracing a more diverse workforce to stay competitive, combining full-time, salaried employees with highly skilled independent workers who provide basic expertise and experience staff that the company may not have.
The growth rate of online talent platforms and the increasing number of financial incentives in some states to encourage remote workers means that many workers are becoming more and more likely to become independent workers. To understand the status of independent workers in the United States, Simple business Analyzed briefings from numerous organizations, including Harvard Business Review, McKinsey & Company, and MBO Partners.
Read on to learn more about current trends in independent workers in the United States.
In the past ten years, the number of skilled independent workers has increased by 71%
When many people think of independents, “gig” economic workers such as DoorDash and Uber The driver thought first. But independent workers are actually composed of various professionals from various industries, such as consulting, IT, creative fields, and research.
At present, a large proportion of full-time and part-time independent workers (34%) are considered to be skilled independent workers. A figure In 2011 it was only 20%.
Part of the reason for this increase is that, in the past decade, companies have increasingly hired skilled independent workers-they are more likely to be older than ordinary unskilled independent workers and have a college education, which encourages skilled workers. Of independent workers provide to improve their services.
Another reason is that skilled independents tend to have more job security than “gig” workers.Partly for these reasons, skilled independent workers Report high level Job satisfaction (87%) and optimism (83%).
Companies that are completely remote are more likely to hire independent workers
There are many factors that affect the company’s likelihood of adding independent employees to the team, including the size of the organization, the industry in which the company is located, the age of the manager, and the manager’s interest in remote work.
But, perhaps unsurprisingly, the work-from-home status of an organization is one of the most important signs that a company is willing to hire independent workers.
Fully remote organizations are relatively confident in hiring independent employees, because these companies have become accustomed to virtual meetings and workspaces. Actually, 52.1% Of completely remote companies have also hired freelancers.
Since the number of remote workers in the U.S. is Expected to double By 2025, it will reach 36.2 million, which may be good news for independent workers: a 10% increase in the number of fully remote workers means a 1.6% to 2.7% increase in the recruitment of independent workers.
In the past 5 years, the number of independent workers doing business outside the U.S. has more than doubled
Independent workers usually have the opportunity to set their own schedule and avoid commuting. However, the benefits of this work model go beyond the workers’ schedules, but enter the international talent community.
Including part-time and full-time independent workers, 38.2 million Americans It will operate independently in 2020, with annual revenue of 1.21 trillion U.S. dollars, accounting for about 5.7% of U.S. GDP in 2019.
Technological advancements and global connectivity mean that more and more independent American workers can work with companies and customers outside the United States. In fact, 28% of independent workers will conduct business outside the United States in 2020—a significant increase from 12% in 2013.
The use of crowdsourcing to solve business problems is increasing
Many companies are successfully turning to the diversified expert talent pool on the crowdsourcing platform. Using the wealth of knowledge discovered through crowdsourcing, the company can bring more researchers to the issue without exceeding the company’s financial resources.
In essence, using crowdsourcing platforms has become a convenient way for companies to get ideas on a range of topics (such as coding to archaeology) from experts, and companies can further develop these topics at very little cost. For example, the InnoCentive platform allows organizations to challenge InnoCentive experts to help solve them.
13% of independents use online marketplaces as their main source of customers
UpWork, Fiverr, InnoCentive and Toptal are probably familiar names to many independent workers. These online markets are becoming more and more popular channels for workers to acquire new customers, and they can serve industry beginners and experienced experts well.
In 2020, 27% of independent workers have used Online market In the past year, it was only 3% in 2012. Overall, young independent workers seem to be more likely to use these platforms than older adults. Gen Z employees said they use them at 44%, millennials 40%, and Gen X and baby boomers 20% and 14%, respectively.
Since 2011, the percentage of employees who say they choose to work independently has risen by 12%
When the 2020 coronavirus pandemic, independent workers are uniquely prepared for remote work, mainly because they are already working from home. In fact, 85% Independent worker Indicates that they worked remotely for at least a period of time in 2019, compared with 93% in 2020. And workers increasingly want independence.
As of 2020, 16% of workers People who are not independent say that they plan to “affirm” or “may” be independent in the next few years. However, there is a caveat: 47% of these workers said they would choose to do so, compared with 58% in 2019.
This probably reflects the 2020 job market, since 1939 (the last year of the Great Depression), there has never been a record unemployment in the United States.
Since 2009, the number of digital talent platforms has grown from 80 to more than 330
As companies are looking for more independent workers to engage in full-time and part-time jobs, whether short-term or long-term, companies are increasingly adopting Harvard Business School Report Called “workforce on demand” to improve competitiveness. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused companies to move more quickly to a mixed and less traditional business model that includes independent workers.
Where do many of these companies find these highly skilled independent workers?
According to the report, more than 30% of business leaders said they often use talent platforms such as UpWork and InnoCentive, and another 30% of companies said they often use such platforms to find talent.
These platforms may have a bright future: 50% of business leaders from the same report said they expect to use these platforms more in the future, and 90% said they are at least somewhat important for the company’s future competitiveness.
Sideline is growing
Many independent workers find that they can take part-time jobs as a way to increase their income, learn new skills, or venture into new industries. This is especially beneficial for people who want or need a flexible schedule.
As of 2020, have sideline An increase of 5.3% to 15.8 million, an increase of 51% from the 10.5 million in 2016. Many people with side jobs will keep other paid jobs, but take on other projects out of financial need. As the number of online markets continues to increase, it has become easier to choose a sideline and find customers for it.
90% of companies believe that a mix of full-time employees and freelancers will give them a competitive advantage
Many companies may take notice from a strategic point of view Talent platform And look for independent workers. In the long run, this is also true, as the pandemic expects the rise of remote work to continue.
Since many managers find that they need certain skills and expertise, but may not have employees with these qualifications, being able to work quickly and find skilled independent workers outside the company helps to ensure that the company continues to maintain its leading position and is embracing a hybrid business model Keep an open attitude.
The country will attract individual talents rather than companies
Before the coronavirus pandemic, it was common to see states provide incentives to large companies to move to their state.Remember to be Amazon Announce In 2017, they are looking for a second headquarters. The states are doing their best to encourage them to open stores in the state?
But now that more and more employees are working remotely, states and cities are trying to motivate top talent, rather than specific companies calling their state their new home.For example, Topeka in Kansas and Tulsa in Oklahoma are providing Remote worker $15,000 moved to their city.
This is another sign that the pandemic has changed the way Americans work-remote work will continue to exist after the pandemic.
This story was produced and published in collaboration with Stacker Studio.
