Tapping Gig Talent

HOW COMPANIES ARE REORIENTING THEIR SYSTEMS TO INTEGRATE SHORT-TERM WORKERS

How companies are reorienting their systems to integrate short-term workers

Mohib Malgi, 33, quit his well-paying job as a software developer in Montreal and moved back to Mumbai. He wanted to work independently. The reasons were usual: monotony, office politics and low job satisfaction. It’s been a year-and-a-half and he doesn’t want to go back to full-time work. “In office, my colleagues were my world. Now, I have the entire world,” he says. He works on projects for companies across the globe. He has worked from hills, beaches, forests, including Gokarna in Karnataka, Goa, Rajasthan. He is currently working from a tiny village, Sainj, in Himachal Pradesh, after spending a month in Bir, again

in Himachal. “This is life. Why will I ever go back?” he says.

People such as Malgi used to be an exception a few years ago. With lockdown, the freelance work they do has found a much wider acceptance among companies as more and more professionals open up to the idea of gig work. India is now the second-fastest growing market for gig work in the world with an estimated 15 million freelancers, according to Payoneer’s report, ‘Freelancing in 2020: An Abundance of Opportunities’.

Chandrika Pasricha, Founder & CEO, Flexing It, a curated platform that helps organisations access and work with independent consultants, says there has been a huge change in mindset in the last one year as professionals want to be in charge of their life and career. “There is a realisation that job security is a myth. Even younger professionals want to focus on building and monetising their skills,” she says; the trend used to be more common among experienced professionals.

The boom in companies that facilitate working arrangements between companies and gig workers is the clearest indicator of where things are headed. Look at global freelancing platform Upwork. Its third-quarter revenue (FY2020) surpassed expectations by rising 24 per cent to $96.7 million. CEO Hayden Brown said in the company’s earnings release that the growth has come on the back on “both existing and new clients who adopted Upwork in record numbers.” Back home, number of firms looking to hire consultants on Flexing It rose 75 per cent in FY20.

While there is no aggregate data on Indian firms that are using freelancers, Axis Bank announced this year that 15 per cent of its incremental hiring over the next three years will be under alternative work models. Law firm Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas is moving to a new “permanent dynamic working policy” that enables employees to choose where and when they want to work. One of the concepts is ‘flexi-lawyering’ where people can work on short projects of, say, four-eight months. Prince Augustin, Executive Vice President- Group Human Capital & Leadership Development, Mahindra & Mahindra, says, “This is part of our overall workforce plan where they come for specialised work, deliver, and go away.”

However, is this as simple as it sounds? Or does it require changes in structure of companies considering that most organisations are built on fixed templates? Companies that are looking to make gig work more central to their operations are doing exactly that by making their processes and policies more flexible to accommodate short-term employees and making the most of their skills and time. This includes making contractual arrangements more flexible, offering insurance if the job is on the premise and re-defining job roles based on skills required and outcomes to be achieved. “The benefits will be realised if organisations see that as more of

It is important for firms to create the right environment

kinds of for all employees before jumping on the bandwagon and increasing on-demand workers ”

SHRADDHANJALI RAO Vice President of Human Resources, SAP, India

a talent management issue than a cost issue,” says Rajkamal Vempati, EVP & Head, HR, Axis Bank.

Here is how companies can make gigs a win-win for both themselves and the workers.

Being Battle-Ready

Companies are built for employees who are expected to have a long-term engagement with them. Making gig work integral to their operations will require them to be far more dynamic. It will help if CXOs themselves act as evangelists for the change. “Firms need one of their senior leaders to own it, work on it and get the teams, one by one, to try it,” says Alok Agarwal, Chief Marketing Officer, Orient Bell.

Shraddhanjali Rao, Vice President of Human Resources, SAP, India, says, “It is important for firms to create the right environment for all kinds of employees before jumping on the bandwagon and increasing on-demand workers.” She says companies should start with incremental shifts so that the change is acceptable to all stakeholders. For instance, SAP has introduced a programme called ‘Talent Marketplace’ to prepare their fulltime employees for the road ahead. This allows anyone in the company to put out a project opening. Any employee, irrespective of his or her existing expertise, can take up the stretch assignment. For example, a developer who aspires to be a data scientist can take up a data-related assignment and deliver on the job. It could be a four weeks to six months project.

“This platform has helped us institutionalise the mindset of dual careers and talent mobility and agility.