Exploring the business benefits of using freelance professionals
Michelle McHugh is founder and director of Contrect Ltd, a Warwickshire SME which is supported by Warwick University Science Park. Michelle established Contrect Ltd with a bold mission to transform the UK contracting market by making engaging freelance contractors more affordable and accessible, particularly for small businesses. Here, she explains the how the UK labour market is changing and outlines the benefits and opportunities this offers businesses.
There is no doubt that the UK labour market is changing. Technological advances and changing attitudes to work over recent years have led to a significant increase in the number of self-employed and freelance professionals across all sectors of the UK economy.
Latest figures show there are currently two million freelancers in the UK, contributing £119 billion to the UK economy, and some estimates show that over half of the working population could be freelancing by the year 2020.
Individuals willing to risk the certainty and stability of permanent employment in exchange for flexibility and better work/life balance are increasingly moving to freelancing through choice - and eight out of ten contractors confirm they are more satisfied as a result. However, the business benefits of tapping into the growing freelance economy are less well documented or discussed.
Here are the top five reasons why businesses should consider using skilled freelance professionals:
- Organisational politics
Freelancers operate above organisational politics. They are not interested in a long-term career within your organisation. Their views are genuine perceptions of your organisation, people and culture – without a vested interest. If you want an honest view of your business, ask a freelancer.
- Breadth of experience
The nature of contracting means freelancers have a breadth of experience across numerous different organisations, sectors and cultures on individual assignments. This variety gives a breadth of experience and wider networks that generally isn’t replicated with permanent employees. If a contractor hasn’t been involved in a particular business scenario or overcome a certain challenge, they will know someone who has.
- Organisational agility
Accessing skills across a broad range of professions by working with freelancers is a flexible way to enhance your internal capacity and capability. Managing peaks in workload, or addressing internal skills gaps by building up a network of trusted freelancers to compliment your own team builds resilience in your business.
- Flexibility
The nature of engaging freelancers inevitably means there is no long-term commitment, so if the demands of your business change you can part ways without any hard feelings. This is particularly important for SMEs and start-ups where being nimble and reactive to demand plays a vital role in keeping the business profitable.
- Continuous personal development
Freelancers are serious about their personal development. Why wouldn’t they be? They are continuously in a competitive market place and only as good as their last contract. Without the luxury of an employer to invest in their development, freelancers invest in their own learning with a natural instinct to continually evolve and remain ahead of the competition.
With the chancellor having announced in the Autumn Budget Statement that the Government plans to consult on changes to tax-rules for freelance contractors (IR35) working in the private sector, businesses should be prepared to change their approach to contracting to ensure these business benefits are not lost. This will need to involve moving away from advertising contracts as ‘jobs’ to adopting more outcome-based contracts, based on key outputs, milestones and quality criteria.
The Contrect Portal is specifically designed for outcome-based contracting, helping organisations increase their internal skills and capacity by using freelance contractors as a flexible solution to their business needs. To find out how we can help your business contract smarter, better and cheaper please contact us at service@contrect.com.