The ‘Gig Economy’ is the subject of many articles, research papers, discussions at conferences et al, however, it has become apparent that there is still a lot of uncertainty about what the Gig Economy is all about.
We caught up with Andrew Karpie a well-known Research Analyst who is creating waves in the procurement space with his role at Azul Partners – Spend Matters. With reference to the gig economy he says, “Like so many of these terms today, “gig economy” seems to have a number of meanings, ranging from people doing very short activities (like taking 15 minutes to give someone a ride) to people doing freelance projects (like taking days to implement a website). When I think of the “gig economy,” I think of digital platforms as the game changers. Technology is really what has made this explosion, in short term work assignments for vast numbers of non-employees, possible.”
On November 4th, 2015 CXC Corporate Services, a CXC Global company, held a Summit in Dublin titled “Globalization and the Future of Work” to specifically address the future of work, the gig economy and the impact it is having and will have, on global marketplaces, technology and recruitment. We brought in speakers from around the globe and from various sectors to share their views.
“I think it’s really crucial, in terms of looking into the future and the development of the future of work and the future of the workplace, to consider the issues which relate to the gig economy,” said Constantin Gurdgiev, world renowned Global Economist, one of the keynote speakers at the Summit.
Terri Gallagher of Gallagher and Consultants, also a panelist at the Summit said that the “new normal” of our workforce is made up of roughly 50% temp talent. She went on to say that It has evolved organically; driven by globalization of the workforce, workers creating their own “job security” via their personal marketability after the Big Recession, market conditions and consumer demand changing on a dime.
As a result of the growing interest in the Future of Work and questions raised at the Summit, CXC Corporate Services have undertaken to create a Future of Work Council and have invited expressions of interest from people and organizations involved in the human capital industry around the world. The Council is a not for profit organization, whose primary focus will be to create an index of best practices to service and empower the mobile global contingent workforce and their employers.
Connor Heaney, MD CXC Corporate Services believes that the Gig Economy poses a huge amount of opportunity for the consumer, providers, and also for the workers themselves. However, there is some debate as to whether the Gig Economy really offers workers true freedom or whether it is just another employment yoke of sorts. It is clear that Companies providing services in the Gig Economy are facing some serious headwinds now and in the future. Currently, they are facing the twin challenges of increased government intervention and also class action litigation form disgruntled workers confused as to their employee status. These headwinds pose serious potential risks from a reputational, legal and financial standpoint for those companies operating in the Gig Economy.
We invite you to click here to view an overview of the Summit.
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Contact us to find out more about how we are helping companies around the globe manage the compliant transition of workers from the Old economy to the Gig Economy.
We are also inviting expressions of interest to join the Future of Work Council from Companies and Thought Leaders working in the Global Human Capital Sector.
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