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Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, work from home gained more momentum than ever before! And who better for WFH than freelancers?
The COVID 19 scenario brought along a grim employment outlook. However, there is a silver lining for those willing to seize the opportunity. As full-time staff positions dwindle, contract and freelance work are gaining massive momentum. This also includes very technical roles as well as software development, and statistical analysis, among others.
Companies are realising that freelancers can be good for the bottom line. They still need to get work done and are beginning to get a better sense of what a remote, on-demand workforce can accomplish. If companies pay only for vital tasks as they’re needed and are able to choose from a wider range of geographically dispersed workers, they can better manage the bottom line.
The key to survival in the workplace is to adapt. Businesses are finding new ways to get work done during this period of groundbreaking revolution.
It is widely known and proven that a gig economy is profitable for companies. Especially given how they can accommodate a temporary workforce according to customer requirements or business needs. Thus, leading to saving administrative and compliance costs. This framework allows startups and smaller companies to leverage skilled professionals as required. The setup is synergetic and both parties have the liberty to look for options that cater to their needs.
Besides, freelancers need the ability to work effectively as part of a distributed workforce. No matter how long social distancing is going to be the norm, the pandemic has underscored the need for workers to thrive outside of traditional office settings. Many freelancers may have picked this employment model because it seems to offer them the freedom to work anytime and, sometimes, anywhere.
Freelancers are willing and have the ability to take on more tasks because they are incentivized to work hard. Additionally, they aren’t averse to working outside of the normal 9-5 workday.
So, if your business needs someone who can put in long hours of work, look no further than a freelancer. And since the digital workplace is part of the new normal, you can rely on your on-demand hire to work from wherever they are in the world. There’s nothing a freelancer can’t do with a computer and good internet connection.
Possibly the most glitzy segment of freelancing is the supposed creative class. The well connected, well-educated and globalized section of workers that specialize in communications, media, design, art and tech sectors. However, large-size firms in segments like FMCG, education, IT & IT-enabled services, consulting etc. also intend to utilize freelance talent now more than ever.
Ever since COVID-19 came in the picture, companies have realized their dependence on digital solutions. This led them to focus on digitalisation in education, health, finance and other sectors.
IT experts and project managers skilled at AI, machine learning, and big data will be in high demand. Corporates will move forward with smaller workforces, invariably using freelancers across the board.
The rise of freelancing is a crucial visible indicator of the future of work, particularly in terms of collaboration practices. Freelancers are already assisting and enabling the co-management of projects. Soon enough, they will also be creating, communicating, and joining forces with firms, customers, and with India Inc. at large.
A version of this was earlier published here.
Picture credits: Photo by Vlada Karpovich from Pexels
Vanshika Goenka is the CEO & Founder of Kool Kanya, an online career community for women where they can be part of a mutually supportive ecosystem that helps them learn from each other and grow read more...
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I huffed, puffed and panted up the hill, taking many rest breaks along the way. My calf muscles pained, my heart protested, and my breathing became heavy at one stage.
“Let’s turn back,” my husband remarked. We stood at the foot of Shravanbelagola – one of the most revered Jain pilgrimage centres. “We will not climb the hill,” he continued.
My husband and I were vacationing in Karnataka. It was the month of May, and even at the early hour of 8 am in the morning, the sun scorched our backs. After visiting Bangalore and Mysore, we had made a planned stop at this holy site in the Southern part of the state en route to Hosur. Even while planning our vacation, my husband was very excited at the prospect of visiting this place and the 18 m high statue of Lord Gometeshwara, considered one of the world’s tallest free-standing monolithic statues.
What we hadn’t bargained for was there would be 1001 granite steps that needed to be climbed to have a close-up view of this colossal magic three thousand feet above sea level on a hilltop. It would be an understatement to term it as an arduous climb.
Every daughter, no matter how old, yearns to come home to her parents' place - ‘Home’ to us is where we were brought up with great care till marriage served us an eviction notice.
Every year Dugga comes home with her children and stays with her parents for ten days. These ten days are filled with fun and festivity. On the tenth day, everyone gathers to feed her sweets and bids her a teary-eyed adieu. ‘Dugga’ is no one but our Goddess Durga whose annual trip to Earth is scheduled in Autumn. She might be a Goddess to all. But to us, she is the next-door girl who returns home to stay with her parents.
When I was a child, I would cry on the day of Dashami (immersion) and ask Ma, “Why can’t she come again?” My mother would always smile back.
I mouthed the same dialogue as a 23-year-old, who was home for Durga Puja. This time, my mother graced me with a reply. “Durga is fortunate to come home at least once. But many have never been home after marriage.”
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