The 9-5 will become obsolete. Here’s how to prepare.

Traditional paperwork and 9-5 jobs are becoming less and less popular every 12 months. Companies have begun to adapt, but employees are the driving force behind this movement.

The Covid-19 pandemic has increased aversion to commuting to work and offices – citing wasted time, fuel expenses and inconvenience in the office. Who wants to wear a sweater all day because the air con won’t stop blowing? These sorts of minor inconveniences add up, affecting well-being, job satisfaction and productivity.

These burdens force employees to conclude that their home is a much higher working environment than the office.

However, not all employers are pleased with this transformation. For now, many corporations are avoiding the return to office (RTO) order, noting that RTO mandates increase worker attrition and make recruiting tougher.

The biggest query they ask is: why pay expensive salaries and advantages if employees are not in the office?

Some corporations select not to do this.

The trend of layoffs continues

As the demand for distant work increases, one other trend has emerged: layoffs.

But this labor market is interesting because many of those layoffs are not due to a lack of labor for employees, but because they are replaced by tools or contractors.

For example, the growth marketing agency I seek the advice of with has laid off 3 of its 20 employees in the last nine weeks. These roles included copywriter, content author and PPC specialist.

All 3 employees were replaced with AI tools.

The CEO and COO decided to replace these employees because of the high costs – $300,000 a 12 months compared to $10,000 for tools. But tools aren’t the only thing that replaces employees. The overall structure of worker remuneration is also changing.

Companies are increasingly selecting to hire independent contractors. They also outsource work to small agencies fairly than employing full-time staff, cutting costs while maintaining a human touch.

This is one other way to reduce overall overhead costs. Many expert employees have embraced this trend and are preparing for the way forward for work. Survey data confirms this thesis.

McKinsey study on independent employees

According to questionnaire accomplished by consulting firm McKinsey, freelance work is booming.

58 million Americans now discover as independent employees. Historically, freelance work was most frequently seen as “side” work, reminiscent of tutoring, driving a taxi, or delivering food. Nowadays, knowledge-based positions are increasingly becoming independent employees.

I have seen agencies and corporations employing data analysts, graphic designers, programmers and other employees on a contract or everlasting basis. This model replaces the W-2 worker requiring additional advantages.

Because if a company cannot force employees to work in the office, it would as well cut some of those costs. In America, medical insurance, 401k. advantages and other standard advantages are expensive. Typical overhead costs range from 35% to 60% above base salary.

A $100,000 annual salary becomes an expense of over $150,000 for any company that gives decent advantages. This significant cost makes full-time employees less attractive compared to modern alternatives. Employees who are attuned to the market or have difficulty finding a job create a different kind of profession path. Many people are turning to small-scale entrepreneurship.

If corporations won’t hire you full-time, it doesn’t suggest your skills aren’t priceless. This means you wish to position yourself barely in a different way to make sure you earn an income.

Here’s how corporations and employees are positioning themselves and adapting to the way forward for work.

How to prepare for the independent employee economy

Both corporations and employees need to prepare – in a different way – for the way forward for work. The way forward for work is leaner corporations that rely on outsourcing greater than ever before.

How corporations should prepare

As a business owner, you should adapt to today’s recruitment challenges. The trend of employees’ reluctance to commute to work, offices and low wages will not go away. This requires diversification of the way we employ staff and work comprehensively with clients.

Here are 4 suggestions for optimizing your freelance hiring.

1. Create a template for contracts and NDAs. This will streamline the onboarding process and protect your organization legally.
2. Create accounts and explore popular freelance marketplaces including UpWork and Fiverr. This will allow you to find talent faster.
3. Create a list of experts you may turn to for the kind of work you wish. An excellent way to do this is to network on skilled platforms like LinkedIn. I currently only hire people I have met locally or through social media.
4. Review and improve your standard operating procedures (SOPs). More leases will mean more training required. By using appropriate SOPs, this process becomes faster and more asynchronous.

How employees should prepare

As a knowledge employee, you should adapt to this difficult job market. The best way to achieve this is to make yourself easily available for projects without having to have a full-time job offer.

Companies will proceed to select cheaper methods compared to full-time employees, especially as artificial intelligence tools improve, and these improvements are happening rapidly.

Here are 4 suggestions to allow you to adjust to the freelance economy.

• Optimize your online presence, including your personal website and social media profiles. This makes it easier to find a specific skill set when your organization needs it.
• Create a portfolio of your works. Traditional CVs won’t help anymore. Make it easy for someone who comes across your name to see your best designs.
• Create content around your skill set. Post on social media once or twice a week about what you are learning or a project you have accomplished. This will allow you to attract opportunities.
• Set a price in advance. This will allow you to negotiate pay rates in your contracts. If you are unsure where to start, you should utilize a easy formula: desired hourly rate + 50%. Multiply this number by the variety of hours you will work on the project to get your total price.

If the overall theme is true, the freelance economy is trending upward. Businesses need to be flexible and profitable; to secure an income, employees must position themselves as experts.

Ultimately, everyone can profit from this recent approach to work – corporations by reducing costs, and employees by positioning themselves as essential.

But only if each side prepare.