Increasingly, Companies Use Independent Professionals for Longer Projects

By Canopy Advisory

The 2016 Corporate On-Demand Talent Report is a comprehensive study of corporate use of on-demand talent in a new economy. For this report, Work Market surveyed decision-makers at more than 1,000 U.S. companies. Over the next few posts, we will examine various aspects of this report with a close eye on the interests of our consultants and our business clients. The report states:

Businesses are securing world-class free-agent talent and transforming their operating models. Workers, in turn, are increasingly using specialized skills to pursue the flexibility of an independent career.

Businesses around the country – from tiny garage startups to Fortune 500 titans – have been ramping up their use of “on-demand” professionals to stay competitive in today’s new economy.

One major finding of the report is that on-demand professionals are becoming a critical and strategic part of the modern workforce – not just a short-term solution.

While there is a common misperception that independent professionals are used only sporadically and for small tactical projects, this report suggests otherwise. Nearly half (46 percent) of the companies surveyed use independent professionals for projects lasting more than one year.

Another 13 percent of companies rely on independent professionals for projects lasting six months or longer. Fifteen percent use them for projects lasting three months, 10 percent for projects lasting one month and 16 percent for projects lasting one week.

And these companies seem to be satisfied with the results that they see – with 42 percent of them asking the same talent for assistance with subsequent projects.

Based on this finding, the report concludes that this trend will only continue as more businesses indicate that they will increase their use of an on-demand workforce to “fuel innovation and improve the bottom line.” Next week, we will discuss the finding that “On-demand Is the new normal.”