Most organizations think of freelance employees as difficult employees. But in fact, the growth of freelancing opens up just as many new opportunities for businesses as it does for employees: it can expand your talent pool, empower a mobile workforce, and allow your business to complete projects faster.
Managing freelance employees may not be the same as managing full-time employees. However, effective HR strategies help freelance employees effectively; employers need to understand the common problems that occur when working with freelancers.
When it comes to freelancers, businesses need to manage employees who could be working at a desk or at a coffee shop. Clear and regular communication between the freelance employees and their manager is required for this arrangement to be successful.
If not, both will become frustrated and work that can be done quickly will end up being delayed. In order to avoid communication problems, employers should take certain actions such as setting email protocols in advance, establish a system to recap meetings, and track projects in an easy way for both the company and the freelancer.
When bringing freelance employees onto a collaborative project with full time employees, it’s important to identify everyone’s role in the team. If no one knows who is handling the operational tasks, the work gets delayed. To ensure a positive collaborative environment, managers need to make sure that all members of the team, whether working regular or freelance, know the end goal for their work.
All employees need to know the role they play in a team, as well as the role the other employees play. An effective process for completing all projects takes time and flexibility; managers should be ready to change the project plan when required. Businesses need to maintain company culture when interacting with employees who do not work in-house.
Company culture is important. Especially, when you have the workforce that is split between the office and elsewhere, culture can easily begin to take its own form. As the core of your company’s workforce, managers and HR departments can make a huge impact. HR recruiters should keep culture in mind during the recruitment process.
Don’t only judge freelancers on their skills or portfolio, recruiters should ask questions that measure their cultural fit as well. Create the desired culture through your own actions, behavior, and communication style with freelance employees. Pair your freelancers with the regular employees, add them to business-wide meetings and, if possible, invite them to work at the office during the project.
The freelance workforce is one of the major business trends companies are currently facing. Organizations that use sophisticated HR technology can effectively manage the diverse workforce and work as a whole to meet future business needs.
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