A few weeks ago, we wrote about the news that Upwork, a global provider of online staffing (and freelance talent marketplace), filed its initial paper work to offer an IPO. In that article, we highlighted what this news meant for the Upwork platform, as well as its ramifications across the entire digital staffing industry. Ardent’s upcoming State of Contingent Workforce Management research study (more news to come!) has discovered that the utilization of online and digital staffing providers has increased TIMES over the last three years. And, this new research study also finds that nearly 70% of businesses cite these dynamic sources of talent as a major catalyst in how work is done.
We had the opportunity to chat with Upwork’s Senior Vice President of Marketing, Rich Pearson, while he was live on the NASDAQ floor:
Christopher Dwyer: Congratulations on such a major milestone! Why was now the time to offer an IPO?
Rich Pearson: Thank you very much. Our decision to go public was pretty simple: we have the growth, scale, and predictability necessary to be a strong public company. As more companies seek to engage a flexible workforce, we believe the brand awareness from this milestone will help Upwork reach more companies, particularly large, enterprise ones.
CD: Upwork is often considered the largest on-demand talent marketplace in the world. How does this fit into the company’s plans for the future?
RP: Today is just the beginning of our next chapter and helps cement our leadership in creating a more positive future of work. We will continue to focus on providing our clients with access to quality freelance talent across 70 categories, unmatched speed of hiring and significant cost savings compared to hiring locally or using traditional staffing firms. There’s a big opportunity for Upwork to change the traditional ways of working that have been around for hundreds of years. When you calculate all professional services that could be performed remotely in 2017, it represents nearly $560B in gross services volume.
CD: Digital/online staffing has become the biggest disruptor in the world of work; how do you feel Upwork has contributed to that?
RP: As the biggest online global website for freelancers, Upwork has made a big contribution to this disruption. But we’re far from done. We will continue to provide businesses of all sizes with access to a growing pool of high-skilled knowledge workers. As more companies realize that their ability to compete requires them to hire the best talent, not just the talent within commuting distance, this disruption will continue. Fifty-seven million Americans freelanced last year, and many of them are regularly retraining themselves to learn new skills to fill the gaps in today’s labor market.
CD: Upwork’s “Program Owner Experience” is another step in making it easier for larger-scale, enterprise-sized business to harness the power of online and digital staffing. Is this going to be a focus for you in the months ahead given today’s news?
RP: Yes, we believe there is a significant opportunity to introduce this new way of working to larger enterprise businesses; more than 30% of the Fortune 500 hire on Upwork today. We expect to make significant future investments to develop and expand our business, including enhancing our Upwork Enterprise offering.
CD: Do you think that the business world is finally starting to see some of the benefits of the “Gig Economy” movement?
RP: The “Gig Economy” is a broad term that covers many different work models and skill levels. We consider ourselves part of the “Freelance Economy,” in which both short-term and longer-term projects requiring highly-skilled knowledge work happen via Upwork. We’re starting to see a tipping point. Companies are realizing that legacy models of work are inefficient and are exploring alternatives to traditional staffing. Nine in ten hiring managers are open to hiring freelancers rather than temporary workers through a staffing firm, according to our 2018 Future Workforce Report.
CD: You’re the first provider in this space to file an IPO. Do you believe that this news will help business leaders think a little bit different about their non-employee workforce?
RP: Business leaders already realize that they need to change their approach in building their non-employee workforce. According to Future Workforce Report, nearly 60 percent of hiring managers are utilizing flexible talent, up 24% from last year. Today’s milestone will help us reach more business leaders and provide them with a solution to gain an advantage in an increasingly competitive talent market.
CD: How do you think Upwork’s public offering will affect other providers in this industry? Do you think we’ll see others follow suit?
RP: While I can’t comment on what actions others will take, I do think this milestone sends a signal that the freelance economy is not a consumer-fad, but a workforce shift that’s here to stay.
CD: I’ve often said that innovation from the talent acquisition/talent engagement is the foundation for the Future of Work. Would you agree?
RP: Absolutely. Companies understand that innovation is critical to their survival in an increasingly competitive global market. The main source of innovation is talent, and, if your talent acquisition and engagement strategy provides access to the entire workforce – not just full-time employees within commuting distance of your office – you’ve just increased your organization’s chances of success.
Be sure to join Ardent’s Andrew Bartolini and Christopher J. Dwyer on Thursday, October 25 (2pm ET) for a complimentary webinar that will highlight how a more strategic approach to category management can help sourcing teams deliver greater value to the enterprise.
Click here to register.
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Tagged in: Christopher Dwyer, Complex Categories, Contingent Workforce, Innovation, People, Process, Solution Providers, Strategy, Technology
