‘Flexi' work force: a new trend to create more jobs

A G Rao

In today’s competitive business environment, employers are increasingly turning to contract staffing for special projects, workload fluctuations, and staff shortages. As a result, contract placement is becoming a popular career option for many professionals.

With rapidly evolving global economy, it is critical that organizations remain adaptable and responsive to change. To that end, many companies are turning to their contingent workforce to ensure their ability to react in a fast-paced marketplace. Relying on contingent labor as a scalable component of the workforce allows for rapid expansion in times of growth and for quick scaling back as needs wane.

Flexi staff today enables a company to promptly adjust its workforce with seasonal or unforeseen changes in demand. This significantly reduces the time lag between the niche business requirements and creation of new jobs. This even more explains the criticality of contractual jobs. Many job seekers might be reluctant to consider a temporary position; however, for those with a strong resume and right attitude & skills, they need to realize that temping can open many doors for growth and opportunities. As a stepping-stone, to start with the professional career, temporary job is an excellent way to build experience for a new career path. Working temporary for various companies, on myriad projects provides an opportunity to showcase their remarkable talents.

From learning new skills, filling unemployment gaps to proving commitment and demonstrating abilities, temporary jobs offer opportunity to job seekers to put their best foot forward, gain expertise and boost their resumes.

The current job market has changed the employment landscape. As the business environment demands more complex and niche skills, organizations opt to develop a more flexible workforce. Many rely more on external talent or contingent workers – temporary employees, contractors, outsourced workers and consultants – to achieve business goals in a more strategic way resulting in creation of employment opportunities for many.

Flexi staffing enhances companies' competitive strength by enabling them to focus on the core activity of profit generation and to have an access to workers with specialized skills, which also benefit the employee to use his/her, skills for the critical projects of the company. The recruitment of flexi staff with niche, specialized skills has witnessed a tremendous increase leading to a growth in organized flexi staffing.

Flexi staffing is increasingly in demand for companies in different stages of the growth cycle. For companies that are growing rapidly and who need quick augmentation of workforce, flexi staffing presents a very efficient model.

Job seekers are hugely benefited as they get an opportunity to work for major brands on short-term projects and gain experience, which is difficult to crack otherwise. Flexi jobs can help them shape and mold their careers in the way they want.

The fresh graduates and first time job seekers account for a majority of flexi staffing employees at the moment. The entrants benefit from such offers as they not only get employed but also get an opportunity to work for major brands on short-term projects and gain experience.

Women returning to work, post break and retired professionals with niche skill sets also form a part of the industry as they can opt to work for multiple clients and charge a premium for their services.

Today when automation is the buzzword and new skills are in demand, flexi-staffing is a necessity for employment generation and to give a boost to the people who possess the niche and in-demand skills. Further, it takes care of sudden and temporary jump in workload, new-age tech-savvy requirements and such volatile job-market demands.

Further, millennials today find temporary work satisfying and appealing. With shift in priorities, millennial do something they find more enjoyable and what matters to them, as opposed to money as the main focus. The job flexibility allow for work life integration- and temporary jobs are more apt to allow these benefits, making it easier for them to focus on what really matters.

The writer is Group Managing Director, ManpowerGroup India