A short-term metaphorical ‘Gun for Hire’ could prove an Ace High for business.
April 13, 2018We know the landscape is already changing for the humble sales and business development professional and with future labour markets predicted to be characterised by the prevalence of short-term contract, freelance or ‘gig’ work opposed to permanent jobs, more change is over them-there hills.
With the ‘gig’ economy, instead of a regular permanent wage, sales-people will soon get paid for the gigs they do and the results those yield. This short-term contract arrangement could be for as long as 6 months, a month, or a perhaps just even a day. This trend might make perfect sense for today’s millennials, but it will also enable more experienced and skilled professionals to quit the machine more readily, and with this, feel more empowered. Employers should benefit from the ability to snap up talent as and when they need it and for as long as they need it. To contextualise, in the UK today, it’s estimated that there are at least 5 million people currently working like this already, and this number is widely expected to grow significantly and soon.
‘Don’t Fence me In’
Those in favour say new ways of working may benefit the gig professional or ‘hired gun’ by affording greater flexibly of working from our technology enabled homes. Chuck in broader engagement variety (who wants to pedal the same junk forever right?), and more control over how much time you work, and from where – as you juggle other priorities in our increasingly busy lives – and there’s much to like. Perhaps just enough to counter-balance the potential feeling of inconsistency and perceived reduction in personal stability.
‘The Proposition’
Employers appear cautiously optimistic and keen to explore. They sense an opportunity to hire what they want, when they need it, capitalising on short-term ‘high impact’ commercial growth projects, whilst lowering overheads and avoiding occasional hiring mistakes. ‘Emerging’ and rapidly growing businesses especially appreciate the pros on offer more than most as they could soon afford to consider more entrepreneurial growth strategies as the required resource to support such ambition will become more readily available. Questions on reliability, project delivery, IP risk, dilution of culture (vision, values, practices & beliefs) will factor for sure, but it can work.
So, what does this mean for today’s commercial workforce?
Well, ‘the good, the bad and the ugly’ will smell opportunity! Readily available, adaptable gun(s) for hire who can walk the walk, genuinely impact positively, and within a short space of time, could soon be on the wanted list of many. Short term gigs can be mutually beneficial and financially rewarding to boot (think ‘Fistfuls of dollars’….)
Trying before you buy, swings both ways of course so everyone involved will need to impress. But you sense that ‘gigging’ regularly, or just for spells between more permanent appointments, will present tremendous opportunities for smart commercial candidates to gain wider experience, broaden skills and permit people to better assess and recognise ideal long-term employment career options. Organisations, for their part I suspect, will also prove reluctant to let a magnificent hired gun ride off into the sunset when the gig is done.
Incubate Consulting is the market expert in recruiting Sales, Marketing & Digital professionals in Scotland, across the UK and beyond.
If you would like to talk about ‘Gigging’, hiring interim commercial talent in Scotland or perhaps just reminisce about Spaghetti Westerns, then please contact Neil Brown on
07917 458 066 or email: neilbrown@incubateconsulting.co.uk
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