Open talent is a concept that is often misconstrued. From the perspective of a consultant, I often thought it was the private sector’s answer to a relatively straightforward problem – sometimes, you need skill sets that you do not have in-house. And, in my understanding at the time, I saw this as simply going out to the open market for a temporary employee. Nothing new. It felt a little like yet another talent term to describe the use of a freelancer.
However, when finally reading Open Talentby John Winsor (and of course, spending the last two years building an HRTech company and then joining Freshminds, both organisations very much leveraging this model), the power of it came into far sharper focus.
What is open talent?
As we’ve seen for years, traditional employment models are giving way to more flexible, dynamic approaches. And, at the forefront of this shift is the rise of open talent. But what exactly is open talent, and why should we be paying it far more attention today?
An open talent model movesbeyond the confines of traditional employment to embrace a wider pool of skilled individuals. This includes freelancers, independent contractors, consultants, and all manner of temporary workers – and tapping their skill sets on an as-needed basis. Importantly, it is a far more agile way of managing your organisation’s skillsets when business needs and strategies are constantly adapting and changing.
Is this not just the gig economy?
While often used interchangeably, open talent and the gig economy are not synonymous. The gig economy refers to short-term, task-based work. Platforms such as Uber and TaskRabbit are prime examples of delivery mechanisms for this type of work. This term has also gained a lot of negative connotations given it has been associated with worker exploitation and job insecurity.
However, the concept itself has some similarities to open talent. Working from project to project is the same – however, it encompasses a much broader spectrum of job types and roles: think of a highly skilled consultant, leading a digital transformation project. Following completion, you employ a change management specialist to roll out the technology change from your open talent marketplace, alongside two fully remote business analysts. This is open talent (and lightly nods at the power of it, too).
Is open talent growing?
The past decade has seen the adoption of the open talent marketplace soar – with a critical swell post-Covid – forced by, of course, necessity.
We’re seeing the likes of Upwork and Fiverr making the engagement and hire of a product designer as easy as a few clicks. Worldwide too - organisations such as Deel have made the management of a global open talent marketplace increasingly streamlined. The proliferation of skilled ecosystems of employee marketplaces has grown exponentially. From agencies managing a virtual bench of engineers for you to an in-house recruiter having access to freelancer platforms, the options now for open talent are far-reaching.
And candidates are reacting. A recent study by Malt notes that 90% of freelancers are not actively looking for an in-house position. More specifically to Freshminds and the roles we manage, for business consultants that number is still high at 88%. Yes, the market may push that number to fluctuate, but broadly, it’s a telling sign that for the freelancer, a portfolio career is something that can be pursued more easily with the options on the table today.
Why should we engage with open talent as a workforce strategy?
The benefits of open talent to me feel a little like the consulting model but amplified. When I used to spend time considering how to appropriately resource a project, key considerations would be outcomes, the length of time it would take to deliver and therefore, what skill sets were required.
In many respects, the benefits of open talent can be felt most poignantly in these scenarios – but imagine instead of a pool of 10 people to choose from, you have thousands.
Whilst open talent can be leveraged by all organisations, we find they hold the most clout in certain industries. Take consulting - an industry that, by all accounts, fluctuates by design. An ex-McKinsey partner once said to me, your bench is your dial-up, dial-down option for your clients and so should exist, but should never be overfilled.
The risk taken with the model is of course that when you hit a tricky period, you have exceptionally high overheads and costs to the business when demand is lower, or projects dry up.
Utilising an open talent ecosystem of partners to identify and increase your headcount temporarily when demand hits a high means the consulting organisation is more resilient to those drops. No need to consider redundancies of permanent staff, but you can still gain the skills you require in the short term. Some consultancies are taking this a step further, finding ways to leverage their alumni – for example, BCG, who look to their own ex-trained employees for temporary ramp-ups.
Our clients agree, too – speaking with a commercial director of a management consultancy, when I asked the question of what he would do differently in the future with his contingent hires, his answer was simple: “Do far, far more of them.”
Key benefits of open talent
So, what are the benefits?
1. Flexibility:The agility it provides to your workforce. Ramping up, and down, at points to suit your goals and outcomes as an organisation, rather than attempting to determine what skills you will require for the next however many years.
2. Cost: Often a misconception, the cost of a temporary contingent hire can often be the same as, or less, than what you’d spend on a permanent employee. The obvious comparator made is the day rate vs. the full-time cost of the employee – but this is a shallow, red-herring comparison. This doesn’t consider the cost of employee benefits, paid time off, re-hiring, or redundancies – all of these costs are very much part of the permanent employee lifecycle.
3. Access to a global talent pool:Whilst we’re seeing more RTO policies across the board, many would argue there will always be skill sets that can be fully remote. Solutions are providing access to global skill sets that you otherwise would not have had the ability to tap.
4. Fresh perspectives:No one can deny the benefits of collaborative, diverse thought. Freelancers often have the interesting differentiator that they will have worked in a multitude of organisations and most likely, industries. It poses the question – what is more powerful? A supply chain manager with FMCG experience in your FMCG organisation, or, a supply chain manager who has seen the challenge you have across 3 different industries? Fresh perspectives, or ways of doing things, is the perfect ingredient to drive innovation.
How can I use open talent more effectively?
While the benefits are clear, the challenges remain. Where do organisations even begin in knowing where to look, or which platform to use? Whilst open talent platforms are readily available and their supply of candidates is ever-growing in quality and quantity, their use is still relatively sporadic, and arguably, not always strategic.
1. Assess: Mapping the skills you require for the outcomes and projects you’re aiming to achieve over the next year is a crucial first step. Organisations can then optimise their skill sets internally through internal rotations and more effectively assess their skills gap.
2. Build your partners and ecosystem: Picking the partners that are most effective for you – from the skillsets they offer, speed, and industry specialisms – and building a partnership network ready and raring to help is key. Having a plan of who to call, and proactively having conversations with your partners, will help you to be more prepared.
3. Risks and foundation setting: Knowing the likely levers of the open talent marketplace that you will pull over the course of the next 6-12 months will mean you can assess the risks and benefits with the different partners. Again, this is a proactive measure to ensure you are acknowledging the finer details – from data security to insurance, to payroll. This goes some way to beginning to formulate a playbook of scenarios, so you are again prepared for the talent marketplace.
The access to open talent and the variety and quality of skill sets it provides, is integral to any forward-thinking organisational strategy. The movement from reactive to proactive engagement with open talent has well and truly begun. We are seeing our clients moving towards a partnership model with various platforms in the open talent marketplace – including Freshminds - and building long-term strategies for how to work with open talent. This shift not only allows businesses to adapt quickly to evolving project needs and access top-tier talent on demand, but it also fosters a culture of agility and innovation – a shift that seems here to stay.
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