Will cubicles be a distant memory for today's workforce? Will the expense of office space and the tremendous burden of employee benefits be a thing of the past for modern day businesses?
The reality is, for thousands of people, this change has already occurred. Internet based 'Service Auctions' now abound where businesses can post their ongoing jobs or one-time projects to a global market of freelance professionals, a.k.a. - 'Service Providers'.
The service providers then bid on the work, adorn the bid with their 'pitch' and online portfolio and voila! What commonly takes weeks to accomplish and thousands of dollars in payroll and advertising revenue... can take a business as little as a day with no overhead costs at all.
Another advantage to this reverse auction model is the feedback system. Providers are rated by previous buyers who have used their service. Generally a buyer can review a providers resume, portfolio, job history, references AND their feedback reviews with a click of a mouse.
It can be a challenge for new service providers to jump in on these job sites without any previous feedback to grace their bids with the coveted five star rating. But once that first project or two is under their belt, it is absolutely possible to make a successful freelance career via these types of job sites.
Many freelancers have found their best long-term clients from these boards and only utilize the system for a short time. Others use them continually and some work with a team of professionals to juggle the work that they are awarded.
There is no doubt that the Global Work Marketplace is here to stay and is every day expanding. It is a win-win for businesses and workers.
Businesses get the advantage of a global array of workers to choose from. The benefit from harvesting the talent of workers in different states that often isn't available locally. There are tremendous savings from office space, benefits, and HR staff costs etcetera. Often times there are time zone advantages, particularly for internet based businesses that have online chats available to their customers and want those 'manned' 24 hours a day. Or software companies who want to provide technical support 24 hours a day.
For the workers, the number one advantage is working from their home office. Eliminating costs of commuting, wardrobes, lunches, childcare services and more from their budgets is a terrific economic relief. The work arrangement often times has very flexible hours. And being your own boss is the best advantage of all.
People working for themselves on their own terms, in their own homes tend to demand more of their work and deliverables. They hone skills for the sheer pleasure of building their portfolio of skill to potential clients and they tend to think of their client's businesses on a much more professional level. Because their work for the client reflects on their own business, not just the client's they work harder and with more care then the all too typical unhappy cubicle worker will.
About The Author
Lori Redfield is such an online entrepreneur. Intrigued businesses owners can contact her for more information at her business website, http://www.OutsourcingIdeas.com.
Professionals interested in taking their careers online can learn more about how to do so at her website, http://www.FreelanceMom.com.
AP - Democrats are growing impatient with President-elect Barack Obama's refusal to inject himself in the major economic crises confronting the country. Obama has sidestepped some policy questions by saying there is only one president at a time. But the dodge is wearing thin. "He's going to have to be more assertive than he's been," House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank, D-Mass., told consumer advocates Thursday.
AP - A Pakistani militant group apparently used an Indian operative as far back as 2007 to scout targets for the elaborate plot against India's financial capital, authorities said Thursday, a blow to Indian officials who have blamed the deadly attacks entirely on Pakistani extremists.
AP - Desperate U.S. automakers ran into fresh obstacles from skeptical lawmakers Thursday as they appealed with rising urgency and a new dose of humility for a $34 billion bailout. Without help, said one senator, "we're looking at a death sentence."
AP - Blackwater Worldwide guards involved in the deadly 2007 Baghdad shooting of Iraqi civilians could face mandatory 30-year prison sentences under an aggressive anti-drug law being considered as the Justice Department readies indictments, people close to the case said.
AP - With just weeks before President-elect Barack Obama is sworn in, his choice for secretary of state, Hillary Rodham Clinton, is scrambling to reduce massive campaign debt before federal ethics rules prohibit her from doing so.
AP - Erik Estrada has returned to Muncie to take part in overnight police patrols in the city where he starred in the short-lived reality series "Armed & Famous." The former star of the 1970s motorcycle cop drama "CHiPs" is a reserve officer on the Muncie Police Department.
AP - Antonio Pierce and the doctor who treated his New York Giants teammate Plaxico Burress after he accidentally shot himself at a Manhattan nightclub will talk to investigators Friday.
Reuters - The CEOs of General Motors Corp and Chrysler LLC said they would consider restarting talks about a merger during a nearly six-hour congressional grilling on the industry's pleas for $34 billion in government aid.
Reuters - Top U.S. phone company AT&T Inc said it will eliminate 12,000 jobs, or about 4 percent of its workforce, in a fresh wave of cuts to cope with an economic downturn that has exacerbated a decline in traditional phone sales.
Reuters - Central banks in Europe slashed their benchmark interest rates by record amounts on Thursday to fight the global economic crisis, while U.S. automakers pleaded for a bailout to avoid collapse.
Reuters - U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on Thursday Pakistan had given assurances of its commitment to root out terrorism and round up anyone connected to last week's attack in the Indian city of Mumbai.
Reuters - Iraq's Presidency Council has approved a security pact with the United States that paves the way for a complete U.S. troop pullout by the end of 2011, a spokesman for the council said on Thursday.
Reuters - The United States will quickly feel a change in attitude from Moscow if President-elect Barack Obama transforms Washington's policies toward Russia, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said on Thursday.
Reuters - Thailand's revered and influential king missed his traditional birthday eve address due to illness on Thursday, a speech many Thais had hoped would provide short-term relief to the country's intractable political crisis.
Reuters - Hate crimes against Arab Americans have decreased steadily since the September 11 attacks but are still more common than they were before the hijackings, a civil rights group said on Thursday.
AFP - Leading European central banks took historic action Thursday to ward off spreading recessions, slashing their key lending rates to boost businesses and consumers.
AFP - Car bombers killed at least 15 people in a former rebel bastion on Thursday as Iraq's security pact with Washington won final approval before its launch at the end of the month.
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