The JobSync Blog
Hiring Virtual Workers a Big Deal for Small and Medium-sized Companies
September 8, 2011
According to a recent survey by Elance, small and medium-sized businesses are hiring more virtual workers to help their companies remain adaptive and competitive.
Among its many findings, the survey of over 300 U.S.-based companies revealed:
• 73% of such firms are hiring virtual professionals because it gives them the flexibility to scale up and down quickly
• 60% of respondents reported faster hiring times than traditional approaches
• 85% cited cost savings as a benefit to hiring online, but only 30% felt it was their top concern
• 83% of these businesses plan to hire at least 50% of their workers online in the upcoming year
It should be noted that Elance’s online platform skews heavily to employers who are looking to hire people on a contract basis. In fact, 87% of the respondents said that online contractors are a vital part of their business. That being said, hiring virtual workers “in the cloud” is a more robust job market at the moment than the traditional employment sector. The survey found that less than half of companies are planning to add onsite positions in the coming year. On the other hand, 75% of businesses plan on increasing or maintaining the level of spend on hiring online professionals over the next 12 months.
Is this indicative of a trend for larger businesses? Possibly. Bigger companies are always looking for ways to slash costs, and employing telecommuters has long been a frequent consideration. The primary concern hiring managers face for employing such workers is not setting up home offices but finding disciplined workers whose personalities make them a good fit for their operations. And the primary concern for workers is that we are moving toward a contract-based work economy instead of an employee-based work economy.
Regardless, while hiring more virtual workers is not a new idea for many firms, the demanding business climate many companies are confronting may finally give virtual workers their day in the sun. Which means jobseekers may need to keep their heads in the cloud.
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