The Gig Economy Grows

An article this week in Human Resources Online shares some data showing that a growing number of professionals in Singapore are open to contract work. The headline might give the impression that more Singaporeans are looking for contract work as opposed to full-time. Reading the article, though, it is more the case that people who are out of work for an extended time are ready to take contract work rather than holding out for a full-time role. That might not sound too surprising to people in The US and other places where free-agent work is more common among professionals, but in Southeast Asia (especially Singapore) that represents a pretty big change.

While many Singaporeans do tend to move around between jobs quite a bit, older professionals often prefer a higher degree of job security, especially if they are married with children or are responsible for their parents. The fact that they are more willing to take a contract role now suggests they have bumped up against the reality of extended unemployment, and are facing situations where it’s a contract role or no role, and the contract role has gotten more attractive.

That can be very useful for employers in Singapore, not so much to have a workforce filled with nothing but free agents, but instead to have on-demand talent as you go through changes or a rapid expansion into new products or new markets. You may not feel comfortable hiring full-timers while you are going through changes, so you may want to bring people in on contract, and then once you know what staffing you’ll ultimately need, look at those contract employees and see who should stay on full-time (remember, these folks aren’t necessarily free agents because they want to be, but because they need> to be; one of the things they look for in a contract gig is the possibility of going into a permanent role).

So there are new opportunities for employers in Singapore to make good use of free agents, with an eye toward building up your permanent staff over time. Experienced professionals are willing to work in a way that before now was more the realm of fresh graduates trying to figure out what they want to do. Can you, as a leader, make good use of that experience?