Simon Townsend wants to build the future. His problem? The world of talent management isn’t moving fast enough. Like many ‘futurists’ and ‘innovators’ before him (the term ‘innovation’ is actually in his job title) he sees a world without the structures, frameworks and barriers that hinder so many organisations and institutions today. A world where work is task based and varied, you drive an Uber on the side, and we look to Africa for our management lessons. So, how do we prepare for these challenges? What role does HR play in the changing world of work?
This week we talked to Simon about why the workforce has fundamentally changed, industries who need to prepare for significant disruption and how the answers to our challenges may lie beyond our boarders.
Why the Contingent Workforce is Growing
The golden handshake
Healthcare
“Age care is going to see some huge disruptions and changes in the coming years as we see a high proportion of the population enter retirement age and further. The way people are wanting to be cared for is changing, and so other industries will have to keep up. More and more we’re seeing people wanting to stay in their homes for longer, we’ll see technology aid in that and there will be a knock on effect. Many organisations will be looking at how to profit in this area and so will push innovation and the way in which people in the healthcare industry work.”
Finding New Ways of Working
Emerging markets
“In emerging markets, Latin America, Africa, we’re seeing a push towards a way of working that bypasses what has been traditionally done in the developed world.”
“When you look at Africa, and the way people are accepting payments on mobile etc. you see that they’re looking at what’s happening in the developed world and replicating it quickly; but then they are building on that.”
They’re building their markets on the trends that are shaping the world now, rather than going through the last 100 years of corporate baggage.
“What we’re going to see as a result is more and more new and exciting ways of working coming out of Africa, Latin America and China and we will need to be more open minded and able to pick up the best elements. We in the West aren’t used to that. We’re used to being seen as leading these areas, but because of all the traditions, history and encumberments we have, we’re not as agile or nimble as we could be.”
Think global; Act local.
“As an organisation Allegis knows that we need to have the ability to share what we learn from all labour markets. We know how important it is to know what’s happening in both emerging and established markets. Our footprint enables us to pick up best practice, and apply it to clients on the other side of the world. From a globalisation perspective, ‘think global; act local’ is something that we’re bringing to our clients. We run pilots with a client and analyse the results of trials, but it means that once we’ve tested it out with three clients over three different industries we know exactly what’s going to work. Then we have the ability to slip these solutions into a new geography or new client really quickly.”
To learn how you can start preparing for the future, and building the workforce of 2020, join Simon at #CWF15 in Sydney on 22-23 September. Simon will be joined by Kevin Wheeler and Peter Oreb who will discuss the changes organisations need to make today, to build the workforce of tomorrow. To participate, register your ticket for the event here.
Simon Townsend is a Design Thinking expert with over 15 years of experience in Human Capital. He has worked with prominent companies like Deloitte, Allegis Global Solutions, AWS, and Innov8te.
Simon Townsend co-founded TCS Insights, a platform that helps talent acquisition leaders assess, benchmark, and improve their team’s traits, competencies, and skills.
Simon is passionate about empowering people to shape the future and creating a positive impact through design thinking.
2 Responses to “Rise of the Planet of the Freelancer”
Art Koff
A quote from the Bureau of Labor Statistics
By 2019 the self employed will represent 40% of all American workers.
This certainly supports this article’s content regarding a contingency workforce and more employers using freelancers where they do not have to pay benefits and can more easily both on-board and off-board workers.
A quote from the Bureau of Labor Statistics
By 2019 the self employed will represent 40% of all American workers.
This certainly supports this article’s content regarding a contingency workforce and more employers using freelancers where they do not have to pay benefits and can more easily both on-board and off-board workers.
A quote from the Bureau of Labor Statistics
By 2019 the self employed will represent 40% of all American workers.
This certainly supports this article’s content regarding a contingency workforce and more employers using freelancers where they do not have to pay benefits and can more easily both on-board and off-board workers.
A quote from the Bureau of Labor Statistics
By 2019 the self employed will represent 40% of all American workers.
This certainly supports this article’s content regarding a contingency workforce and more employers using freelancers where they do not have to pay benefits and can more easily both on-board and off-board workers.