The "liquid workforce" and its impact on the creative field — Adapted from my presentation for the AIGA Design Conference in Minneapolis, MN, October 2017

1. October 13, 2017
Jill Stephens
Optimizing
workforce agility
PREPARING FOR
OPPORTUNITY
Jill Stephens
Adapted from my presentation for the AIGA Design Conference in Minneapolis, MN, October 2017
March 2018

2. NEWS AND TRENDS > FREELANCERS March 29
We’re Turning Into a Freelance Nation.
Here’s What That Looks Like.
The
workforce
is changing
Feb 19 ・ 30 min read
“GIG” ECONOMY IS ON THE RISE
08.10.15 | THE FUTURE OF WORK
Here’s Why The Freelancer Economy Is On The Rise
February 13, 2017
The Evolution of the U.S. Workforce
from Solidity to Liquidity
Mar 31, 2016 @ 10:18 AM
Contractors And Temps Were 100% Of JobGrowth In US: And That’s A Good Thing
CRUNCH NETWORK The Freelancer Generation:
Why Startups And Enterprises
Need To Pay Attention

3. A freelance revolution is underway, driven by
market forces and the needs of stakeholders.
Optimizing Capacity for Opportunity Jill Stephens 3
TALENTBUSINESS
$
ECONOMY TECHNOLOGY

4. If the market is bending towards a
freelance economy…
Optimizing Capacity for Opportunity Jill Stephens 4
How might we harness this rising
opportunity and make it easier for
talent and enterprise to accomodate
each other, meet market needs, and
remain competitive
4
?4
What needs to change?

5. The changing talent
environment
First, some context

6. Used to be…
Full-time employment the ticket to security and success
Employer provided all benefits needed
Skills updates required less frequently
6Optimizing Capacity for Opportunity Jill Stephens
In the past, anyone—from accountants to machinists
—could spend their entire careers doing the same job,
using the same skills to support businesses with
largely unchanging goals…
“ — Accenture

7. The future ain’t
what it used to be.“ —Yogi Berra

8. 2015 20252020 2030
Demographics are trending younger.
8Optimizing Capacity for Opportunity Jill Stephens
In 2015, Millennials
replaced Xers as the
dominate share of the
workforce
By 2025, 60M boomers
will have retired…
…about the time Gen
Xers begin to turn 65
and start to retire.
Millennials 75%
of workforce by 2030
…and only 40 million
younger workers will
replace them
Gen Z (born 1996
and later) start to
enter the workforce
in 2018
Sources: US Bureau of Labor Statistics, 10x Management
20 million
worker deficit

9. By 2020, according to one McKinsey study, it is predicted there will
be a shortage of 30-40 million college-educated workers.30-40 million
A talent shortage is on the horizon.
Optimizing Capacity for Opportunity Jill Stephens 9
Sources: McKinsey, Pew Research Center, MAXIS Global Benefits Network
One factor is education. There aren’t
enough people getting advance degrees in
relation to the needs of the market place.
Also a factor: an aging workforce. 10,000
Baby Boomers retire every day, and
there will be fewer younger people to
replace them in the coming years.
Supply
Demand
9

10. 10Optimizing Capacity for Opportunity Jill Stephens
Meanwhile, technology has changed the
way we work. Now, it happens virtually.
And virtually anywhere…
Office
Home
Co-working
Coffee shops/restaurants
Digital workspace

11. virtually anytime…

12. on virtual
platforms.
New technology
makes it easier to
search, source,
vet, and match
talent and
organizations.
12

13. Mix in these economic factors:
13Optimizing Capacity for Opportunity Jill Stephens
And what is the result?
Cost of benefits
Reluctance to hire
Uncertainty
Great Recession
Stagnant wages

14. More freelancers*
Uncertainty Skills gap
34% of workforce in 2015 50% by 2025
* Full-time, part-time or occasional freelancers
Sources: Upwork, Freelancers Union, Medium
More millennials More technology
14Optimizing Capacity for Opportunity Jill Stephens
in numbers too big to ignore

15. 15Optimizing Capacity for Opportunity Jill Stephens
by choice
60% earn more than with
traditional employment.
79% believe freelancing
is better than a typical job.
Mutually beneficial relationship
Talent
Flexibility
Mobility
Control
Enterprise
$$ savings
Skills
More freelancers*
1515
Sources: Upwork, Freelancers Union, Medium

16. What does it all mean?

17. 17
Future employment
Optimizing Capacity for Opportunity Jill Stephens
think “few people will have stable, long-
term employment in the future”
— PwC
60%
Traditional
Nontraditional
Permanent, full time job with one employer
Usually organized around skills, business functions
Independents
Project-based
[ L E S S ] [ M O R E ]

18. …work will increasingly consist of
short-term assignments, and a career
will be composed of a bundle of such
assignments over a lifetime. Today,
this is known as the ‘gig economy.’
“
—The Good Economy

19. AUTOMATION
THE UBERIZATION OF WORK
Fundamental
transformation
Scarcely recognizable
The Future of Work Is On-Demand
FourthIndustrialRevolution
The future
of work
FREELANCE IS THE FUTURE

20. Working with freelancers
So, how do we make it work — now, and as we prepare our
workforce and our businesses for future opportunities?

21. 21
Creative agencies work with a variety of
contingent resources who perform a range
of services
Maybe this time!
Content
development
Design
Production
Brand strategy/development
Naming
Account
management
Business
development
Optimizing Capacity for Opportunity Jill Stephens

22. 22
…and come from various sources
Optimizing Capacity for Opportunity Jill Stephens
…working across the city, country, and globe.
Agencies
• Clients
• Employees
• Alumni
• Other independents
• Peers/colleagues
PlatformsReferrals
• Creative Circle
• The Creative Group/
Robert Half
• Artisan Creative
• Aquent
• 24|Seven
• …
• Behance
• Talenthouse
• WorkingNotWorking
• Fiver
• LinkedIn

23. Success factors
Be compliant
Be intentional
Be clear

24. Only two types of
workers that matter
EMPLOYEE
FT regular employees
PT regular employees
Temporary employees
hired for a limited duration
W-2
INDEPENDENT
CONTRACTOR
Freelancers, ICs,
Consultants
Organizations
1099
BE COMPLIANT — CLASSIFICATION

25. 25
This much is true
Employer makes the call
There are no hard and fast rules
Don’t go it alone
Optimizing Capacity for Opportunity Jill Stephens
BE COMPLIANT — CLASSIFICATION

26. EMPLOYEE vs.
INDEPENDENT
CONTRACTOR
Typically works for one employer
Employer determines work
performed
Control
Free to accept or refuse work
Decides manner and means of
performing work
Largely sets own schedule/hours
Contractor and client agree on
scope and compensation
Salaried or hourly compensation
FT and PT employees
eligible for benefits
Financial
Typically invoices and paid per
project or milestone completion
Continuing relationship as defined Relationship Temporary, per project
20+ Common law factors
Internal Revenue Service
There is no ‘magic’ or set number of factors that ‘makes’ the
worker an employee or an independent contractor, and no one
factor stands alone in making this determination. Also, factors
which are relevant in one situation may not be relevant in another.
“
BE COMPLIANT — CLASSIFICATION

27. 27
Reasons to augment staff
• To scale up to accommodate more work
• Seasonal or cyclical work
• For projects that require specialized skills
that are not needed once the project is
complete
• Planned expansion — before you have the
revenue flow to support FT hires
• To vet potential future employees before
FT hire
Optimizing Capacity for Opportunity Jill Stephens
Contingent workers can meet
swings in demand and reduce the
need for layoffs that lower morale.
BE INTENTIONAL

28. 28
Cost considerations
The “right mix” of traditional and flexible workers will be
different for every organization.
Optimizing Capacity for Opportunity Jill Stephens
Ready to hire another full-time, permanent employee?
WAIT - Keep costs variable and use
contractors to take on more work until
financials targets are reached.
No
OK - Go for it.
YesAre you
consistently
hitting chargeability
and profit margin
targets?
BE INTENTIONAL

29. 29
Finding the right people
Leverage your network
Sign a mutual NDA, then ask
to review and discuss sample work
Check references
Know your criteria
Optimizing Capacity for Opportunity Jill Stephens
Only one unknown quantity at a time:
New client ▶︎ trusted resource
New resource ▶︎ legacy client
BE INTENTIONAL

30. 30
Have an agreement
Provides legal protection and helps establish
independent contractor status
Incorporate salient SOW/MSA terms
with client into IC agreement/PO.
To include:
• Scope of services and deliverables
• Compensation
• Term and termination
• Work ownership
• Confidentiality
• Any other salient terms agreed
to with client
Optimizing Capacity for Opportunity Jill Stephens
BE CLEAR

31. 31
Teamwork
Matrixed organizations and teams; multi-faceted projects
Project management leadership required
Team norming/internal kickoff
Optimizing Capacity for Opportunity Jill Stephens
• Set expectations; review client expectations
• Roles and responsibilities
• Preferred work styles and methods of
communication
• Clear points of contact
“I love working with your firm. The relationship is one
based on mutual respect and a genuine desire to
collaborate as a team.”
“I appreciate the intellectual stimulation and challenge
I get when working with you guys. That’s not always the
the case, especially with straight ‘pass-through clients.’”
— Independent Contractors our
firm regularly hires
Educate staff on the ins and outs of
working with contractors
BE CLEAR

32. 32
Evaluation and feedback
Did the IC’s work meet/exceed
expectations? Was it on time?
Were all parties receptive to
feedback/critique?
Optimizing Capacity for Opportunity Jill Stephens
Did they go beyond?
Bringing vision, expertise and perspective
not considered; challenge you the right way?
Do you trust they are acting in
your best interests?
Remember, it’s mutual.
With experienced, strategic
independent contractors, you’re
paying for their thinking, not time.
BE CLEAR

33. 33
What about clients?
Key imperatives
Put your best team on it
Company is fully accountable and owns all work quality
Optimizing Capacity for Opportunity Jill Stephens
“I don’t get to be in front of clients as much with some of the other firms I work with, and that
makes my job harder. Especially when I eventually do get in front of the client (often to
present a first pass at something) and it’s obvious I’ve missed an important piece of
information that was communicated in my absence.”
Put your highly experienced freelancers
in front of the client — early and often.
Transparency is your best bet.
— Independent Contractor
BE CLEAR

34. Conclusion

35. Know the latest rules and regs, proper
classification, etc. Information is readily
available. But interpreting it is another story.
The pros can help.
Be compliant
Success factors
Have a system. Know when and why you
need to hire contingent workers. Use
consistent processes to vet, onboard,
manage and pay them.
Be intentional
Cleary communicate details and expectations
of the engagement in writing. Have a formal
kickoff process and team norming.
Be clear
Treat your trusted contractors
like a member of the corporate
family and they’ll go the extra
mile for you…and keep
coming back.

36. As the present now
Will later be past
The order is rapidly fading
Technological, cultural, and
generational shifts are
expanding the opportunities
and structural workforce
arrangements.
The Times They Are
a-Changin'
We can foretell some of the
implications, but ultimately,
much of what lies ahead is
uncertain.
The only constant is change.
Tomorrow Never
Knows
When it's time to change
You’ve got to rearrange
Who you are into what you're gonna be
The best preparation for
uncertainty is agility. Who
knows? Change, even the
unexpected kind, can create
possibilities…
Time To Change
1 2 3
Turn off your mind, relax and float downstream
Lay down all thoughts, surrender to the void
That you may see the meaning of within
Key takeaways
— Bob Dylan — Beatles — Raymond Bloodworth, Billy Meshel and Chris Welch

37. 37
References
“People First: The Primacy of People in a Digital Age,” Accenture, 2016.
“The Evolution of Work and How to Thrive in the Contractor Economy,” LinkedIn, March 2017.
“A Labor Market that Works: Connecting Talent with Opportunity int he Digital Age,” McKinsey Global Institute,
June 2015.
“Global Talent Shortage Worries Multinationals More than Revolution or Recession, according to new report from
MAXIS Global Benefits Network,” Business Wire, June 2012.
“Why Is Washington Ignoring the Freelance Economy?” The Atlantic, September 2010.
“Get Ready for Freelancers: How to Prepare Your Company for the Freelance Revolution,” 10x Management, 2017.
“‘Gig' Economy is on the Rise,” Medium, February 2017.
The Good Economy, Roosevelt Institute and Kauffman Foundation, February 2016.
“The Freelance Surge Is the Industrial Revolution of Our Time,” The Atlantic, September 2011.
“The Gig Economy and the Changing Nature of Work,” Living Cities, March 2017.
“Independent Contractor (Self-Employed) or Employee?,” Internal Revenue Service, October 2017.
“Freelancing in America: 2016,” Upwork and Freelancers Union, October 2016.
Optimizing Capacity for Opportunity Jill Stephens
Images in this slide presentation are used under a Creative Commons Attribution, Non-Commercial, No Derivatives license.

38. About
The views and opinions expressed in this
document are meant to stimulate thought
and discussion. Since each organization
and situation has unique requirements and
objectives, these ideas should not be
viewed as professional advice with respect
to your business.
With more than 22 years of experience in UX design, strategic
communications and branding, Jill thrives on the problem solving
nature of her work. At corporate and employer branding firm
Baker Brand Communications, she plays a key role in deal
structuring, brand strategy and development, and studio
practices.
At Baker she’s helped several premier clients from a wide range
of industries including AECOM, Avery Dennison, Booz Allen
Hamilton, UCLA, and Viasat. Jill was previously a practice leader
at an ecommerce developer where she managed the design and
development of Footlocker.com and other brands. She also has
served on the board of the Association of Professional Design
Firms, an international organization of brand, graphic, product,
and digital design firms.
Jill is a proud New Jersey native and a graduate of James
Madison University, located at the foot of the beautiful Blue
Ridge Mountains in Harrisonburg, Virginia. She admits, however,
that she’s partial to the sun, sand, and waves of her present
digs: Santa Monica, California.
Contact
Jill Stephens
VP Strategy and Management
Baker Brand Communications
j.stephens@bakerbrand.com
Twitter: @jillstephens

39. image slide
Thank you
October 13, 2017
Jill Stephens
Twitter: @jillstephens
Jill Stephens