When a company seeks to outsource a project, it can utilize a talent platform to find a capable freelancer/contractor. However, bigger companies frequently look to fill teams with a large group of freelancers, which some of these technologies are not equipped for. Furthermore, some platform companies may not cover the entire hiring, administration and payment process, but instead need to be utilized in tandem with other tools (see Research Report, page 8).
This is where Worksome, a freelance talent platform started in Copenhagen, Denmark, saw a need. Worksome focuses on companies that work with 50 to 500 freelancers/contractors at a time. The company’s main value proposition is that it’s an all-in-one platform for managing and paying a global contractor workforce. According to co-founder and COO Mathias Linnemann, Worksome enables companies to “consolidate their entire global external workforce in one central platform, mapping their skills and capabilities, as well as allowing ‘one-click hiring,’ full worker classification, tax compliance and fast international and domestic payments.”
Worksome uses a two-step proprietary process for matching candidates to project needs. In the first step, the company’s AI assesses applicants’ skills, work history, social media profiles and pay rates to decide whether they are a good fit for Worksome clients. A key benefit is that its algorithms aim to remove bias with regard to race, gender or any other protected characteristics. In step two, freelancers who passed through step one with a score of 85% or better are reviewed manually by internal talent specialists, who decline or approve the freelancers.
The freelancers in Worksome’s marketplace specialize in “knowledge-intensive and/or creative areas” such as developers, engineers, photographers, project managers and digital marketing experts. Companies can view profiles containing individuals’ competencies, pay rates, reviews, and related skills and experience. Freelancers submit bids on jobs/projects on the platform. According to Worksome, companies receive an average of five bids from relevant profiles within the first 24 hours of posting a job.
Linnemann refers to Worksome as a “hybrid of the traditional vendor management system, freelance management system and talent pool platform.” The company is gaining traction with large clients who in the past have utilized legacy IT systems like VMS for freelance management, and it is challenging brands like SAP Fieldglass and Beeline. The company’s biggest markets are the UK and the US, and it is seeking to expand in the US and Europe.
It’s worth considering the impact of Covid-19 on such a platform. Worksome initially specialized in on-site work, but saw its remote and hybrid on-site/remote jobs increase when the pandemic began. The company has grown tenfold since January 2020 (and in summer 2021 expects to hit $100 million in annualized bookings). Regardless of what work arrangements might exist post-Covid, the company believes the elevated demand for flexible talent will continue.
The Buzz
In the remote/on-site reality we anticipate going forward, all-in-one talent platforms like Worksome are bringing innovations to the staffing industry that achieve more efficiency and effectiveness in finding and managing groups of freelance talent.
