10 reasons people want to work remotely, dependent contractors?, how the staffing industry is adopting the human cloud, and more...

Four years ago I hired a virtual assistant which changed the way I lived and worked. After 20 years in big tech I left to focus more of my time advocating for the Talent Economy and the future of work.  This newsletter shares my weekly round-up of the most important stories that educate and inspire people to re-imagine what is possible. I hope you enjoy them!

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The Human Cloud: Insights from GigE 2019 - Are you part of the Human Cloud? The Human Cloud is disrupting everything about the world of work, but it’s uniquely pushing the staffing industry to make some fundamental changes about how candidates are found, trained, and hired.

?The Freelance Revolution

The Freelance Surge is the Industrial Revolution of our time. It's been called the Gig Economy, Freelance Nation, the Rise of the Creative Class, and the e-conomy, with the "e" standing for electronic, entrepreneurial, or perhaps eclectic. Everywhere we look, we can see the U.S. workforce undergoing a massive change.

How the Staffing Industry Is Adapting to the Human Cloud (And Why You Should Too) - When Uber launched its app for the first time, people suddenly had the power to hail a ride with a single tap. Since then, the consumerization of technology has skyrocketed. We use single platforms to have food delivered, find flights and hotels, even hire someone to magically assemble IKEA furniture for us. Tech paved a direct path between consumer and service provider in unprecedented ways.

Opinion: Why not make gig economy workers ‘dependent contractors’? - As the gig economy sweeps through more industries, many of us are benefiting from the extraordinary convenience and lower prices that companies like Uber, Lyft, Door Dash and others provide. But what about the workers?

9 Out of 10 People Are Willing to Earn Less Money to Do More-Meaningful Work - In his introduction to Working, the landmark 1974 oral history of work, Studs Terkel positioned meaning as an equal counterpart to financial compensation in motivating the American worker. “[Work] is about a search…for daily meaning as well as daily bread, for recognition as well as cash, for astonishment rather than torpor,” he wrote. Among those “happy few” he met who truly enjoyed their labors, Terkel noted a common attribute: They had “a meaning to their work over and beyond the reward of the paycheck.”

How the Supply Side Can Help Organizations Adapt to the Talent Economy - The Fourth Industrial Revolution brings a wealth of opportunity. The forces of change are washing over markets and organizations at an unprecedented pace: cyber-physical systems, platforms and ecosystems, the internet of things, and artificial intelligence, just to name a few. In every sector, business operators have their hands full with the opportunities and challenges these changes bring.

Remote work

The importance of remote work as it relates to the broader future of work helps create freedom, in that employees can freely schedule their work time at their own convenience. Also, the good news is employers can save money on recruiting and training costs and reap the benefits of a loyal, actively engaged workforce.

Manager Calculates How Many Thousands She Saves a Year by Working from Home - As employers strive to keep up with the constantly transforming workplace, more and more companies are allowing employees to work from home. While we know remote work greatly benefits parents and cuts down on the environmental impact of commuting to work, one woman did the math on how much cash it was saving her per year. The results are what every employer needs to hear.

Williams-Sonoma Is Hiring Thousands of Remote Workers for the Holidays - Now that we're past Halloween, it's time to start planning for the upcoming holidays. As we contemplate all the gifts to give to friends and family, the new decor to purchase for our homes, and all the delicious dishes to be cooked, we're also thinking about how nice it would be to have some extra cash for the most wonderful time of the year. This season, there actually is a way to make some extra money in the comfort of your own home thanks to Williams-Sonoma.

These are the Top 10 reasons people want to work remotely - They’re not gonna take it: employees want to work from home, and soon, the behind-the-times employees who don’t have a WFH policy aren’t doing to be able to stop them. Consider this: more than one in four U.S. knowledge workers have quit a job because their company didn’t offer flexible or remote work benefits.

These 4 Steps Are Essential to Successfully Managing a Remote Team - Whether it is called flex-time, distributed, or simply "working from home," it's the dream of entrepreneurs to be able to be part of a remote team. For many, their ultimate goal is to be working from a tropical island, drinking out of a coconut as the waves lap gently on the sand. Unfortunately, for most, the perception does not match the reality.

The gig economy hits roadblocks from state-level regulators - Driving the news: New Jersey fined Uber $649 million for years of back-taxes, including $119 million in interest, for allegedly misclassifying its drivers as independent contractors instead of as employees.

After 20 years working at big tech companies like Dell, Amazon and Microsoft I have become an independent freelancer to continue my efforts in driving the conversation forward. I feel privileged and honored to help lead the charge on Staffing.com by Toptal. It’s our job to bring you world-class insights about this dynamic talent economy from top experts and thought leaders in the field. Through case studies, articles, and in-depth reports, we will equip the staffing industry to take advantage of these massive shifts in on-demand talent, distributed teams, and remote work. In addition to serving as Editor-in-chief of Staffing.com, I’m excited to host The Talent Economy Podcast each week. We are here to educate and inspire.