Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you are probably familiar with Uber, Lyft, AirBnB, Fiverr and TaskRabbit. These companies have skyrocketed into the stratosphere with business models that pivot around the “gig economy”. What will the future of the labor market look like? Where do you fit in?
But what is the gig economy? Some people may know it by one of its other names. It goes by the “sharing economy”, the “freelance economy”, the “freedom economy” and the “collaborative economy”. Your choice, but all in all it refers to the fastest growing category of workers – and this trend is happening all around the world. These are independent contractors, on-call workers, temporary help agency workers, and workers provided by contract firms.
In 2016 more than a fourth of the U.S. was officially part of the freelance gig economy. Just 2 years later one in three Americans is a freelancer. Some researchers project that half of the working U.S. population will move into the gig economy within the next five years. One article in Forbes indicated that we will be there as early as 2020.
What’s more, about 1 in 12 U.S. households — more than 10 million people — rely on independent work for more than half of their income.
The U.S. isn’t the only place where the gig economy is thriving; the same phenomenon is occurring across the globe. According to a 2018 paper put out by Prudential, in the United Kingdom alone there are an estimated 1.1 million people who are freelance workers. Other sources have estimated that half of the U.K.’s working population will be self-employed in the next five years. The European Union saw a 45 percent increase in the number of independent workers from 2012 to 2013 and the growth trend continues. Freelance workers comprise the fastest growing group in the European Union labor market. India’s independent workforce, the second largest in the world at 15 million, fills about 40 percent of the world’s freelance jobs. And in Russia, volumes of transactions via sharing platforms increased more than 30% from 2017 to 2018 from 392 Bn Russian rubles to 511 Bn., according to Statistica 2019.
Revenues generated from freelancers by Upwork saw a 51.5% increase year over year from 2017 to 2018 with 2017 estimated revenues at US$25.5 million and US$38.5 million in 2018 and profit margins of roughly 50% for both years.
The demographics are spread across a blend of Millennials, Gen Xers, and Baby Boomers. Each has its own reasons for joining the gig economy. Millennials, who are the largest demographic age group in the workforce and make up the largest portion of the gig economy, have largely opted for the lifestyle choice; they like the flexibility it brings to work from home and set one’s own schedule – a value that has been a dominant force for their peer group.
By contrast, gig workers in Gen X and Baby Boomer generations were much more likely to enter into gig work because of circumstances outside of their control. As a result, this then contributed to a general sense of dissatisfaction with their circumstances among Gen X gig workers, who were much more likely to prefer to move back into a traditional, full-time job. But change with the times we must, or risk being left behind.
The Prudential report revealed there is particular concern about the financial implications for Gen Xers as their precarious situation makes it hard to save sufficiently for their retirement. A worrying 63% of Gen X gig workers revealed that they were struggling financially, which is significantly more than those from the other two age groups.
Driving Forces
It may be a misconception, but Uber, Lyft, and other ride-hailing giants and ride-sharing services did not actually kill the taxi business. It was limited access and fare control that did. We need to comprehend the full impacts of globalization and disruptive technologies. It’s clear that Netflix has replaced Blockbuster, Apple and Spotify have dominated the music industry and Amazon has put retailers in numerous industries out of business. But to be clear, technology by itself is not the disruptor; it is not being customer-centric that actually threatens businesses more. We can talk about AI, blockchain, 5G and IoT and all their implications. But we must put into perspective that technology is simply the enabler and globalization simply facilitates these disruptive forces to flow fluidly across borders. And like ocean waves traveling long distances pushed by trade winds with no resistance for thousands of miles, they gain in strength and momentum. Now that we have a globalized economy, where the butterfly effect needs to be considered and accepted as a common occurrence – competition can come from anywhere in the world, and by the time a business becomes aware of a stealth competitor and the changed landscape it may be too late – that tidal wave is upon it without warning.
Therefore business owners, even if they believe they have a unique solution and compelling value proposition, must be humble, efficient with their resources, and take an aggressive, opportunistic and calculating approach to their expansion. And just the same, members of the workforce must be aware and respectful of structural changes to organizations and industries and the pressures to reduce overhead as margins become generally thinner and resources need to be more cost-efficiently allocated.
Crossroads Global Opportunities is taking a closer look at the dynamics of the changing ecosystem and positioned for this emergent business model that will both give a boost to scale ups with their expansion goals and needs and also those workers who knowingly, or unknowingly, will be a part of the gig economy’s tidal wave.
Welcome to the Era of Collaboration
Rather than reinventing the wheel or going headlong into fierce competition, Crossroads Global Opportunities sees collaboration as the key to a buoyant ecosystem. Quality innovators, sophisticated investors, senior executives and anyone who understands the power of trusted relationships and partnering for achieving greater collective goals will do well to align under this paradigm shift that is also a solution for the gig economy. We are pioneering “Success-as-a-Service”.
Crossroads Global Opportunities is building programs that benefit scale up companies seeking low risk, budget-friendly approaches to expansion into new markets and extending penetration as well as the many, yet vetted, intrapreneur and entrepreneur types who want to diversify their sources of income by tapping into their underutilized personal networks and resources. This allows workers to engage completely at-will and according to their own availability and choose one or more organizations with whom they wish to make money together.
Let’s face it – entrepreneurship, while sexy and promises potentially unlimited upside, is riddled with pitfalls and the odds of success are quite low. High risk and high reward, what a wild rollercoaster ride! The Crossroads Global Opportunities program acts as a terrific stepping-stone for up-and-coming entrepreneurs, intrapreneurs, and many others in the ecosystem alike. We are unlocking opportunities that are monetizable – and with low risk and medium to high reward at that, depending upon the engagements and levels of involvement.
Furthermore, Crossroads Global Opportunities offers all involved increased downside protection should economic times slow down. Diversity of sources of income helps maintain a stable base layer should one’s primary source of income become adversely affected.
Low Risk Commitment
If you’re an innovative scale up, a partnership with Crossroads Global Opportunities may very well be a no-brainer. The expectation is to establish a trust-based relationship with medium- to long-term alignment that addresses a critical, ongoing need for your organization. The program is intended to minimize your added fixed costs for the most expensive part of customer acquisition – hunting for new qualified leads. And if you’re concerned about the impact of sales costs on your balance sheet, this program is ideal as well.
If you are trying to get your own entrepreneurial business or pet project off the ground or if you are gainfully employed, underemployed, a part-time worker or just seeking casual extra sources of revenue – the Crossroads Global Opportunities program is a perfect way to channel your personal connections and resources as you choose that fit an organization’s pre-determined set of milestones and goals and turn small but meaningful efforts into extra sources of income. You will make money when the businesses you help make money. Pari passu is the technical term for this, which, in the investing world, means making money at the same time and on equal footing.
All in all, Crossroads Global Opportunities believes that the entire ecosystem stands to get a lift. We are in the business of creating opportunities for the many yet per-screened. The gig economy is a trend that is growing at a fast pace and will soon be bigger than the baby boomer trend. We didn’t create the gig economy, but we are contributing to its solution. All boats rise on a rising tide and we are bringing that tide.
In 2016 more than a fourth of the U.S. was officially part of the freelance gig economy. Just 2 years later one in three Americans is a freelancer. Some researchers project that half of the working U.S. population will move into the gig economy within the next five years. One article in Forbes indicated that we will be there as early as 2020.
What’s more, about 1 in 12 U.S. households — more than 10 million people — rely on independent work for more than half of their income.
The U.S. isn’t the only place where the gig economy is thriving; the same phenomenon is occurring across the globe. According to a 2018 paper put out by Prudential, in the United Kingdom alone there are an estimated 1.1 million people who are freelance workers. Other sources have estimated that half of the U.K.’s working population will be self-employed in the next five years. The European Union saw a 45 percent increase in the number of independent workers from 2012 to 2013 and the growth trend continues. Freelance workers comprise the fastest growing group in the European Union labor market. India’s independent workforce, the second largest in the world at 15 million, fills about 40 percent of the world’s freelance jobs. And in Russia, volumes of transactions via sharing platforms increased more than 30% from 2017 to 2018 from 392 Bn Russian rubles to 511 Bn., according to Statistica 2019.
Revenues generated from freelancers by Upwork saw a 51.5% increase year over year from 2017 to 2018 with 2017 estimated revenues at US$25.5 million and US$38.5 million in 2018 and profit margins of roughly 50% for both years.
The demographics are spread across a blend of Millennials, Gen Xers, and Baby Boomers. Each has its own reasons for joining the gig economy. Millennials, who are the largest demographic age group in the workforce and make up the largest portion of the gig economy, have largely opted for the lifestyle choice; they like the flexibility it brings to work from home and set one’s own schedule – a value that has been a dominant force for their peer group.
By contrast, gig workers in Gen X and Baby Boomer generations were much more likely to enter into gig work because of circumstances outside of their control. As a result, this then contributed to a general sense of dissatisfaction with their circumstances among Gen X gig workers, who were much more likely to prefer to move back into a traditional, full-time job. But change with the times we must, or risk being left behind.
The Prudential report revealed there is particular concern about the financial implications for Gen Xers as their precarious situation makes it hard to save sufficiently for their retirement. A worrying 63% of Gen X gig workers revealed that they were struggling financially, which is significantly more than those from the other two age groups.
Driving Forces
It may be a misconception, but Uber, Lyft, and other ride-hailing giants and ride-sharing services did not actually kill the taxi business. It was limited access and fare control that did. We need to comprehend the full impacts of globalization and disruptive technologies. It’s clear that Netflix has replaced Blockbuster, Apple and Spotify have dominated the music industry and Amazon has put retailers in numerous industries out of business. But to be clear, technology by itself is not the disruptor; it is not being customer-centric that actually threatens businesses more. We can talk about AI, blockchain, 5G and IoT and all their implications. But we must put into perspective that technology is simply the enabler and globalization simply facilitates these disruptive forces to flow fluidly across borders. And like ocean waves traveling long distances pushed by trade winds with no resistance for thousands of miles, they gain in strength and momentum. Now that we have a globalized economy, where the butterfly effect needs to be considered and accepted as a common occurrence – competition can come from anywhere in the world, and by the time a business becomes aware of a stealth competitor and the changed landscape it may be too late – that tidal wave is upon it without warning.
Therefore business owners, even if they believe they have a unique solution and compelling value proposition, must be humble, efficient with their resources, and take an aggressive, opportunistic and calculating approach to their expansion. And just the same, members of the workforce must be aware and respectful of structural changes to organizations and industries and the pressures to reduce overhead as margins become generally thinner and resources need to be more cost-efficiently allocated.
Crossroads Global Opportunities is taking a closer look at the dynamics of the changing ecosystem and positioned for this emergent business model that will both give a boost to scale ups with their expansion goals and needs and also those workers who knowingly, or unknowingly, will be a part of the gig economy’s tidal wave.
Welcome to the Era of Collaboration
Rather than reinventing the wheel or going headlong into fierce competition, Crossroads Global Opportunities sees collaboration as the key to a buoyant ecosystem. Quality innovators, sophisticated investors, senior executives and anyone who understands the power of trusted relationships and partnering for achieving greater collective goals will do well to align under this paradigm shift that is also a solution for the gig economy. We are pioneering “Success-as-a-Service”.
Crossroads Global Opportunities is building programs that benefit scale up companies seeking low risk, budget-friendly approaches to expansion into new markets and extending penetration as well as the many, yet vetted, intrapreneur and entrepreneur types who want to diversify their sources of income by tapping into their underutilized personal networks and resources. This allows workers to engage completely at-will and according to their own availability and choose one or more organizations with whom they wish to make money together.
Let’s face it – entrepreneurship, while sexy and promises potentially unlimited upside, is riddled with pitfalls and the odds of success are quite low. High risk and high reward, what a wild rollercoaster ride! The Crossroads Global Opportunities program acts as a terrific stepping-stone for up-and-coming entrepreneurs, intrapreneurs, and many others in the ecosystem alike. We are unlocking opportunities that are monetizable – and with low risk and medium to high reward at that, depending upon the engagements and levels of involvement.
Furthermore, Crossroads Global Opportunities offers all involved increased downside protection should economic times slow down. Diversity of sources of income helps maintain a stable base layer should one’s primary source of income become adversely affected.
Low Risk Commitment
If you’re an innovative scale up, a partnership with Crossroads Global Opportunities may very well be a no-brainer. The expectation is to establish a trust-based relationship with medium- to long-term alignment that addresses a critical, ongoing need for your organization. The program is intended to minimize your added fixed costs for the most expensive part of customer acquisition – hunting for new qualified leads. And if you’re concerned about the impact of sales costs on your balance sheet, this program is ideal as well.
If you are trying to get your own entrepreneurial business or pet project off the ground or if you are gainfully employed, underemployed, a part-time worker or just seeking casual extra sources of revenue – the Crossroads Global Opportunities program is a perfect way to channel your personal connections and resources as you choose that fit an organization’s pre-determined set of milestones and goals and turn small but meaningful efforts into extra sources of income. You will make money when the businesses you help make money. Pari passu is the technical term for this, which, in the investing world, means making money at the same time and on equal footing.
All in all, Crossroads Global Opportunities believes that the entire ecosystem stands to get a lift. We are in the business of creating opportunities for the many yet per-screened. The gig economy is a trend that is growing at a fast pace and will soon be bigger than the baby boomer trend. We didn’t create the gig economy, but we are contributing to its solution. All boats rise on a rising tide and we are bringing that tide.
