Self-employed, part-time and temporary or external staff are becoming increasingly important in our society. According to a study by Deloitte, a quarter of the Swiss population work full-time or part-time as freelancers. This trend is predicted to grow to 50% in the near future¹. As an international comparison, 44% of the total workforce are external staff².

How can this trend be explained? Globalisation, a lack of skilled labour and demographic development all pave the way for freelancing and part-time work. Employees appreciate the flexibility and freedom, and Generation Z in particular look for self-actualisation and development in leisure time as well as social contact. From the employer’s perspective, the use of external employees leads to increased flexibility on the market as well as lower HR administration workloads and costs. Furthermore, specific and key skills can be brought in when needed. In a study carried out by SAP and Oxford Economics, 68% of those asked stated that external staff are important to very important for the development and optimisation of products and services³.

HR changes demand new approaches

Digital transformation won’t stop even in HR: according to a trend study carried out by St Gallen University and TOP JOB, HR departments are being encouraged to change focal points and tools towards HRM 4.0 - the intelligent connecting of technology, data evaluation and agile HR planning/organisation⁴. At the same time, a FHNW study has shown that HR expectations are changing more towards ‘quality up, costs down’⁵.

New approaches are needed in order to meet these expectations. These include change management with new roles and tasks in HR, such as an equal partner for business and executive management. These changes are often a burden for HR teams. Certain new or additional roles are needed, while others are no longer relevant in the immediate term. Furthermore, specific expertise is required in various forms (operative vs. strategic, junior vs. senior).

HR experts with a large network in a nutshell

In order to successfully master change processes, it’s a good idea to bring HR experts on board in a targeted manner. This can make sense in a range of situations: defining a HR strategy, implementing a change process, introducing new HR software and many more. So your stable on-site HR team can be professionally expanded with special knowledge on specific topics.

You can find more information about our ‘HR experts by the hour’here.

Sources