Meaningful and effective recruitment is one of the most key areas of a company. Especially above a certain size, it is important for the employees in the so-called “Human Resource” (HR) to state the exact requirements for potential employees.
Not so long ago, personnel acquisition looked quite different. The lack of widespread digitization and the possibility of working remotely limited the entire approach to hiring employees. In addition, there was still a substantial proportion of HR management that had little to do with digital recruiting. This has now changed significantly.
HR managers were almost forced to seek contact with potential employees via other channels. In personnel management, however, there is nevertheless an apparent rethinking taking place. According to StepStone, 84% of HR professionals agreed that digital skills are becoming important in recruiting.
Especially, professions in the IT industry are used to not only working remotely, but also handling the entire application process digitally. One occupational group that lends itself particularly well to this is that of freelancers.
Why Hire Freelancers remotely?
For a long time, freelancers were used when permanent employees were prevented from working or projects exceeded the capacities of a company. In the meantime, however, studies have shown that the employment of freelancers also brings advantages in the normal workday without any problems.
Experience and Knowledge
Freelancers are true experts in their field due to their constant focus on a specific area of expertise. Changing tasks and customers bring a lot of experience in a brief time and ensure that in the best case only a short training period takes place in the project. In addition, they do not fall prey to the usual and dreaded operational blindness but have a fresh and uncluttered overview to create solutions.
Flexibility
Unlike with permanent employees, as a company you only pay when you really need the service. As soon as the project is finished, the collaboration also ends and there is no imbalance in the event of a poor order situation. In general, flexible workers are a valuable asset, especially in the IT industry. Nevertheless, many permanent employees still work the usual 9-5, although it has long been proven that productivity does not suffer under flexible working hours. In most cases, freelancers work with deadlines and are thus not bound to any working hours. The result counts and that is what they are measured by.
Cost Advantages
All the points mentioned so far, produce a saving in time and money. This is because HR managers often have a specific budget that is allocated to projects. Any financial savings are welcome – ideally accompanied by the same or improved performance. Freelancers are paid for a certain period, usually by the hour. Costs for office supplies and workspace are not incurred in most cases either. Long-term (financial) commitments are rare.
But finding the best freelancers is often not that easy. At ElevateX we know exactly what matters and focus on personal relationships to make your project a success. Just contact us here!
But you can pick up a few tips on how to work successfully with freelancers even before that.
Why Should I Hire Remotely?
Global Active
For a long time, potential employees were strongly tied to their future place of work. Interviews largely took place on site. As you can imagine, this limits the pool of people for whom the journey is too far. Just 3 years ago, 3.4 million people in the U.S. alone moved to the country just for the job.
So, it’s only a logical step to expand this pool and search for employees remotely. This way, there are no local limits and you can focus entirely on quality. On the other hand, motivation and thus work performance can increase significantly if employees can live at their preferred workplace.
Diversity
Many companies want more diverse staffing. Variable hiring criteria are favoured by remote recruiting. Especially people with physical limitations, who have a tough time working “traditionally”, get a chance to prove their abilities with equal opportunities.
Potential Problems With Remote Hiring
No Personal Contact
Video calls have many advantages, but the screen does not give you the full picture. You have heard it before – colleagues you’ve only known through calls suddenly seem completely different when you meet them in person. And if it’s really banal things like body size. It’s no different with job applicants. Body language, handshakes or a short small talk, all of that falls away. All of these factors can make a colleague or employee seem likeable or unlikeable.
Also, showing the potential workplace is simply different via video.
Lack of Team Feedback
Admittedly, even at the IRL interview, colleagues do not sit in the personnel office and look over your shoulder during the interview. Nevertheless, if the interview is promising, it is not far to introduce the colleagues and then obtain feedback on the first impression. The assessment of suitability must be made in dialog and/or in time-intensive second interviews.
Inreased Effort
If you make the job ad available online and search the international market, you potentially must be prepared for an above-average number of applications from all over the world. There is a significant amount of additional work involved in dealing with the inquiries. But even if an initial selection has taken place, you will find a different salary structure, tax systems or other legal rapids in different countries or continents.
5 Practical Tips to Hire Freelancers Remotely
Set Framework Data
Remote recruiting offers global opportunities. To avoid drowning in applications, it is advisable to specify certain factors such as age, place of residence or language in advance. This way, the search can be adjusted and simplified accordingly.
Set Expectations
The same applies to the expectations of the freelancer as to the framework data. Qualifications, experience, the role in the team, the task or project duration should be clear before hiring and only marginally adjusted. In order to find a suitable candidate right away, this information can also be summarized in a classic job description.
Interview Correctly
Especially if video call conversations were uncommon in HR before the pandemic, the shift to remote recruitment can be inhibiting. To still give the candidate a sense of a professional work environment, give a sense of the company’s philosophy. Talk to them about the office, events, team meetings and other topics that will give the candidate a picture of your company.
If there are several interviews, it is a clever idea to include other team members in the call and thus get to know the team.
Fair Payment
If you are looking for employees globally, you also must compete globally. A below-average salary is not compensated by free fruit or a table soccer. Prior research into the country-specific salary structure is urgently required in order to make a good and, above all, appropriate offer in the negotiations. Many companies therefore limit their search to one region or continent to maintain an overview and hire in a time-effective manner.
Search Experts
Despite all the tips, finding the right freelancer for your project can be very confusing. The market is big and there are many freelancers who do not deliver what they promise. So it is advisable to get professional help right from the start. We can help you find the perfect freelancer according to your wishes. At ElevateX, we have many years of experience working with freelancers and know exactly what matters.
If you want to receive more information, send us a message.
Here you can find an explanatory video.
Conclusion
Digital affinity in HR has increased since the pandemic, and remote recruitment has found its way into HR management. Particularly in the IT sector, many job applicants value flexible hiring and local independence. Many in this field work as freelancers and thus also relieve companies independently of fixed projects. Remote hiring opens the global market for your company. Lack of personal contact with the applicant is often still unfamiliar. This makes it more important to give the applicant a feeling for the company’s philosophy and working methods despite the physical distance. Precise expectations of the cooperation are essential. It is also advisable to set precise criteria and requirements for applicants. This avoids too many applications with no return.
