Workplaces are increasingly "mixed" in the sense that contractors and consultants on hourly rates are working alongside permanent, salaried employees who are, in most cases, usually not eligible for overtime.
On the one hand, there is a benefit in promoting a team environment, where everyone is pulling in the same direction and for the success of the proj...
A great contractor takes initiative, meets deadlines and is pleasant to work with. They're also honest and open about their work hours and budget. When you find a contractor of this caliber, you do everything you can not to lose them; you might even be considering incentivizing him or her by offering them a supervisory role. Without realizing it, you have fallen in love with your contractor and now it's time to take a step back.
L...
Businesses in every sector are moving toward the growing trend of blended workforces, meaning they rely on a combination of workers ranging from full-time employees, contractors and consultants. This approach allows employers to tap into different talent pools previously unavailable to them. It also provides executives with excellent new methods to adapt to changes in their business environment.
Blended workforces are no...
Here's a scenario based on a real situation:
A public-sector client is seeking competitive bids for staffing solutions. In doing so, it considers its own historic rates for existing contractors, heavily weights its bid-rating system toward cost, and states that it is seeking a savings of 35 percent compared to its historic rates.
Managed Service Provider (MSP) 1 promises it can reach a savings of 15% by using a combination of ca...
Goods versus services. Supply versus demand. Economists have been debating these concepts since the days of Adam Smith, the father of modern economics, who proposed his theory of "the invisible hand" — the thinking that self-interest in a free market creates a competition that benefits all of society by keeping prices low and promoting a wide variety of goods and services.
Alfred Marshall, another e...
