The Next New Gig Economy is Here
And it’s here to stay….Two Minute Read!
I have a pebble in my shoe.
Let’s start with a very uncomfortable reality about what just happened.
Some people, for sure, that were just laid off by Big Tech, helped build or maybe even did build the products and services that the company still uses to generate income. Income no longer deemed appropriate to employ them.
For that effort they were shown the door, as their services were no longer necessary, leaving behind more Billionaires than before they entered the door.
Now, to be fair, I have blood on my own hands, having been on the side of the desk that does the lay-offs in past management roles. Like these layoffs, those seemed unavoidable and justified. And maybe they were and are.
But, here is what is different this time…
In the past, the immediate action plan was to start looking for next job and maybe pick up some Temp. work to tide things over. For many folks right now, that makes sense and is their course of action.
For many others, and of this I am 100% sure, they ain’t NEVER coming back to work for the Enterprise.
I mean NEVER!
I am quite sure Executive Mgt. teams will either miss this or just not give a shit.
You burned them, Man…They worked their asses off writing code, building software, and launching services needed to support the business and when no longer needed….you said goodbye.
The business cycle is now so short that Mgt. cannot claim that natural or cyclical obsolescence or economic pressures killed those jobs. The folks you just fired built the stuff only months or a few short years ago. They just aren’t needed any more to support the stuff they just built, even though that stuff is still generating revenue and earnings for the shareholders.
And the laid-off peeps are fully aware that they are leaving behind very wealthy executives who are benefiting greatly from their work. While the peeps that built the stuff collect unemployment. I don’t think they are going to forget that anytime soon.
The good news for those laid off is the environment out here has changed.
The Gig Economy they are entering is very different than in past iterations.
This Gig Economy has infrastructure. This Gig Economy has a platform. This Gig Economy has technology and communications systems. The Gig Economy has a Community and it’s own Culture.
This Gig Economy has a digital currency and does not need to rely on the Enterprise’s USD-only means of exchange.
Portable Benefits are partially here and more are coming to support this exploding Market.
Many years from now when nearly all meaningful Enterprise work is produced by highly skilled Gig Workers, I hope we will remember that the Enterprise did this. The Gig Economy, as in all things of this nature, rose up in reaction to Enterprise actions.
I do not hear much noise about this. In fact, most HR folks I talk to on this topic totally disagree with me. They think the Gig Economy is still just a bunch of Temp Workers and Side Hustlers.
And they will be wrong.
The Enterprise will embrace this Gig Economy.
Or not.
Time will tell.
