The Pros And Cons Of A Contingent Workforce

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Throughout my report I will seek to investigate the pros and cons of operating a contingent workforce. I will look at how it affects the landscape of an organisation and the impacts it has on retaining a competitive advantage. I will also look at whether it is best practice from a Human Resource (HR) point of view and how HR can best manage to retain the knowledge these individuals have and are given while working with an organisation.

A contingent workforce can be defined as
‘Is a provisional group of workers who work for an organization on a non-permanent basis, also known as freelancers, independent professionals, temporary contract workers, independent contractors or consultants.’ Wikipedia

Contingent workers are no longer viewed as just ‘temporary workers’ who are used to back fill permanent employees, or brought in during busy periods in different industries. They are now viewed as skilled individuals with a wide range of transferable skills who can diversify and adapt their skill set depending on the industry they are placed in. This is also viewed favourably by Human Resource professionals who look at a contingent workforce benefiting the overall strategic goals of an organisation.
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These situations (although not always the case) pose a threat to both the companies competitive advantages and the strategic goals of an organisation. It is then crucial that the correct hiring processes and requirements are set out by the HR department before the hiring processes begin, it also removes the impression that contingent workers are brought in to offset some of the fallings in the initial recruitment