In today’s business world, business owners no longer need to limit themselves to full-time employees when looking for talent. Often, departments need extra help but can’t justify splashing out on a long-term hire, or perhaps only require additional one-off or seasonal contributions.
Two incredibly popular options among large and small businesses alike are employing freelance and contract workers. Freelancers are a special type of part-time employee usually paid by the job, and often working for multiple companies and clients. Contractors, while also being part-time employees, typically have a higher level of involvement with one company.
Deciding whether to hire a freelancer or a contractor can be tough. In this article, we’ll go over the pros and cons of both, so you can make a more informed choice.
Freelancer: Pros
Cost-Effective
Among the biggest advantages of hiring a freelance worker is that it’s cost-effective. Typically, freelancers are paid per job, rather than by the hour. Because of this, you can be sure that you’re getting your money’s worth. You won’t have to pay for the benefits associated with regular employees, such as paid time off, employee insurance and superannuation contributions. This gives you more leeway for other necessary expenses, including packaged solution insurance and product development for your business.
Because freelancers are generally cheaper than contract workers, they’re ideal for newer companies or businesses working with a tight budget. By hiring freelance employees, you can get specialized work done without having too many full-time workers on your roster.
Increased Flexibility
Working with freelancers provides unparalleled flexibility, even compared to contract workers. While hiring a new employee often involves a high level of commitment, enlisting a freelancer is possible on a project-by-project basis, meaning you can choose exactly the amount of work to give them.
This level of flexibility makes freelancers ideal for irregular work. For instance, you might work with a freelance graphic designer to create your logo, as it’s something you won’t need to do again and again. Hiring freelancers also grants you access to specialized skills you might not have in-house.
Freelancer: Cons
Quality Control Issues
Freelancers allow for plenty of flexibility and are typically cheaper than contract or full-time employees, but this can sometimes lead to quality control issues. With other kinds of employment there’s usually a more rigorous screening process, and you can spend more time on training and development. Because of their transitory nature, this isn’t always possible with freelancers, which sometimes leads to sub-standard work.
Because of these potential quality problems, HR departments can be reluctant to work with freelancers. However, it is possible to boost the quality of freelancers’ work by carefully screening applicants with trial pieces and providing detailed feedback. If you work with the same freelancers over a long timeframe, they’ll get accustomed to your standards and expectations.
Little to No Onboarding Time
Another con of freelance workers is that it’s often impossible to give them a comprehensive onboarding process. A freelancer might work with a business for a single project, so it doesn’t make sense to invest the same resources to train them as you would a regular employee. This can lead to a lack of understanding of your business’ culture and the sort of work you require.
To counteract this, we suggest coming up with a standardized welcome package for each new freelancer you hire. This can include a primer on your company and samples of similar work you want produced. This saves you the time it takes to onboard each new worker while giving them some level of familiarity with your operations and ethos.
Contractor: Pros
More Involvement With the Company
Among the best aspects of working with contractors is that they can feel like a more integrated part of your team. Independent contractors usually stay on for long-term projects, which gives them a chance to familiarize themselves with the work environment and their teammates.
The opportunity for independent workers to be integrated into the business they’re working with has made them a popular choice across many industries. Choosing to work with a contractor gives you more stability than hiring freelancers, while still retaining more flexibility than with full-time employees.
Greater Opportunity for Growth
Because contractors stay around for longer than freelancers, there’s usually a greater opportunity for them to grow within your company. This can give your business a massive human capital advantage.
If you’re looking for someone who can provide ongoing value to your company while still providing some flexibility, you should aim to hire independent contractors. As long as you provide them with the support they need, you’ll have employees who can grow with you.
Contractor: Cons
More Expensive
Typically, working with independent contractors is more expensive than working with freelancers. This is because you’ll often be paying them by the hour. Moreover, you often need to provide them with some of the same benefits as regular employees.
Due to their higher cost, contract workers are a good option if you require help on a longer-term project, or one that requires highly specialized skills or important, timely deliverables from a capable individual you can trust on a relatively regular basis.
Not As Flexible
Besides costing a little more than freelancers, independent contractors also have slightly less flexibility. Usually, businesses hire these employees to work on larger-scale projects or fill bigger roles. This means greater commitment and sometimes set weekly hours.
As a business, you should only hire an independent contractor if you’re sure you have sufficient work to give them. Before making a hiring decision, draft a concrete plan of what they’ll be doing throughout their time with your company to ensure mutual understanding.
Jessica Miller-Merrell is a workplace change agent focused on human resources and talent acquisition. She’s also the founder of Workology (formerly Blogging4Jobs) and can be contacted on X at @jmillermerrell.