PeoplePerHour.com in the press

November 2, 2007

Xenios Thrasyvoulou, CEO of peopleperhour.com, explains how to find support

There is nothing more frustrating than having 10 or more little jobs that need completing and no time or resources to get them done. They just stay on your “To Do” list and cause disproportionate aggravation.

Outsourcing is the simplest solution to this dilemma. You can be surprised at how many of those little, niggling tasks can now be easily put out to tender to highly skilled or qualified experts to complete on your behalf, whilst staying in complete control.

Take the following as an example.

You are a new business, working round the clock to get off the ground. Resources are naturally tight, and whilst you have the ‘bigger issues’ of getting customers and securing funding, you also have the following to do:

•    Design and build a website
•    Write copy for the site and other marketing collateral
•    Review your Terms & Conditions 
•    Write a press release
•    Compile an electronic data-base of prospects
•    Polish up your business plan and power point presentation

This all too familiar problem has led to the creation of a new phenomenon: online services marketplaces, that match project work like the above with skilled casual labour.

Xenios Thrasyvoulou, founder and CEO of one such marketplace that recently launched in the UK explains “in essence what we are doing is bringing the benefits of out-sourcing to smaller businesses. Traditionally this has not been possible due to the large entry costs which meant that only the larger companies could afford it. Our model uses the web as a direct matching medium therefore making it economical to out-source projects as small as £50 even, or as large as £50,000!”

The way it works is very simple: you simply advertise a project requirement online. This then prompts people with matching skills to quote you for the project. As a ‘Buyer’ you can weigh up your decision based on price, the quality of the quote, credentials and feedback rating through the site.

“It sort of works like an eBay system” adds Thrasyvoulou, “but where the underlying commodity is a service” 

The cost of entry for a small business is zero – advertising the projects on the site is free. And whilst in traditional channels you bear the cost of agency fees, or hefty consultancy fees, here you only pay an agreed price to the service provider.
Data shows that these new online marketplaces are tapping into a highly skilled workforce that has opted to be freelance and self-employed. As a consequence, they are more likely to quote their rates at a fraction of larger organisations, which are carrying the significant overheads that these people do not require. According to a survey carried out by the Equal Opportunities Commission in 2006, over 40% of UK women and 10% of men are making this lifestyle choice by opting for part-time or occasional work patterns, rather than the traditional '9 to 5' regime. So now, there is a growing pool of expertise looking to undertake work at ‘normal’ hourly or project rates.

External link