How to Maximize the Impact of Your Independent Talent

An optimized workforce can produce significant business and competitive advantages in an enterprise. Attracting and engaging high-value independent professionals with in-demand skills offer key strategic opportunities that can effectively move the business forward.

Though the engagement of people with high-value skills is certainly a major benefit, there is more value available in your independent talent network. Independents bring a range of experiences and benefits to their clients due to the nature of their work and the diversity of projects they engage in.

Benefits that Independent Professionals Bring to the Enterprise

Here are five of the extra benefits that high-value independent professionals can offer your team and organization.

Cross-Industry Exposure

Independent professionals often work with a variety of clients across different industries. This exposure gives them insights into various business models, best practices, and innovative approaches.

Unbiased Perspective

As an outsider to their client’s organization, an independent professional can have fresh perspectives on team operation and organizational processes.

Adaptability

Independents are accustomed to quick pivots as they adapt to new environments, technologies, and work cultures. They can quickly learn and adjust to their roles.

Effective Problem-Solving

Independent professionals frequently encounter unique challenges in their work. They are accustomed to tackling diverse issues and finding creative solutions for their clients.

Risk Management

With their project management and contract negotiation experience, independents can have more insight into risk management than other members of your team. Including risk identification and mitigation in their roles can facilitate project execution and delivery.

Leveraging Independent Professionals’ Experience

Consider putting your independent talent in roles where they can use their “extra” skills and experience for additional beneficial impact. For example:

Take advantage of their cross-industry experience

Independent talent can offer the knowledge and insights gained from their diverse experiences. Put them into a consultative role and ask them to contribute to planning activities for process improvement or other change initiatives.

Invite their perspectives

Ask your independent team members for input based on their view of your organization. What may not be optimized, or even not working? Are there opportunities for improving efficiency and productivity? Are there specific issues you are working to solve that they could weigh in on? Invite them to identify opportunities for improvement, suggest changes, and challenge established norms.

Make the most of independents’ adaptability

Find ways that your independent talent can help team members improve their ability to integrate changes swiftly.

Put their problem-solving experience to work

Make space for your independent talent to address issues and challenges creatively. Encourage them to apply lessons learned from other clients to come up with effective solutions.

Request risk reviews

Include risk identification and mitigation strategizing in the roles your independents occupy. Prompt them to proactively note areas that could affect milestone achievements, incur additional costs, or otherwise negatively impact productivity and project outcomes.

The entire range of experience that your independent professionals have acquired contributes to the potential impact that they can have on your team and organization. Keep in mind that you have access to value greater than the technical skillsets for which they were engaged.