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The Contingent Workforce can be defined as a non-traditional or provisional group of workers, also known as freelancers, independent professionals, temporary contract workers, independent contractors or consultants. These workers currently represent a substantial portion of the U.S. workforce, and nearly four out of five employers, in establishments of all sizes and industries, use some form of nontraditional staffing. U.S. DOL

Staffing companies represent a conventional resource of contingent workforce talent, as individuals attempting career independence commonly default to staffing companies for their placement. Staffing companies generally work by charging a fee to the business wishing to engage the consultant on top of the rate that the individual consultant charges.

Businesses could save themselves that higher cost if they were to engage the consultant directly. However, U.S. businesses have had little motivation to alter this supply chain, because engaging contractors without the staffing intermediary has carried significant risks, as the IRS could levy damaging penalties against companies that classified individuals as contractors when they should have been considered employees. Using a Portable Employer of Record (PER) is a way to enable businesses to engage internally located contractors inexpensively and is one way to mitigate risk of IRS reclassification. Many large businesses have also implemented Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) into their Human Resources environment, in order to reduce their dependence on staffing intermediaries.

• The Human Capital Institute
• Bureau of Labor Statistics
• U.S. Department of Labor
• Staffing Industry

• Kelly Services Study
• Human Capital Institute on Contingent Workforce Management
• Consulting Field is Booming
• True Tales of Consulting's Birth

• Vendor Management Systems (VMS)
• Managed Services Provider (MSP)
• Workforce
• Human Capital