India is the world’s youngest nation and has an economy that is almost continuously changing. Therefore, more and more people are quitting the traditional ‘ladder-climbing’ careers and are deciding to work independently. According to Elance, a website that connects freelancers to projects, India is considered to be the second-biggest player in freelancing after the US these days.
More than that, another popular online freelance service Freelancer.com states that Indians comprise over one-third of their 3 million users. Thus, people from different professions like finance, accounting, management, design and art are taking a ‘leap of faith’ and jumping into freelance work.
Increase In Contract Hiring
Recent statistics show that the US is still the leader when it comes to freelance professionals – with over 53 million people working remotely from home. India’s 15 million freelancers make it the second-largest country in freelancing world and take up 40% of the total freelance jobs offered around the world. In addition, around 1.5 million engineering professionals graduate each year, which makes India one of the biggest producers of well-qualified and skilled specialists in the world.
A significant portion of the 53 million American freelance specialists also work on contracts as consultants for several companies at a time. Nowadays, India has decided to catch up with western countries, and has started to actively search for senior professionals from different industries to work on contract because they can’t afford them on a full-time basis. More than that, Indian professionals have finally realised and accepted the benefits of contract hiring.
Internet Usage And Penetration
During the last 15 years, India has improved its access to internet significantly. It has therefore become the country with the second-highest number of internet users. As a result, the increase in internet usage and penetration has led to the growth and development of the freelancing industry in this country. Additionally, the collaboration of the Indian government with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and Google has made it possible to provide internet connectivity even in remote and rural parts of the country, thereby indirectly and potentially fuelling the development of the freelance economy.
The access to Internet and modern technology has also facilitated the work of freelancers and allowed them to ‘order’ professionally-written CVs and resumes from top-rated resume- and CV-writing services. Before the improvement in internet penetration, most Indian freelancers could only dream about submitting a polished and expert resume which would have definitely boosted their chances of getting a job or a freelance project. Nowadays, applying to the most popular American resume-writing centers and getting a customized CV from Resume Writing Lab and other services has become possible. It is now commonly-used practice among many Indians.
Expanding The Indian Startup System
The startup ecosystem is burgeoning extremely fast in India. It is now the country with the third-highest number of technology driven startups, after the UK and the US. Moreover, the Indian government has decided to launch a few initiatives in order to boost the expansion of Startup India and facilitate the demands for doing business. Such proactive steps for the booming Indian startup ecosystem only demonstrate the rate at which it has been proliferating lately. With venture capital companies and incentives from the Indian government, the country has become a perfect startup community providing favorable conditions for so many freelance professionals.
Indian Women Coming Ahead
Retired professionals, as well as skilled and well-qualified women, offer a great team of prospective freelance professionals. Social factors and family obligations are among the biggest issues that affect women’s ability to work and go out. Even if they have a Master’s or a PhD, many Indian women will give up on their professional careers after marriage.
However, the increased use of smartphones is boosting the involvement of women in professional spheres. Various reports and studies hint that women may be better at freelancing than their men. In fact, it is often argued that female freelancers are more responsive than men and have a better eye for details. So women will definitely play an important role in the future of Indian freelance industry, due to their desires to solve dependency issues and to stay up to date with the latest technology and market trends.
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Featured image used for representative purposes only.