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Why hire a freelancer rather than a permanent contract (CDI)?
More and more companies are choosing to hire freelancers rather than salaried staff on a permanent contract (CDI, France’s open-ended contract). What are the advantages of this approach? In this article, I explore the reasons why hiring a freelancer can be more advantageous for your company. In France, there are now more than a million freelancers, 92% more than in 2009. This growth is explained in particular by the fact that more and more professions can be practised independently.
With the rise of freelancing, the question of taking on a salaried CDI hire or a freelancer is starting to come up seriously for companies whenever they need to bring someone in: why hire a freelancer rather than a CDI? What are the advantages of hiring a freelancer? When should you bring in a freelancer and when should you hire on a CDI?
That’s what we’ll try to understand today in this new article. Interested? Read on!
Before getting to the heart of the matter, it’s important to start by determining your needs.
Indeed, depending on the type of project, your sector, your company’s economic context or whether or not you want to outsource part of your resources, your hiring choices won’t be the same.
As you can imagine, taking on a salaried hire or bringing in a freelancer won’t give you the same things. Working with a freelancer has both advantages and drawbacks. So you need to weigh up the pros and cons to identify the nature of the company’s need in order to meet it properly. Once your needs are defined, you’ll be able to choose between a CDI hire and a freelancer.
In this article we’ll focus mainly on the advantages of hiring a freelancer rather than a salaried hire, and why.
The difference between a freelance contract and a permanent contract
A freelance contract is generally concluded for a fixed period or for a specific project, whereas a permanent contract commits a full-time staff member for an indefinite period. This fundamental distinction has important implications for companies considering hiring.
Freelance contracts offer companies greater flexibility and freedom. Freelancers can be engaged for short-term projects or specific engagements, allowing companies to adapt quickly to fluctuations in their needs. Permanent contracts, on the other hand, are more restrictive and can be difficult to terminate if the company’s needs change.
Freelancers can bring specific, technical expertise to a project, which can be particularly beneficial for companies that need particular know-how for specific tasks. Conversely, permanent staff may have more generalist skills and may not be as flexible when it comes to working on different types of projects.
Flexibility and freedom with a freelancer
One of the main advantages of hiring a freelancer is the flexibility and freedom it gives you. Freelancers can be engaged to meet needs at a given moment and so help you cope with market fluctuations. This flexibility lets you easily adjust your headcount according to demand.
Freelancers often work autonomously; they’re able to manage their own schedule and organise themselves efficiently. This can save you time and resources by avoiding many of the administrative aspects that come with having a permanent staff member.
For example, if your start-up wants to build its website, you’ll need different kinds of profession: a developer to lay the foundations of the website, a UX Designer and a UI Designer to improve the site’s interface, a traffic manager to run your online promotional campaigns, and so on. A single staff member is unlikely to have all of these different professional skills. In this context, it makes sense to hire different freelancers to build your website.
André Tonic, former CEO of CACD2, a Crédit Agricole subsidiary, explains: ” it’s true that freelancing is very flexible, since the length of the engagement can vary a lot, from one month to sometimes a year. We can easily increase or reduce the number of people depending on our needs over the period. ”
Lower costs with a freelancer
Another important advantage of hiring a freelancer is cost reduction. Unlike permanent staff, freelancers don’t involve high hiring fees, social charges or additional benefits such as paid leave or perks.
Hiring a freelancer means you only pay for the work done, which can lead to significant savings in the long run. They don’t need a dedicated workspace or additional resources.
Specialist expertise with a freelancer
One of the main advantages of hiring a freelancer is the specialist expertise they can bring to your company. Thanks to their experience across different projects and fields, freelancers can bring new ideas and specific skills to your company. They can offer a fresh perspective and expertise that can help your company innovate.
Freelancers are often the most up to date on the latest trends and best practices in their area of expertise. That lets you stay competitive and benefit from the most recent knowledge in your sector. Discover all the benefits of working with a freelancer.
” On some projects, we needed very specific skills that we didn’t have in-house. For example, one engagement required a Jahia CMS developer, another needed a very experienced digital architect, and so on. It also happened that we had the necessary expertise in-house but not enough available resources. For example for Product Owner, front-end developer or designer roles. ” adds André Tonic.
So independent workers can be very useful if the company needs sharp expertise at a given moment, because they can generally be more productive than junior salaried staff, especially if they’re experienced or senior.
How do you choose between a freelancer and a CDI?
You need to ask yourself a few questions:
- What type of work do I need help with? If you need specific skills for one-off tasks or short projects, engaging a freelancer may be the answer.
- Do you need short-term or long-term help? If you have a project lasting a few months that requires an expert, or if you need more resources over a given period, hiring a freelancer may be preferable.
- What’s your budget? In the short term, hiring a freelancer will cost you less than a CDI. In the long term, however, keeping freelancers on isn’t always financially worthwhile.
” The digital freelancing market has grown considerably in recent years. Taking on a freelancer for a very long period can end up costing more than an in-house salaried hire, since you pay them between 400 and 1,000 euros excl. VAT per day depending on whether they’re junior, experienced or senior ” says Mr Tonic.
To conclude, there isn’t necessarily one hiring choice that’s better than another. Your decision depends above all on your needs and expectations.
We do, however, advise you not to exceed 20-25% freelancers overall within the organisation or on a given project, as this risks creating coordination or management problems within the engagement. Also, make sure you properly integrate your freelancers into your company’s professional and social activities, to create genuine immersion and help them thrive.
How do you hire a qualified freelancer?
You’ve made up your mind: you need a freelancer. The next step is to bring them in. Here are our best tips, as a freelance talent agency.
One of the best ways to find a qualified freelancer is to ask your professional contacts for recommendations. They may have worked with freelancers in the past.
Another option is to use online platforms specialising in matching companies with freelancers, as we do at digitags. We coordinate your entire project: we pin down your needs and put forward qualified freelance profiles from our talent hub. You then meet them, and we take care of the admin follow-up, but also, and above all, of the engagement as a whole. digitags is your trusted partner when hiring a freelancer.
In conclusion, hiring a freelancer rather than a permanent staff member offers companies many advantages. Freelancers provide valuable flexibility and freedom, make financial savings possible and bring specialist expertise to your needs.
Let’s talk about your project and find the ideal freelancer for you! Discover the freelance roles at digitags.work or the projects they deliver.
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