Harrison Finch’s Post

Timesheets – Can we strike the balance between creative freedom and billability? This article reflects the exact discussion we had at Meijer + Walters the other day. Writing timesheets. How do we do that? What is client time? And what do I do when I lose time to well, uh, you know, things? 🤔 As a business owner, I understand that we need to track time one way or another. It’s essential for running an agency with projects and budgets. It also simplifies conversations with our bookkeeper. As a creative, I totally feel the stress of being scheduled for a specific amount of time and not knowing if I can deliver the expected quality. And what do I do with the roaming hours spent finding inspiration, procrastinating, or not getting it right in one go? This article from It's Nice That, "POV: Timesheets are hated by creatives – so why have we enforced them?", dives deep into this issue, discussing how time tracking, while necessary, often feels counterintuitive to the creative process. Here are some key takeaways: 1️⃣ It’s a challenge to align structured processes with the nonlinear nature of creativity. 2️⃣ Timesheets often fail to capture the true nature of creative work, leading to inaccuracies. 3️⃣ Focusing on milestones rather than hourly tracking could offer more flexibility. 4️⃣ Current time-tracking tools may not suit the creative industry well. 5️⃣ Despite flaws, timesheets help justify pricing models and communicate effort to clients. Do I have a clear solution? Not really. There’s no one-size-fits-all formula. But let’s keep trying and be as specific as possible until the next discussion about tracking time comes up. Maybe we’ll learn something about it in the meantime.

The biggest “hidden” cost to your business.... Look at most P&L’s outside of manufacturing and more often than not, salaries and wages are the biggest cost (or as us Evolverians like to think about it, investment). How do you ensure you are capturing the most value out of this “investment”? Even more importantly for smaller businesses and founders, are you factoring the cost of your own time in terms of how you build your team and scale your business? I met a founder the other day who has been contemplating whether they should get admin assistance as they take that first leap to scale. While this is an added cost, we spoke about how much the admin is really costing her business using her hourly rate and how much it might be costing in terms of loss of potential business because she is having to do her own admin. It doesn’t stop at admin. This week we met with a web developer for the Evolvere website. I had been told it's easy to build a website on Wordpress and I thought it could be a great creative outlet for me to do the website myself. But then I reflected and this would not be the best use of my time. It would take a lot longer to build, distract me from our core business, the end result would likely not be at the level I want, and it would end up being an expensive website from an opportunity cost perspective. Having the right people in the right role, focussed on the right activities, is key to cost optimisation and also employee engagement. Knowing what each persons core role is AND isn't, is also key. There are many tools and fractional services available for businesses to scale their teams and business efficiently and effectively. Reach out if you would like to know more! #founders #transformation

There’s a vast salary range for UX Leads this year, all of which comes down to experience and location. Learn how to attract the right talent or advance your career in our 2024 Salary Guide. Download the guide with the link in our comments. 🔗 #2024salaryguide #salaryguide #uxjobs #uxlead

Think of us (independent workers) as rare Pokemon cards: we're valuable, we offer special skills, and you might not need to use us in every battle, but you definitely want to have us at the ready. ------------------------- In 2020 everyone was wondering "How will COVID affect the work place going forward?" We talked of "new normals" and we anticipated more hand sanitizer around the office and maybe more access to fresh air. We talked about how the physical layout of the office would change and the fact that we'd be using Teams more. But not a lot of people talked about how our perception of a career would change. Or how our perception of a team would change. I'm turning 30 next month. I exist in a unique age range where I look at those older than me and look at those younger than me and see two very different ways of life. My age group is probably the last group that will accept the traditional role of going into an office every day, sitting at that desk, tying one's life to the will of a corporate entity. But it's not just Gen Z who is craving autonomy and flexibility. It's anyone who is a caregiver. It's anyone who can't live in the city and doesn't want to commute 90 minutes each morning to get there. It's anyone who was laid off and had to rely on themselves for employment. It's anyone struggling with mental health, whose needs don't fit the Henry Ford 40-hour work week. The world is seeing more independent workers because so many people learned they can't be dependent on anyone else to give them the life they want and need. Firm Leaders - Your team should be a roster of individuals you trust, not just people you provide health insurance to.

🏢Architects: Independent workers will make up 35% to 40% of the global workforce in 2025. What about firms? This shift reshapes how work gets done across industries, and architecture is no exception. In architecture, project-based work has always been the norm. But now, highly skilled professionals are increasingly choosing the flexibility and autonomy of freelance work over traditional employment. Companies like Johnson & Johnson and Salesforce are already integrating freelancers into their teams, recognizing the value they bring in terms of specialized expertise and fresh perspectives. For architecture firms, this trend presents both opportunities and challenges. Embracing a blended workforce can drive innovation and agility, but it also requires new management strategies to ensure collaboration and maintain a cohesive company culture. This evolution goes beyond typical gig work. Take my own experience as a fractional COO, for example. In this role, I help firms streamline operations, innovate processes, and adapt to changing market demands—all while maintaining the flexibility that today's professionals crave. It's a perfect example of how high-level, strategic roles are becoming more common in the freelance landscape. This evolution is a little different than when the gig economy first emerged. ⇒ 38% of the U.S. workforce were freelancers in 2023, with a significant portion earning over $150,000 annually. ⇒ 52% of Gen Z and 43% of Millennials worked as freelancers in 2023. ⇒ Job-matching platforms make connecting skilled freelancers with employers' needs more accessible. How can architecture firms adapt to attract and retain top talent as we continue to navigate a future where project-based work remains the foundation? Or, more so - how do architecture firms leverage these freelancers more? _____________________ Hi, 👋🏻 I'm Evelyn Lee, FAIA | NOMA I've been on the client side for over a decade and have spent the last five years in tech, helping create exceptional employee experiences while growing the business. Now, I help architects: ⇒ Think Differently ⇒ Increase Productivity ⇒ Create Opportunities

This topic is coming up a lot inside firms and in the media. We're in a brave new world in which I and my fellow young millennials sit in the middle; those younger than me have no interest in sitting at the same desk day after day chasing salaries that are lower than what they can make online. Those older than me are having a heck of a time hiring and navigating a very volatile market, which constantly affects their hiring needs. While those in my shoes can see and feel the issues from both sides. What are we to do? "...a blended workforce of contract and permanent members may allow for more nimble scaling by firms in response to the economic climate of the day." We all knew that COVID was going to change how we work. Hybrid WFH schedules, Slack, and new office furniture were just the tip of the iceberg. https://lnkd.in/gMtsXuu4

🚀 Exciting News! 🚀 I'm thrilled to announce the successful completion of the Leave Management module in our HRMS project! This achievement has been incredibly rewarding, allowing me to integrate my full Stack development skills with Vue.js, Inertia.js, and Laravel to deliver a seamless user experience. Key Highlights: ✅ Comprehensive Leave Tracking: Employees can easily monitor their leave balances, request leave, and view their leave history. ✅ Dynamic Balance Calculation: Real-time updates to leave balances based on previously taken leaves, ensuring accuracy. ✅ Permission Hours Management: Automated generation of permission hours at the start of each month, with safeguards to prevent negative balances. ✅ User-Friendly Interface: Intuitive design for a smooth and efficient user experience. ✅ Integration with Payroll System: Seamless integration of leave balances and permissions with payroll calculations. I'm excited about the positive impact this module will have on HR processes and employee satisfaction. A big thank you to my team and everyone who supported me throughout this journey! What's Next: Next on the horizon is the generation of payroll, which will further streamline HR operations and ensure accurate, timely payments to employees. Stay tuned for more updates! Looking forward to more exciting projects ahead. 🚀 #HRMS #LeaveManagement #PermissionManagement #FullstackDevelopment #Vuejs #Laravel #Inertiajs #WebDevelopment #PayrollIntegration #ProjectMilestone #PayrollGeneration

Most of the founders I know moved from services business to selling products. I made the opposite move, going from products (for 10 years) => to freelancer (1 year) => to agency (for 8 years). Read the full interview with Devrims below.

I really didn't want to write this update, but I'm committed to sharing both the highs and the lows of running this business. Last week was a AWFUL week at work. I normally write an update each week on our progress the week before, but it really feels like we took several steps backwards last week. Here’s what went wrong: ISSUE 1 ↳ I made a full time hire <2 months ago and next week will be her last Hiring our first FT employee was a massive step for the business (and for me)— I was really excited about it. We recently came to the conclusion that next week would be her last. I won’t go into details around why, but I will say this: - It wasn’t performance related (she did a great job) - It wasn’t budget-related I’m reflecting internally on what went wrong— I took every possible precaution with the hire: ✔️ Did a paid sample project ✔️ Hired fractionally first ✔️ Spent a ton of my time onboarding But despite all that, it still wasn’t the right fit. Sometimes, things just don’t fall your way. While I don’t think I’d change anything about the hiring process, the last couple months have shown me that this role might not have to be a full time position. Rather than backfilling it, I’m going to focus on automating portions of it while hiring freelancers for the rest. Hopefully, that will allow us to run more efficiently as an organization. While I loved the idea of building a full time team under me, now doesn't seem like the right time. ISSUE 2 ↳ Our in-platform messaging, contracts, and payments functionality continues to hit roadblocks. Last Friday, I had a really frustrating call with our dev agency. We were supposed to run through the entire functionality one last time before we initiated our go-live plan. They were supposed to fix all the bugs I found earlier in the week, and test everything end-to-end before the call. But sure enough, there were MORE bugs an issues than there have been in weeks as we walked through the feature set. Brand <> Freelancer Messaging? Didn’t work. Contract initiation? So many bugs. Invoicing and Payments? Couldn’t even get past the first step in the flow. It was so bad, I ended the call early and hit the gym to get my frustration out. This functionality is so critical to the business, and is already 4+ months delayed. A part of me is starting to believe we won’t be able to ever ship these features with our current partner, but the thought of starting over again is scary. I’m going to give it another week, then make an executive decision on how I want to move forward here. *** Running a business is tough— there’s no denying it. The highs are high, and the lows are low. Last week was certainly a low. But not everything is bad— revenue is at an all-time high, profits are higher than ever, and our brand & freelancer community is thriving. This week, I’m laser-focused on picking up the pieces and figuring out how to move forward from last week’s mess. Onwards…

The rise of the #freelance economy provides an opportunity to find greater equilibrium between the needs of companies and workers. At Gather, we've built a community of independent #knowledgeworkers who come together to meet the needs of enterprise clients. This allows for flexibility on both sides - clients get the right mix of capability and time needed for an engagement, while knowledge workers can diversify their client mix and dial in a work/life balance that works for them..  Recent surveys show this shift accelerating, with nearly 75% of knowledge workers saying recent layoffs have made freelance work more appealing and over 60% losing faith in the stability of full-time roles. The emergence of AI tools has further fueled this trend, making freelance life more efficient and personalized. As the article highlights through Nate's experience, many former full-time employees are flocking to independent work for greater control over their schedules and work-life balance. Without the expectations of a 9-to-5 job, they have more freedom to prioritize personal needs. The freelance model offers a path to equilibrium that works for both businesses and individual workers. By embracing flexible communities over traditional employment structures, we can build an economy that aligns with the evolving aspirations of the modern workforce. Let us know your thoughts on this shift towards freelance and fractional work models - are you seeing this trend in your industry as well? Share your perspectives in the comments! https://lnkd.in/eSTGCFf6