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  • May 2019
  • Background Note
  • HBS Case Collection

The Gig Economy: Leasing Skills to Pay the Bills

By: Joseph Fuller, William R. Kerr and Carl Kreitzberg
  • Format:Print
  • | Language:English
  • | Pages:26 
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Abstract

This primer provides a comprehensive exploration into the gig economy and how it is reshaping global business. It shows how the Uber driver, the freelancing programmer in India, and the independent corporate consultant are all different variants of the modern-day gig workers. In doing so, this document addresses the following questions: • What are gigs and who performs them? • What is the size of the gig economy? How big will it get? • What types of gig work are available, and how do they differ from one another? • What are major trends in the gig economy, and how could technology disrupt this space? • What are the key management and legal issues for companies that use gig workers? • What has been the recent legal and regulatory history of the gig economy?

Keywords

Gig Economy; Talent And Talent Management; Human Resources; Labor; Strategy; Management; Globalization; North America; Europe; United States; United Kingdom

Citation

Fuller, Joseph, William R. Kerr, and Carl Kreitzberg. "The Gig Economy: Leasing Skills to Pay the Bills." Harvard Business School Background Note 819-146, May 2019.
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About The Authors

Joseph B. Fuller

General Management
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William R. Kerr

Entrepreneurial Management
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More from the Authors

    • January 2021
    • Faculty Research

    Note on the Future of Work

    By: William R. Kerr, Joseph B. Fuller, Manjari Raman and Bailey McAfee
    • November 2020
    • Faculty Research

    The New Generation of Retail

    By: William R. Kerr, Daniel O'Connor and James Palano
    • November 2020
    • Faculty Research

    Unilever's Response to the Future of Work

    By: William R. Kerr and Bailey McAfee
More from the Authors
  • Note on the Future of Work By: William R. Kerr, Joseph B. Fuller, Manjari Raman and Bailey McAfee
  • The New Generation of Retail By: William R. Kerr, Daniel O'Connor and James Palano
  • Unilever's Response to the Future of Work By: William R. Kerr and Bailey McAfee
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