The evolution of HR and its role in on-demand talent with Emma El-Karout

As featured first on Topcoder.

Uprisor, is a series of technology conversations centered on the future of work and on demand talent. In this episode, HR and human capital thought leader and One Circle Founder, Emma El Karout joins Topcoder VP Clinton Bonner to discuss the changing role of HR, on -demand talent and how it intersects with crowdsourcing and open talent models.

Emma spent over 20 years leading organizations with human resources capabilities and services. Now she helps companies access vetted HR experts on demand through One Circle.

REMOTE WORKFORCES, CHANGING MINDSETS, ON-DEMAND TALENT

People are looking at remote work differently due to the current crisis. As the pandemic drastically changed the day-to-day operations of many organizations, it made business leaders understand that the location of employees does not negatively impact the efficiency of their work.

It opened the door for more trust between managers and their full-time employees and the idea that reaching out to on-demand talent on a project basis could achieve results faster and more efficiently.

“The experimenting phase has started, and that curiosity is amazing.” —Emma El Karout

TRUST AND CULTURE ARE PARAMOUNT

When building a fully remote team or a blended team, it is important to hold them accountable for results while ensuring they feel trusted to deliver.

The decision to transition to a blended workforce that includes on-demand talent affects all parts of an organization and must include an HR transformation as well. HR is responsible for everything that has to do with employee experience, from hiring to the employee’s exit.

Therefore, a business must have a remote working strategy to be successful during the transition. Emma explains how freelance HR consultants can help drive cultural transformation and pull teams together even when everyone is working remotely. 

ON-DEMAND TALENT DRIVES INNOVATION

Clinton and Emma end the conversation by talking about how on-demand talent helps to spark innovation and creativity.

The ability to connect with people from diverse backgrounds brings new ideas and ways to solve problems that are often overlooked by those already deeply involved in a company’s culture or industry’s standards.

Bringing in outside perspectives and those that have experienced different things can start the conversation for fresh ideas that lead to innovation.

Just as we’ve been urging enterprises to embrace a hybrid workforce model, Emma echoes that by sharing her vision for a blended HR department. “You will always have your core HR team, with a main focus on the employee experience. But with more of an extended blended team with specialists in every area, you will feel that power of supporting the business.”

She adds that this blend of resources enables speed, confidence, and high-quality work. We could not agree more.

“This woman is BOLD. Had the pleasure of chatting w/ Emma El-Karout, founder of ONE CIRCLE™. She’s an HR executive and is disrupting her industry via on-demand, hyperspecialized HR talent helping teams augment HR expertise on-demand. Her story and how she got to now is worth your ears…” Topcoder VP of Marketing Clinton Bonner