Call to Action: The On-demand Business Model

新技术浪潮最终迫使所有公司要么搭上顺风车，要么被甩在后面. The force of such waves has increased over the past decade, laying waste to outdated business models, while vaulting disruptive entrants to leadership status.

To catch a glimpse of one oncoming wave, Toptal见解 recently sat down with 保罗埃斯蒂斯, Senior Director Office 365 at Microsoft. 让我们回顾一下推动世界上最有价值的公司走到今天这一步的最新趋势, 他的信息很明确:

“Companies had to have a personal computer strategy in the 80s, 90年代的互联网战略, 以及2000年代的移动战略. In 2018, companies need to have an on-demand strategy.”

企业公司, the on-demand business model means establishing the necessary relationships, 基础设施, workflows - and critically - cultural mindset. 有了这些元素, 他们可以接触到越来越多有意远程工作的员工, 对于多家公司, 在一个项目接一个项目的基础上.

据埃斯蒂斯说, companies should embrace what he calls the “gig mindset,他将其描述为“个人和组织按需参与的倾向”, 利用专家的智慧来回收时间, 驱动创新, 重新思考什么是可能的.”

在本文中, 我们将探索对埃斯蒂斯在工作和个人生活中产生变革的实践, 他给那些渴望利用按需经济的公司开出了这样的处方.

Customer-centric innovation targets the right problems

人们普遍认为，技术颠覆会扼杀过时的商业模式. Recent tombstones support this assertion: the Netflix on-demand, flat fee model shuttered Blockbuster; the seamless Uber experience rendered cab-hailing a crude act by comparison; Apple Music offered single-song, 立即购买, reinvigorating music label sales in the wake of illegal downloading.

While disruptive technology appears the deadly weapon, Estes suggests a more potent force in play: extreme customer centricity.

Companies must take a customer-centric approach to innovation. 例如, Uber recognized customers wanted - and were equipped to summon - seamless, high-quality transportation through their smartphones.

埃斯蒂斯鼓励其他高管“关注客户业务中的痛点”, asking them which KPIs repeatedly suffer.” All companies struggle with at least one critical workstream, 而那些揭露——并找到解决办法——这些问题根源的人能够确保持久的关系.

以客户为中心, 埃斯蒂斯还建议审视竞争是如何通过创新来减轻顾客痛苦的. 例如, leaders such as Google rely on 众包的努力 to continue refining their AI-driven image recognition algorithms. With human-supported AI, Google draws on historical practices. “Early AI training depended on crowd-sourced support,埃斯蒂斯说。, 分布式训练的使用帮助计算机学会“看”图像和“听”语音.”

高管们必须时刻把握新兴技术的脉搏 blockchain for enterprise applications, 为快速的产品开发而开发. For pervasive challenges such as data security, 向云的迁移, meeting rising consumer expectations, 企业应仔细监控大型马歇尔新兴资源企业的可比性.

Cultivate curiosity about on-demand to build organizational momentum

改变组织认知, 高管们必须培养一种对按需经济好奇的文化. 虽然看起来很明显, culture drives synchronized action from leadership down to sole contributors. Developing culture requires deliberate, modeled, behavior. 作为榜样，高管们可以直接影响大众对按需经济的态度.

据埃斯蒂斯说, thought leaders should “treat on-demand as a trend, 就像人工智能, 云技术, 或者任何其他大型科技趋势.这样做的时候, 他们应该鼓励他们的组织开始讨论如何利用欧博体育app下载, 特别是.

While freelance labor completes relatively low-value tasks, 欧博体育app下载 解决高度复杂的问题, 价值驱动的业务挑战，因此会对参与其中的企业产生最显著的影响.

将按需服务视为一种趋势，就像人工智能、云技术或任何其他大型科技趋势一样.

To best foster curiosity, nothing beats face-to-face interaction. Inviting speakers to present during informal “lunch and 学习” sessions, 到校外去拜访潜在的合作伙伴是一种常见的行动号召. 埃斯蒂斯还鼓励高管们参加由人才平台和人力资源公司举办的会议和聚会, 这两件事都加速了他在微软的学习和思想领导地位.

从小事做起，集中精力

在最后一条建议中，埃斯蒂斯向西蒙•斯涅克(Simon Sinek)发出了召唤，提醒高管们“要有远大的梦想. 从小事做起. 但最重要的是，开始.“对于偏向于行动的领导者, 这个提醒似乎是显而易见的, but they will certainly appreciate the tendency for “analysis paralysis,” particularly when evaluating the best launch point for a new technology.

为了缩短这个周期, 埃斯蒂斯恳请其他高管开始将按需解决方案应用于内部或客户问题. “Don’t be paralyzed by the law of big numbers,埃斯蒂斯说。, 引用了经理们倾向于采用“如果我不是在管理一个数百万美元的项目, 那就不重要了.”

Don’t be paralyzed by the law of big numbers. Start with small budgets and focused projects.

Instead, start with small budgets and focused projects. “Don’t think the pilots will be at-scale,埃斯蒂斯建议道。, 正如他所看到的大多数成功的试点一样，重点关注团队可以实施的特定部门, 学习, 然后扩大范围.

Sharing recent examples and inspiration, Estes指出了一些案例，说明了大型企业如何利用按需资源来保持竞争力.

宜家和TaskRabbit——“如果你在两年前问宜家是否会收购TaskRabbit, everybody would have thought “that’s kind of interesting. 我没想到会这样，然而， 根据ReCode, 宜家意识到这是“加强其数字客户服务能力的机会……通过进入按需平台领域的第一步。.”

TurboTax – With its recent TurboTax Live! 发射, 传统上基于软件的DIY服务现在提供了一种将技术与注册会计师网络相结合的混合方法. 这样的“协助税务准备” meets growing market demand amongst tax filers.

Have your pancakes, eat them, too

一个单一的仪式可以形成一个集结点，围绕它建立新的习惯. “I still make pancakes with my family in the morning,埃斯蒂斯打趣道, as he neatly summed up his motivation to adopt on-demand resources, thereby free up time for his personal life.

埃斯蒂斯建议那些新的按需人才从他们的个人生活开始. Recounting recent personal experience, 他面临着在微软加速发展的职业生涯中相互竞争的责任, an expanding family at home; Estes faced a decision: burn out or hit the refresh button. 他选择了后者，这样一来，他的煎饼也能吃了.

本质上, 埃斯蒂斯开始把工作和个人生活中不再需要他做的部分外包出去. 有人可能会想，“当然，这很容易. 人 have been hiring house cleaners and lawn mowers for years.” While such substitutions are thematically comparable, the approach Estes recommends is far more systematic, 结果就是, capable of freeing up far greater bandwidth.

“Above all, everyone needs to 学习 how to build a system. We’re not consuming less information or getting less busy,埃斯蒂斯说。. 建立一个系统意味着确定资源和技术，我们可以将我们耗时的任务映射到这些资源和技术上, either those that are repetitive and a lower value use of our attention, 或者那些需要专业技能的工作，可以通过雇佣按需人才轻松获得.

Above all, everyone needs to 学习 how to build a system. We’re not consuming less information or getting less busy

埃斯蒂斯依靠各种各样的才能在家庭和工作中更有效地工作. 在专业环境中，一个人才联盟帮助他完成研究, 脚本编写, 视频工作, 时事通讯, 会议安排, 原型设计. 工作之外的事，埃斯蒂斯 依赖于类似的支持 完成从简单任务(如安排约会)到复杂项目管理(如管理家庭装修的多个承包商报价)的工作.

Central to such system building is the “network of doers.“埃斯蒂斯组建了一个由35个人组成的网络，这些人增强了他完成各种关键工作的能力, 通常以更有效的方式, 鉴于他们的专业性.

最后，在聘用按需人才时，要记住领导力存在于每个层面. Although the customary notion of leadership evokes images of loftier titles, 更大的办公室和更大的团队, Estes points out how the concept is evolving with the on-demand economy. “我见过独立承包商管理着由10名自由职业者组成的团队，并获得了管理系统的所有好处.”

积极的影响似乎具有传染性, 正如埃斯蒂斯补充的那样:“这些管理者开始认为自己不再是车轮上的一个齿轮, but someone with control of their destiny. That attitude then impacts company employees, who recognize that leadership opportunities present themselves every day.”