The Gig Mindset Advantage

Book excerpt: Companies and organizations around the world are being confronted with alarming challenges—a global pandemic, market shocks, climate change, political instability. But in these unsettled times, organizational analyst Jane McConnell reveals that managers and executives have a secret weapon on their side: an overlooked group of employees that share “the gig mindset”—a freelancer-style knack for improvisation, adaptability and innovation that offers a crucial key to the future. Found at all levels of the workforce but often stifled by managers, gig mindsetters are disruptors who upend business as usual and bridge gaps while achieving surprising outcomes and charting new directions. Six case studies of early adopters illustrate how it is shaping business in diverse fields: science and technology, industrial energy, healthcare, financial services, agricultural commodity trading and legal services. With multiple examples and quotes, McConnell addresses the "How to" so necessary to turn ideas into actions: Recognize the value of gig mindsetters– the border-crossers, inside outsiders and carriers of new skills Overcome the willful blindness of management based on pride, fear and past successes Go beyond resilience to achieve proactive resilience Invest in movers–the gig mindsetters already in your organization and those to come Define a relevant balance between gig and traditional behaviors Own your personal strategy by choosing one of three paths You'll also find checklists of points to ponder and discuss as you explore your own case and context. In The Gig Mindset Advantage, McConnell brings her decades of research into workforce culture, organizational strategy and digital transformation into a compelling wake-up call to managers and executives. Long-term success and well-being lie in understanding and developing a gig-mindset work culture in both organizations and in individuals.