Ready to Scale? 3 Ways to Prep Your Business for Growth

Maybe your team is maxed out. Maybe you need a particular skillset to bring your idea to life. Whatever your situation, working with freelancers can be an effective way to access skills you don’t already have in-house. But is your business ready for outside help?

Here are three things you might want to figure out before you sign off on any proposals:

1. Know where the money will come from

If you don’t have funding lined up or already in place, partnering with freelance talent could inadvertently amplify any cash flow issues you already have, and potentially lead to problems down the road.

2. Have your business processes figured out

Defining regular processes so they can be duplicated successfully can be essential for your business to scale with consistency. Being clear about how your in-house team gets things done can also help you identify the skills you might be missing.

3. Step back and see what happens

If your team can’t function without you, trying to scale can quickly lead to a counterproductive bottleneck. Part of the solution goes back to defining your processes: The checks and balances you consider when making decisions should be shareable so every action doesn’t need to begin and end with you.

Learning to leverage freelancers

More and more executives are turning to freelance talent to get more work done. This innovative hiring approach gives teams flexible access to the talent they need when they need it. But how can partnering with freelancers help your team? Here are a few ideas:

• Meet spikes in demand: Sometimes you need extra hands on deck to get you through short-term—sometimes unexpected—bursts of activity.
• Help other teams embrace freelancers: Has freelance talent been a game changer for your past initiatives? Talking to people on other teams about your results and strategies can help them spot opportunities with their own projects.
• Keep your focus on core activities: If you regularly get sidetracked by activities that don’t have an impact on your goals, engaging freelancers to tackle these projects can help you keep your focus on your own priorities. Want an example? See how freelancers helped produce a radio ad for Upwork >>
• Test your ideas: If you’re short on resources to meet current commitments and innovate, consider how freelancers can help you test a concept or build a prototype. This can be particularly helpful when you’re looking at the possibilities of new technologies and don’t have the skills you need in-house.

Freelance talent can change the way you think about resources and new opportunities. For more information to help you get started, check out “Innovative Hiring for Growing Businesses,” a free ebook from Upwork >>

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