The idea (long form)
by Mark WormgoorThe world is a getting smaller and smaller, thanks to ever-increasing technological developments and the internet. It has changed the way we collaborate across the globe. Yet, in this global world Western countries are facing labor shortages whilst millions of people in developing countries are struggling to make enough money to sustain themselves and their families. We can help bridge this gap.
Today, finding freelance work from developing countries is hard! Many are already working through sites such as Fiverr and Upwork. But, they all need to reinvent the wheel on sales, marketing and their own personal development.
By offering dedicated training and coaching, extensive support and reliable payment services we provide a solid bridge between the millions of professional workers in developing countries and millions of open jobs in the Western world.
There is a strong correlation between the wealth of nations and their average happiness. Our objective is to support as many workers (in developing countries) as possible to obtain a steady source of income by (remotely) fulfilling open jobs in Western countries. We believe a freelancer will need to earn at least US$ 2,000 / month, which is still “just” US$ 12.50 / hour. We will find (and possibly hire) freelancers in developing countries, and support them with:
- an integrated learning & development plan, including English, cultural, social & communication skills as well as content skills
- support from a senior expert (coach) in their field of expertise
- marketing & selling themselves, including proof via our brand (after thoroughly vetting their identity, education & work experience of course)
- standard operating procedures and tools: how to interact with clients, data privacy & security, regular reporting, etc.
- payment services
For our customers, there are many options. On the freelance side, we will start in the Philippines: a lot of people have college degrees, good English skills, and are culturally a good fit for Western countries. Current freelance rates in the Philippines are generally still low (on average US$ 600-1,000 / month). On the target side - our North Star is for integrated teams (a combination of senior and junior resources, potentially complimented with a small expert onshore team) to provide services to medium and large enterprises. Such mixed teams provide an extreme environment for learning & growth. Initially, we’ll start small, providing startups with a set of hands (30/70/140 hours / month at low cost) to execute their manual tasks, so they can focus on their startup growth. We’ll need further validation to see what our best early adopter market is.
My inspiration came when someone from StepUp.one each out to me on LinkedIn. What they’re doing is nothing short of amazing, helping people in African refugee camps make money online. I love what they’re trying to do. There’s a large demand for (offshore) labor in Western countries. At a tiny scale this is sourced via sites such as Fiverr / Upwork - at a large scale there are offshoring businesses such as IBM, Accenture, TCS, HCL, Wipro, Cognizant and many others. Millions work in the outsourcing industry which has already created an entire new middle class in countries such as India. Why we’re different? We don’t want to take advantage of cheap labor - we want to help as many as possible grow to earn a sufficient steady income to secure basic needs and increase their overall well-being.
Personal note: I’m not new to this world. I’ve had the pleasure to work with many different people from India and the Philippines, and visited both countries on business trips multiple times. I worked with people from these developing countries during my time at Accenture, as well as later on as a customer of multiple outsourcers.
