Where is the future: Full-time jobs or Fractional jobs?

Arvind Mehrotra
2 min readAug 24, 2024

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The sharing economy significantly impacts traditional full-time jobs by promoting flexible, non-standard employment models. It fosters “on-demand” work, allowing individuals to engage in gig or freelance roles instead of conventional employment, which can decrease full-time job security.

This shift blurs the lines between personal and professional activities, resulting in a workforce that may oscillate between casual labour and full-time roles, potentially undermining traditional job structures and benefits. While it offers flexibility and income opportunities, it raises worker rights and job stability concerns.

Here’s a balanced perspective:

Fractal Employment

  • Fractal companies are becoming more common. They are democratising data and empowering teams to be laser-focused on local customers and fast-developing profit pools. This allows them to be more responsive and innovative.
  • Fractal teams have complete ownership to drive growth for new opportunities, exploiting #scaleofprocesses while maintaining agility.
  • 75% of career success depends on advanced social and emotional skills, with only 25% depending on technical know-how. This indicates the importance of multifocal leadership skills in fractal organisations.

Full-Time Employment

While fractal models are on the rise, there is still a modestly positive outlook for employment growth across most industries, with job growth expected in several sectors.

  • Entire industries are undergoing a fundamental transformation, with existing jobs changing in the skill sets required. It will require proactive adaptation by corporations, governments and individuals.
  • Reskilling and upskilling of today’s workers will be critical to preventing mass unemployment and growing inequality in the face of technological change.

Conclusion

The future of work will likely involve a combination of fractal and full-time models, with the specific mix varying by industry and region. Companies and individuals must adapt to this new reality by developing the right skills and organisational structures. Proactive reskilling efforts will be vital to ensuring a positive future for jobs.

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Arvind Mehrotra
Arvind Mehrotra

Written by Arvind Mehrotra

Board Advisor, Strategy, Culture Alignment and Technology Advisor