Freelancing isn’t everyone’s cup of tea; but today, armed with a computer and a relatively fast Internet connection, many have found this a viable option.
Job sites specialising in freelance projects like WorkMonk (http://workmonk. com/) certainly help. Started by Pushkar Gaikwad in 2011, this site essentially connects freelancers from India to businesses worldwide, while offering project management and quality control services.
As Gaikwad says, this isn’t a regular job site, but a platform where people work to complete projects. Since its launch, the site has had nearly 180 registered clients with 1,700 freelancers and vendors.
Virtual hierarchy
“Currently, we track all the work. Big projects get split into multiple parts and assigned to others. There is a virtual hierarchy, so a manager can further split the assigned task and [give them] to others, while handling communication, reporting and payment through the platform,” says Gaikwad. “We also have a desktop-based time tracker that can be used to track time for hour-based work.”
WorkMonk is free but requires registration.
High-end enterprise work
From this month, clients can start directly contacting freelancers based in India. “Right now, there is a lot of web development, software and mobile development work on the platform, but soon we will be moving to high-end enterprise work that involves many people working simultaneously on single large projects done by various mid-size IT companies,” Gaikwad says.
Freelancers enter a legal binding with WorkMonk when they register.
“We do offer contracts under special cases but so far we have never had any violation of terms,” he says. “This is an important aspect of the platform. Remember a U.S. company can’t control someone who is in Eastern Europe or Asia Pacific.”
For people like Mohit Jain, who has been with the platform since its launch, this has opened up various professional options. He now manages the marketing campaigns of various clients based in the U.S. and U.K., besides his regular job.
Freelancers are paid on a monthly basis by direct bank transfer. “We had issues with paying in bulk to freelancers owing to bank regulations, and we are not able to issue paper checks in India,” says Gaikwad.
The platform has been profitable from its launch. Workmonk takes a certain variable commission on the work cost. “We have a good number of repetitive monthly paying customers.”