本週《衛報》上的一篇文章讓我們許多人想起了未來學家阿爾文和海蒂·托夫勒的重要貢獻。大約 20 年前，我有幸以會議小組成員的身份與 Alvin 會面，並記得他堅信技術將越來越多地使工作能夠“在‘第三’或信息時代離開工廠和辦公室，因為技術使我們能夠自由地來自'遠程小屋'的工作”。 Tofflers 對趨勢的必然性當然是正確的，儘管不是時機。又過了 20 年，一場大流行才確定了在我們的廚房餐桌而不是雇主辦公室進行遠程工作的合法性，並證明它提供了一種富有成效的替代方案。
托夫勒的洞察力還預測了另一個相關趨勢；人們一起與雇主脫節，成為我們現在稱為自由職業革命的個體創業發展的一部分。對地球上全職和兼職自由職業者數量的估計範圍很廣，但這個數字肯定遠高於美國 6000 萬 Upwork 的估計。而且，雖然專家們繼續推測現在運營的自由職業平台的數量，但毫無疑問，它正在急劇擴大。如果現在或處於測試階段的平台少於 1000 個，我會感到驚訝。作為一個經常在福布斯撰寫關於自由職業者創業公司的文章，有時被描述為自由職業者耳語者的人，我幾乎每週都會通過電子郵件或 LinkedIn 被介紹到三四個新平台。
我們從 1848 年美國淘金熱的歷史中了解到，真正的機會不是找到黃金。來到加利福尼亞發家致富的 300,000 名准礦工中只有極少數找到了任何東西，而且只是在早期。但是，你可能會稱之為淘金熱生態系統企業家，他們獲得了巨額財富，這些領先企業如 Levi Strauss、Armor Meat Packing 和 Studebaker 公司（是的，Studebaker 成為一家汽車公司）向礦工出售食品、服裝、工具、露營用品、有蓋貨車和其他必需品。
人們可以將自由職業者革命描述為另一場淘金熱，但正如它的名字一樣，真正的創新不僅僅是自由職業者的工作或支持他們的平台。真正的創新包括支持自由職業者和依賴他們的大小公司的生態系統。而且，該生態系統中的重要動態之一是資金如何流動，以及支持和擴大自由職業者革命的金融服務。 Payoneer 是自由金融服務的先驅之一，剛剛宣布了與 SPAC 合併的計劃，以成為一家上市公司。我認為對於我的自由職業者和其他讀者來說，聽聽首席執行官 Scott Galit 如何看待自由職業者的未來以及 Payoneer 隨著空間規模、價值和重要性的增長所扮演的角色會很有趣。
Payoneer 成立於 2005 年。Galit 於 10 年前擔任首席執行官一職，此前他曾在 Meta Payment Systems、MasterCard International 和 First Data Corporation 擔任執行副總裁，在支付服務領域擔任執行職務。
是什麼吸引了 Galit 加入 Payoneer？正如他解釋的那樣，“Payoneer 背後的想法令人興奮，這項技術正在改變世界的經營方式。人才獲取和機會越來越民主化，數字化使許多領域的人才能夠隨時隨地工作。 Payoneer 旨在為這些自由職業者及其平台提供滿足其業務需求的複雜金融服務。將 Payoneer 視為半銀行半科技公司。我覺得這很有吸引力。”
我通過幾種不同的方式了解 Payoneer。作為一名在 Jolt 任教的個人自由職業者，我每月定期在公司進行支付處理經驗。我還從今年早些時候為 Freelancer Lounge 製作的一系列自由微型教育視頻中認識了 Payoneer。我通過這些經歷以及 Galit 的評論了解到，支付處理只是 Payoneer 願景的一小部分。正如 Galit 所說，“我們希望我們的客戶能夠獲得他們需要的所有工具和支持。”
Payoneer 預計，隨著時間的推移，我們將看到第二波服務的擴展，例如更廣泛的金融服務、初創企業和中小企業擴張的資金和營運資金准入，以及財務和運營管理工具。預計還將提供越來越多的商戶服務、風險管理支持和商業卡產品。
加利特認為自由職業革命不會像淘金熱那樣在十年內消退。在他看來，我們處於早期階段。而且，他的觀點肯定與其他商業和技術領導者一致，以及他的全球團隊自上而下所感受到的熱情。他在我們的談話中提到了“全球馬拉松”，這是一組團隊建設活動，將 Payoneer 團隊的大部分成員聚集在一起進行教育、更新和慶祝。正如他所提到的，“很高興看到我們整個組織充滿活力和興奮。”
正如 Galit 勾勒出他認為工作發生變化的方式——工作地點、時間和方式——很明顯，自由職業革命生態系統的需求和增長潛力，正如麥肯錫公司所說，“巨大且不斷增長”。並且，向多個方向擴展。可以肯定的是，Payoneer 擁有頂級競爭對手，既有像 Pay Pal 這樣的老牌公司，也有像 Skrill 和 Stripe 這樣的初創公司。其他人也加入了競爭，甚至是蘋果公司的 Apple Pay 產品。最近的初創公司，如 Jolt、Hard Skills 和 Degreed，為自由職業者平台成員提供了獲得軟技能繼續教育的機會。像 Collective Benefits 和 Coverwallet 這樣的初創公司專注於“個體經營者的保護差距”。 Collective 將自己描述為“提供全方位的負擔得起的、便攜的保護和好處，他們可以在他們工作的平台之間隨身攜帶這些保護和好處。”英國的 FreelancerClub、美國的 Freelancer.eu、Nomawo 和丹麥的 Goodtalks.dk 都是為自由職業者提供一系列網絡、諮詢和教育服務的社交網絡的極好例子。而且，當然，我們看到通過瑞典的 Svenska Nomader 等平台對自由游牧民的支持顯著增長。
正如 Galit 描述了 Payoneer 通過 SPAC 從私人公司轉向上市公司的經歷，他描述了在 2012 年考慮但隨後拒絕收購該公司的要約的經歷。正如他所說，“我們在以下背景下認真考慮了要約 我們想留下的遺產，並決定我們致力於創造一些經久不衰且以價值觀為基礎的東西。 沒有哪家公司像我們這樣。 上市的決定使這成為現實。”
我渴望看到自由職業者革命的生態系統如何發展以及 Payoneer 在其中扮演的重要且日益重要的角色。 我認為這很可能很重要。
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Payoneer: Building The Ecosystem For The Freelance Revolution
An article in the Guardian this week reminded many of us of the important contributions made by futurists Alvin and Heidi Toffler. I had the pleasure of meeting Alvin as a fellow conference panelist almost two decades ago, and recall his strong belief that technology would increasingly enable work to “move out of factories and offices in the ‘third’ or information age, as technology freed us to work from 'tele-cottages'”. The Tofflers were right of course about the inevitability of the trend, though not the timing. It took another 20 years and a pandemic to seal the legitimacy of remote work performed at our kitchen table rather than employers’ offices, and demonstrate that it offered a productive alternative.
Toffler’s insight also anticipated another related trend; people disconnecting from their employers all together and becoming part of the growth of solopreneurship we now call the freelancing revolution. Estimates range widely on the number of full and part-time freelancers operating on the planet, but the number is certainly well above the 60 million Upwork estimates here in the US. And, while pundits continue to speculate on the number of freelance platforms now operating, there is no doubt that it is dramatically expanding. I would be surprised if there are fewer than 1000 platforms operating now or in beta. As someone who writes regularly in Forbes about freelance startups, and is sometimes described as the freelance whisperer, I’m introduced by email or LinkedIn to three or four new platforms almost every week.
We learned from the history of the US gold rush of 1848 is that the real opportunity wasn’t finding yellow metal gold. Only a very few of the 300,000 would-be miners who came to California to make their fortune found much of anything, and only in the early days. But, large fortunes were made by the gold rush ecosystem entrepreneurs as you might call them, leading enterprises like Levi Strauss, Armour Meat Packing, and the Studebaker company (yes, that Studebaker that became an auto company) that sold the miners food, clothing, tools, camping goods, covered wagons, and other necessities.
One could describe the freelance revolution as another gold rush, but like its name-sake, the real innovation isn’t just the work of freelancers or the platforms that enable them. The real innovation includes the ecosystem that supports the freelancers and the companies – small and large - that depend on them. And, one of the important dynamics in that ecosystem is how the money flows, the financial services that support and expand the freelance revolution. One of the pioneers of freelance financial services, Payoneer, has just announced its plan to merge with a SPAC on its way to becoming a public company. I thought it would be interesting for my freelance and other readers to hear how CEO Scott Galit see the future of freelancing and the role played by Payoneer as the space growths in size, value and importance.
Payoneer was founded in 2005. Galit took the CEO spot 10 years ago, after a career in payment services with executive roles at EVP at Meta Payment Systems , MasterCard International and First Data Corporation .
What attracted Galit to Payoneer? As he explained, “The idea behind Payoneer was exciting, that tech was changing how the world does business. Talent access and opportunity has been increasingly democratized, and digital made possible the ability of talented professionals in many fields to work from anywhere. Payoneer was created to offer these freelancers and their platforms access to sophisticated financial services that met their business needs. Think of Payoneer as half bank, half tech company. I found that very attractive.”
I know Payoneer in a couple of different ways. As an individual freelancer, teaching at Jolt, I have a regular monthly experience of the company in payment processing. I also know Payoneer from a series of freelance micro-educational videos I made earlier this year for their Freelancer Lounge. I learned through these experience – and Galit’s commentary – that payment processing is only a small part of Payoneer’s vision. As Galit put it, “We want our customers to access to the full range of tools and support they need.”
Expect from Payoneer that, over time, we’ll see an expansion of second wave services such as broader financial services, funding and working capital access for startups and SME expansion, and tools for financial and operational management. Expect also a growing offering in merchant services, support for risk management, and commercial card products.
Galit doesn’t see the freelance revolution ebbing in a decade, as did the Gold Rush. In his view, we’re in early innings. And, his view is certainly consistent with other business and tech leaders, and the enthusiasm felt by his global team from top to bottom. He pointed in our conversation to a “globathon,” a set of team building events that brought much of the Payoneer team together for education, updates, and celebration. As he mentioned, “It was great to see the level of energy and excitement across our organization.”
As Galit ticks off the ways that he sees work changing – where, when, and how work is done – it’s evident that the need and growth potential of the freelance revolution ecosystem is, as McKinsey & Co might say, “large and growing.” And, expanding in many directions. Payoneer has top competitors to be sure, both established companies like Pay Pal and startups like Skrill and Stripe. Others are joining the fray, even Apple with its Apple Pay product. Recent startups like Jolt, Hard Skills, and Degreed offer freelance platform members access to continuing education in soft skills. Startups like Collective Benefits and Coverwallet are focused on the “protection gap of the self-employed”. Collective describes itself as providing “access to a full range of affordable, portable protections and benefits which they can carry around with them between the platforms they work on.” FreelancerClub in the UK, Freelancer.eu, Nomawo in the US, and Goodtalks.dk in Denmark, are excellent examples of social networks providing a range of networking, advisory, and educational services to freelancers. And, of course, we are seeing significant growth in support for freelance nomads through platforms like Sweden’s Svenska Nomader and others.
As Galit described the Payoneer pivot from private to public company through a SPAC, he described the experience of considering but subsequently rejecting an offer to acquire the company in 2012. As he put it, “We really thought hard about the offer in the context of the legacy we wanted to leave, and decided that we were committed to create something enduring and values based. There is no company quite like us. The decision to go public made it possible to make that a reality.”
I’m eager to see how the freelance revolution’s ecosystem develops and the important and growing role that Payoneer plays in it. I think it’s very likely to be significant.
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