Interview with Founder & CEO of InteriMarket, a pioneering hybrid contingent recruitment platform
Q&A with InteriMarket's founder and CEO, Bhumi Zhaveri
This week we have a special treat for InteriMarketers. We’re inviting you to join us for some unique insights to life as an interim professional from our very own CEO, Bhumika Zhaveri. If there’s someone who can tell you a thing or two about the challenges, joys and rewards of life as an Interim professional, Bhumika’s got the inside scoop.
So without further ado, let’s kick off our Q&A for some insights and pearls of wisdom on life as an interim gig seeker.
Q: You were an interim professional yourself for a number of years. What was it about the life of temporary employment that attracted you to it?
A: I started a series of small businesses in retail during university days, they didn’t work-out for a couple reasons, but I learnt that I was not interested in corporate career ladder. I felt that I learnt a lot quicker than most people and once I have met a challenge, I was happy to move on to the next one. I did not particularly want to have my career dictated to me, and just working nine-to-five was neither challenging nor fulfilling.
Q: What’s the best and most concise piece of advice you’d give a budding interim professional?
A: Be prepared. I would advise newbies to be prepared, do their research and know that finding that perfect interim opportunity to get you started can take a bit of time.
Q: What key challenges would one have to overcome when making the transition from a full-time career person to an interim professional?
A: This is a good question and one I get asked a lot, it’s the change in mindset. Changing something so substantial can be very scary, especially if there is a family life to consider and certain lifestyle expectations.
So, if someone has substantial years of perm experience it can be very hard to take that leap of faith. Especially if they like what they do or have golden handcuffs. However, once they make up their mind, the next thing is to realistically assess what work, what rate and how many weeks / months a year they need to work as a minimum to enjoy their lifestyle they seek.
Q: And what waits on the other side for the person who takes that often scary leap?
A: A world of opportunities. Without sounding too optimistic, because it is scary at first and professionals have to find their feet, but once they know how they want to approach, what rates, level of consistency etc. it can be rewarding.
It’s like starting a new career or a new job. There are teething problems in the beginning. The legal side of setting up a company or sole tradership etc. can be confusing at first, for which they should always speak with HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC). They are very friendly and helpful or hire an expert such as an accountant if you need one.
Q: The InteriMarket platform operates in a fairly niche workforce segment, yet your user numbers are impressive. Do you think part of the reason for this is the growing popularity around interim careers as a viable alternative?
A: We are seeing a revolution in the workforce in many ways with millennials joining and a lot of experienced professionals wanting to become self-employed. This is a trend that was started since the 2008 crash because companies did not want to risk hiring perm staff and interims i.e. longer term contractors.
Consultants were paid good day rates which meant they could potentially bring home an annual salary package by working only nine months a year. Now, this is an attractive proposition, one that is still on the rise. By 2020 this workforce will increase tremendously in numbers and so as long as we keep servicing the right niche workforce, our numbers should keep rising. At InteriMarket, we are building a hybrid between an interim management platform and networking site exclusive for our interim gurus.
Q: What’s next for the platform? What can we look forward to in the coming months?
A: This is a good question, we have only this week finalised our 6 week plans to Xmas – where we are looking to simplify the platform, add more jobs and make certain workflows easy for professionals and recruiters/employers. It is very exciting as the platform may look very different in the new year.
Q: How has digital disruption changed the employment landscape and how do you think it will continue to influence it in the coming years?
A: It has been great. I mean, with LinkedIn, it was the start of something phenomenal in the digital HR & Recruitment industry. Who would have thought that HR & Recruitment technology could get so sexy? We see so many emerging companies like Perk Box, Hiredbyme and many more changing the landscape by digital disruption. We live in exciting times!
Q: Should we be afraid that computers and artificial intelligence will take most of our jobs one day soon or do you have a more pragmatic take on the matter?
A: I welcome AI, machine learning and similar technology. Let’s not forget if we create them – we sure do know how to maintain them. Will they take all our jobs? No, because as the technology evolves so do we, which means we will see a host of new industries, job roles and skills emerging. If you read one of our blog posts earlier in the year we discussed a few job roles that did not exist a decade ago – which now are very hot.
Q: InteriMarket is releasing a guide for beginners in the world of interim employment. Tell us a bit more about that.
A: We set up InteriMarket to help interim professionals globally. In our mission, we continue to come up with ways to helping as Interim Management can be quite complex especially for new-comers, due to the number of checklists an individual has to go through to be compliant. As an example, the new IR35, so the guide will be a very quick introduction into the world of Interim Management, with suggestions, FAQs and useful links.
Well, that’s all from us for now folks. We look forward to ending off a fantastic year with some more great gigs, insightful content and an even bigger network of interim professionals on the InteriMarket platform. We’d like to thank you for joining us on the journey so far, and allowing us to be a part of yours.
Remember to check back for new gigs regularly and for newcomers, make sure you register today and get your interim career off the ground with the UK’s leading temporary employment platform. Cheers!