Would you apply for a gig at your full-time job?

As the adoption of AI changes how we work, employees at global banking group Standard Chartered are doing something a little different: working gigs within their traditional work week.

They retain their job titles and descriptions, but may choose to take on a variety of projects outside of that scope, per The Wall Street Journal.

How it works

Standard Chartered uses an internal talent marketplace, where employees can post and apply for “gigs.” They:

• Can spend up to eight hours of their regular work week on gigs 
• Don’t get paid extra for completing gigs, but do learn new skills and have the opportunity to network outside of their usual teams. 

That’s appealing enough that 60% of employees participate.

Internal talent marketplaces…

… picked up steam amid the pandemic, per a Deloitte report. Unilever, for example, used its marketplace, FLEX Experiences, to redeploy 8k+ employees and 300k hours of work during the pandemic.

They’ve continued to grow as AI accelerates.

• PwC rolled out an AI-powered talent marketplace last year that uses internal data to create employee profiles, then match opportunities to those who are a fit.
• Employees can add their interests and passions to surface opportunities that may not match their current role, but could still be of interest. 

What’s in it for the company?

Such marketplaces allow companies to use the talent they already have as opposed to hiring additional employees and potentially overhiring. They also enable companies to take on additional projects. 

• Standard Chartered’s program has generated $8.5m in value since 2020 by getting projects off the ground that might have otherwise been delayed. 

Hatim Rahman, associate professor of management and organizations at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, told WSJ that they also help with employee retention, as it lets workers upskill or learn new skills, meaning they’re better able to adapt when needs change or when new technologies take over certain tasks — and less likely to leave for companies that offer them those opportunities.