The Freelance Imperative: IBM Blazes the Trail for a Liquid Workforce

In the brave new world of work, only executives with strategic roles and those who interface with clients may have regular jobs as the remaining workforce jostles for position in the "talent cloud". In a radical restructuring of its German workforce, international tech giant IBM is a trailblazer with a more flexible approach. Big Blue plans to pick and choose between freelance workers who will market themselves, project-by-project, via a professional eBay-style platform. This new model will not only cut costs and have clear implications for managers. Experts say it will also make workers' future employment more dependent than ever on digital profiles.