In this Best Of episode, we’re talking to Topcoder members, freelance trailblazers, and people who are making it easier for gig economy workers to enjoy the freedoms of freelance life with the same security enjoyed by the traditional workforce.

Microsoft recently put out a great article about the future of work: The Next Great Disruption Is Hybrid Work—Are We Ready? It’s an awesome piece, AND there’s more to the story. We explain why it’s crucial to push beyond hybrid work to hybrid workforce—an actual new way that work is structured. We also cover how our model solves many of the problems associated with remote work.

How will human capital management change in the future of work? We look at some of the best lessons and insights our guests have shared in the areas of talent strategy and HR.

Emily Leach is a pioneer in the world of freelancing, focused on helping other freelancers have equal access to the opportunities afforded to other workers in the traditional labor market. She joins Uprisor to discuss the importance of mentorship, collaboration, and human connection among freelancers, and the most important skills freelancers need to be successful.

Phil Simon is a recognized collaboration and technology expert and author. He joins Uprisor to talk about his newest book, “Reimagining Collaboration: Slack, Microsoft Teams, Zoom, and the Post COVID World of Work”. The conversation delves into the advantages collaboration hubs provide over standard communication channels, and the most necessary skills for remote and freelance workers to possess if they hope to be successful on virtual teams.

Part 2 of our series looking at how to make a world class commercial without an agency focuses on feedback. Why is giving clear feedback so important and how do you do it? Topcoder’s head of content interviews Uprisor’s usual host, Clinton Bonner, and Topcoder’s Creative Director, Trevor Gerring. They discuss how to gather, refine, and provide crystal clear feedback when working with creatives on distributed teams.

Jeff Tennery is COO at AlefEdge, the 5G Edge API company. He joins Uprisor to discuss Edge computing and why it matters to the enterprise, the convergence of 5G and Edge, and the power of open communities to drive innovation.

How do you make an amazing commercial with a distributed network of creatives? Topcoder recently made a live action commercial with the talent from Tongal, a creative community and platform focused on video. Hear from Topcoder’s Creative Director and VP of Marketing about what the experience was like, what made the project successful, and the surprising things they learned.

Tim Proehm is a future of work expert, literally designing and delivering next-generation digital solutions to access on demand talent. As VP of Digital Product Architecture at Kelly®, he’s using technologies like AI, analytics, blockchain, RPA, and chat bot automation to create the next-generation of talent attraction models. He joins Uprisor to talk about how technology is driving talent strategy, the shifting power dynamics in the labor market, and what he’s most excited about in the...

Jon Younger is an HR thought-leader, author, advisor, board member, and early stage investor in HR tech startups. He joins Uprisor to discuss agile talent, HR’s role in architecting a workforce, and why the freelance revolution isn’t a threat to organizations, but instead a liberation of organizations and talent.

Chris DeLaurentis is the global director of innovation at Topcoder and leads efforts to bring cooler, newer edge technology to our community. He joins Uprisor to explain what NFTs are, how you can create new value on top of them, and the things we’re working on at Topcoder including community trading cards and self-sovereign identity wallets.

Larry English is an expert in remote workforces and virtual collaboration. He’s the president and co-founder of Centric Consulting, which he founded 20 years ago as a fully virtual company, and author of “Office Optional: How to Build a Connected Culture with Virtual Teams.” On the episode, Larry shares strategies for creating engagement and connection on hybrid workforces, and what the future looks like for workers in a post-covid world.

A true trailblazing, freelance rockstar, Julie Cortes joins Uprisor to talk about what it means to freelance professionally. What are the risks and rewards of choosing the lifestyle? What makes good client relationships and communication? When she’s not creating amazing content or ad campaigns for her litany of clients, Julie teaches the art and skill of freelancing as an adjunct professor at the Kansas City Art Institute, where she created her own course—aptly named Freelancing 101. Julie is...

Are employees who return to the office more engaged than those that stay home? Topcoder CTO Dave Messinger discusses WeWork’s controversial comments and the future of work, employee engagement, and traditional offices post-COVID.

Azariah Lehman is the Chief Administrative Officer at iWorker Innovations, which creates, negotiates and delivers insurance, benefits, services and resources designed to support independent workers. iWorker focuses on making it simpler and more effective for freelancers to work without putting their families or their finances at risk. Azariah joins Uprisor to talk about the massive growth in the gig economy, why businesses need to consider offering their gig workers benefits and insurance,...

Luis Millan is a Venezuela-based UI/UX designer who has been part of the Topcoder global community for nearly a decade. He shares his experience as a Topcoder community member, what the future of work looks like from his unique vantage point, and the benefits and experiences the gig economy has brought to his life.

Murat Mutlu is co-founder and CEO of Marvel, a modern collaboration design platform. Murat joins Uprisor to talk about the inspiration behind Marvel, why the app is really a productivity platform, and how the simplification of prototyping has changed the whole product design process.

Sheila Mahoney-Jewels is a Life Sciences R&D Independent Workforce Advocate and co-founder of life sciences and R&D marketplace LifeSciHub. She delves into the deep-rooted reasons humans are locked into hierarchies, and how evolutionary biology impacts gig economy adoption.

Author and business leader Jody Thompson joins Uprisor to discuss the Results-Only Work Environment (ROWE). Jody shares why she created ROWE, how work culture and policy combine to resist change, and why mindset is even more important than technology in shifting people to new ways of work.

Nigel Watson is CIO of Northumbrian Water Group, a water company out of the U.K. Nigel and Clinton discuss the creative ways NWG is using technology to interact with its customers and build user engagement. Plus, how the best co-creation happens when you’re brave and humble enough to put out a half-baked idea.

John Winsor, the founder and CEO of Open-Assembly and executive-in-residence at Harvard Business School’s Laboratory for Innovation Science at Harvard (LISH) explains why the open talent model is successful and how companies can (and must) drive innovation and avoid “passion deserts.”

Topcoder VP of Security, John Wheeler, joins Uprisor to discuss common security concerns about using on-demand talent. How can you trust people in the community? How do you protect your IP? And what does the future of work hold for identity and skills verification across talent platforms? If you’ve ever considered using on-demand talent and crowdsourcing, but had misgivings about how it might impact your IT structure and security, this episode is for you.

Steve Whitty is the Director of Wipro Digital, where he oversees many of Wipro’s customers’ largest digital initiatives, and has an angle towards banking and finance. Topcoder VP Clinton Bonner talks with Steve about large-scale digital transformation initiatives, team dynamics on big complicated programs, evolving old principles, and how to use on-demand talent and crowdsourced freelancers to better serve the end customer.

Alexander Chekspir is one of Topcoder’s most prolific contributors and design competition co-pilots, and on this episode, he talks about the risks, opportunity, camaraderie, and lifestyle of working as a gig freelancer. Based in Chile and known by his handle Chekspir on the platform, he’s worked with companies like Macy’s and IBM, and on projects for NASA. He shares how Topcoder has shaped his life and what it means to work from anywhere, with everyone.