Gurus, Hired Guns, and Warm Bodies: Itinerant Experts in a Knowledge Economy

Description

Offers a description of how contracting works. This book tells the story of how the market for temporary professionals operates from the perspective of the contractors who do the work, the managers who employ them, the permanent employees who work beside them, and the staffing agencies who broker deals. Cover Title Copyrights Contents Preface Chapter 1 Unlikely Rebels Itinerant Experts The Unraveling of Permanent Employment The Legal Context of Contingent Work Estimating the Size of the Contingent Workforce Making Sense of Contingent Work The Study Organization of the Book Part I: Setting the Stage Chapter 2 Clients Why Do Clients Hire Contractors? How Do Clients Hire Contractors? Conclusion Chapter 3 Contractors Why Do Contractors Become Contractors? What Kinds of Contractors Are There? The Roles Contractors Play for Clients Conclusion Chapter 4 Agencies Sales Culture and Technical Culture What Types of Staffing Agencies Are There? Conclusion Part II: Life in the Market Chapter 5 The Information Game: Finding Deals What Contractors Do What Clients Do What Staffing Agencies Do Conclusion Chapter 6 Making the Deal Hiring Manager Evaluations Negotiating the Terms of Employment Closing Deals Conclusion Part III: Life on the Job Chapter 7 Contractors as Commodities Maintaining a Task Orientation Delegating Management Responsibilities Creating Outsiders Conclusion Chapter 8 Contractors as Experts Integration: Creating Team Members Dependence Conclusion Chapter 9 Navigating between Respect and Resentment Tales of Respect Tales of Resentment Forming an Identity Part IV: Living the Cycle Chapter 10 Temporal Capital The Temporal Patterns of Contracting The Rhetoric and Reality of Flexibility Chapter 11 Building and Maintaining Human Capital The Danger of Obsolescence The Risks of Learning Strategies for Remaining Current Conclusion Chapter 12 Building and Maintaining Social Capital Reach Reputation and Occupational Circles Reciprocity and Referral Cliques Networking: Building and Maintaining Networks Chapter 13 Itinerant Professionals in a Knowledge Economy Itinerant Experts: The Contracting Life The Ambiguities of Self-Reliance Itinerant Experts and the Social Order The Occupational Dimension Supporting Itinerant Professionalism Epilogue References Appendix: Cast of Characters Index A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P R S T U V W Y Z