Because the ‘hidden workforce’ of contractors and freelancers grows, so does the danger for the companies that depend on them. Paid by a patchwork of fragmented and casual channels, this section of the workforce typically exists in a monetary blind spot, eroding oversight and management.
Right here, Adam Craighill, International SVP of Income at Papaya International, explains why managing this contingent spend has develop into a important new mandate for finance leaders.
Right now, many world enterprises are working two workforces. The primary is seen and predictable: everlasting staff on payroll, supported by well-established compliance, governance, and monetary controls. The second is far tougher to trace: contingent employees. Contractors, freelancers, gig employees, and third-party expertise engaged by a patchwork of distributors, platforms, and casual networks. This “hidden workforce” isn’t marginal. It already makes up round 40% of the worldwide workforce — a determine projected to achieve 50% by 2035. With that scale comes danger, and more and more, it’s touchdown on the CFO’s desk.
How hidden spend erodes oversight
On the floor, participating contingent employees by versatile, casual channels could really feel like agility. However in actuality, it introduces a harmful blind spot in monetary reporting and compliance. Funds are more and more flowing by unvetted distributors and subcontractors, opaque contracts with restricted accountability, and private networks that bypass procurement completely.
This spend typically sits outdoors HR, outdoors payroll, and finally outdoors finance. The end result: a cloth portion of workforce prices distorts monetary statements, masks true labor spend, and creates misclassification dangers that stay invisible, till they floor in an audit, a board evaluation, or a regulatory inquiry.
CFOs have to act now
Workforce funds have lengthy been the CFO’s anchor, the system of report for workforce prices. However when a rising share of funds bypass payroll, that anchor now not holds. For CFOs, this implies workforce spend will get fragmented throughout classes, hiding the true price of labor, compliance and misclassification dangers construct quietly till they develop into crises, and monetary outcomes are tougher to face behind with full confidence. This isn’t theoretical. For a lot of multinationals, the hidden workforce is already materials to the enterprise. That makes it a monetary management challenge… and subsequently a CFO challenge.
The brand new mandate for CFOs
Let’s be clear: CFOs can now not delegate accountability for workforce funds. Whether or not everlasting, contingent, or cross-border, all workforce spend finally falls beneath monetary accountability. Ahead-thinking CFOs are already closing this hole by bringing contingent workforce funds into full monetary oversight, establishing visibility throughout each channel, market, and mannequin, and aligning workforce technique with compliance and monetary governance. This isn’t nearly managing danger. With higher visibility into the true economics of their workforce, CFOs achieve insights that may gas smarter expertise technique and create aggressive benefit.
The Shift Finance Leaders Should Lead
The hidden workforce is a everlasting characteristic of the fashionable enterprise. Expertise fashions have advanced, however monetary governance has not saved tempo — and that hole is widening each quarter. Ready is an actual and pressing danger. CFOs who delay motion could also be standing earlier than their boards, auditors, or buyers with monetary controls that now not mirror operational actuality.
At Papaya International, we’re serving to enterprises confront this problem head-on with Contingent OS — a platform designed to convey contingent workforce funds out of the shadows and beneath the sort of monetary governance right this moment’s enterprise calls for. The time to behave is now. CFOs who take the lead in making their hidden workforce seen is not going to solely defend their organizations but in addition unlock the readability wanted to compete in a quickly evolving world expertise market.
About Papaya International
Papaya International is the platform for world workforce, serving to main enterprises to pay employees compliantly within the native foreign money of 160+ nations. After having revolutionized payroll by automating handbook processes, Papaya is the primary SaaS firm to supply its personal licensed funds platform, in partnership with J.P. Morgan. With same-day supply and low, clear charges, Papaya makes world funds quicker, safer, and extra environment friendly*. Backed by world-leading buyers, Papaya International has raised greater than $450M (most lately at a $3.7B valuation).
*Papaya International’s cost companies are provided by Azimo, Papaya’s licensed funds arm. Azimo is a cost companies supplier regulated in 5 Tier-1 jurisdictions. These licenses enable Papaya, along with its companions, to supply workforce funds worldwide.
Concerning the Creator
Adam Craighill is an achieved enterprise chief with a powerful observe report in constructing and scaling world gross sales organizations. With intensive expertise driving income progress throughout high-growth corporations, he brings a results-driven strategy to management. As International SVP of Income at Papaya International, Adam performs a pivotal position in increasing the corporate’s market presence and accelerating adoption of its workforce funds platform worldwide.