What is FAR first work?

By now, everyone knows the workplace has changed and it isn’t going back to the way it was before. But it might be changing more than you think. FAR first work is Fractional, Asynchronous, and Remote by default. ‍Let’s dig into it. 

‍

What is fractional work?

The 40-hour work week is dated. Even if we didn’t know this before COVID, we sort of felt it in the soulless grind. Europe has officially begun trialing the four-day work week though work culture in the US still lags behind. 

‍From our point of view, even the four-day work week isn’t radial enough– and we’ve been successfully running our company this way since 2017. The next frontier allows employees and contractors to set their own schedules, on their own terms. 

‍

What are the benefits of fractional hiring?

Fractional hiring is fast, low-risk, and high-quality.

The question we really should be asking is: are there any benefits to mandating a blanket 40-hour work week? In some cases, this number might make sense– if an employer has that much work and an employee needs that much stability– but it’s not a one-size-fits-all solution. 

‍

Think of traditional full-time hiring like proposing after the third date: you scope out candidates, exchange messages to schedule interviews, and once you’re sure you’ve found the one, you pop the question– only to find out they’ve been talking to 8 other companies and their answer is “no.” Or they say “yes” but you realize later that they don’t share your vision.

‍

Fractional hiring is the play-it-by-ear alternative. Both parties can conduct a trial run to determine fit. If it’s a match, the contract can be extended long-term. If not, parting ways is a relatively painless process. 

‍

One of the main advantages of going fractional is gaining access to a wider talent pool for niche skills. fractional also allows for wider skills coverage. For instance, instead of searching for the unicorn full-stack developer at 4o hours/ week, employers can fractionally hire one front-end developer and one back-end developer at 2o hours/ week each.

‍

How do asynchronous and remote work fit into this?

By now, you don’t need us to explain remote work to you. Once you’ve accepted that fractional work is the way to go, it doesn’t make much sense to hang onto a physical office space or insist that contractors be available at the same time of day. 

‍

We believe that FAR first work is here to stay and will only expand. 

And we’ve compiled some resources to help you get started. Check out our post on Best Asynchronous Platforms.

‍