In this HRchat episode, we hear from Paul Estes, an unstoppable advocate for the Talent Economy who's dedicated to creating opportunities for everyone, reskilling by doing, and bringing diversity to our work. For 20 years, Paul struggled to balance his home life with fast-moving leadership roles at Dell, Amazon, and Microsoft, where he led a team of progressive HR, procurement, and legal trailblazers to launch Microsoft's Gig Economy freelance program. Hiring his first virtual assistant transformed the way he lived and worked.Paul is the Editor-in-chief of Staffing.com by Toptal, a destination dedicated to driving a conversation through expert-driven content and thought leadership. Staffing.com is a centralizing force l for understanding the dynamic future within the rise of remote work, the expansion of the freelance economy, and the future of staffing. Paul is the former host of the Gig Mindset podcast and current host of The Talent Economy podcast (the official podcast of Staffing.com).Listen to the interview to get Paul's answers to questions including: 1. What do you think the COVID-19 crisis means for the gig economy? Is it an opportunity?2. Are in-person relationships really that important to get the job done?3. As many countries navigate out of the first wave of COVID-19, do you believe that hiring managers will be looking to supplement their workforce with consultants and freelancers rather than full-time employees?4. For those leaders and HR pros looking to hire freelancers over the remainder of 2020, can you offer some tips to ensure they hire the right people? 5. Why is now a great time for people to take a hard look at their careers and consider the merits of reskilling and pivoting into new careers?We do our best to ensure editorial objectivity. The views and ideas shared by our guests and sponsors are entirely independent of The HR Gazette, HRchat Podcast and Iceni Media Inc.   Support the showFeature Your Brand on the HRchat PodcastThe HRchat show has had 100,000s of downloads and is frequently listed as one of the most popular global podcasts for HR pros, Talent execs and leaders. It is ranked in the top ten in the world based on traffic, social media followers, domain authority & freshness. The podcast is also ranked as the Best Canadian HR Podcast by FeedSpot and one of the top 10% most popular shows by Listen Score. Want to share the story of how your business is helping to shape the world of work? We offer sponsored episodes, audio adverts, email campaigns, and a host of other options. Check out packages here. Follow us on LinkedIn Subscribe to our newsletter Check out our in-person events