Solution for managing freelancers?

12 replies
Hi,

I've been looking for a solution to manage all freelancers working for my business in one place. It would save up a lot of time not having to log into 4-5 different freelance sites (Elance, Guru etc) to communicate with them, set up new projects etc.

Does anyone know of a hosted solution, alternatively a script I could install on my own server where I could create individual accounts for each freelancer, assign tasks, let them send me reports, communicate with them etc?

I'd greatly appreciate any suggestions.

Thanks!
#freelancers #managing #solution
  • Profile picture of the author vansterdam
    If you're lucky, you can lure them away from doing business through the existing freelance networks. I find that most freelancers are more than willing to go against the elance terms and conditions and do business directly with you. That saves them the elance fees and saves you time.

    I don't know if any way to manage multiple freelance network accounts. That may be a good idea for a new software application.
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  • Profile picture of the author Glenn Grundberg
    Basecamp, baby.
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    I'm Baaaaaack...
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    • Profile picture of the author lindgren
      hi
      I use basecamp along with my 3 partners - everything is in one place and we all know whats's going on and what we decided. Milestones, to-do list - email notification and so on.

      Couldn't do big projects without it since we are placed in 4 different countries.
      I love it :-)
      Signature
      Best Wishes
      Tina Lindgren


      http://www.tinalindgren.com
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  • Profile picture of the author UncleHQ
    Hi,

    I use a script for this - which is excellent - I am also an authorized reseller ;-)

    Turbo Inhouse Project Manager - more than happy to P.M. you with a link.

    Brian
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  • Profile picture of the author TrueMarketer
    I have had a look at basecamp and it looks great. In fact, I just bought a subscription. Thanks guys!
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  • Profile picture of the author kckaz
    For even a more shoe string budget, just use a spreadsheet in google docs with an account everyone can log into
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    Follow me on Twitter: twitter.com/KennyKurtz and I'll follow you back.

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  • Profile picture of the author GuerrillaIM
    Central Desktop - Project collaboration, Team collaboration, Intranets, Wiki Software - Central Desktop

    Some might say it's a bit pricey but this tool has saved me from a nervous breakdown
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  • Profile picture of the author Janus
    Originally Posted by jakobh View Post

    Hi,

    I've been looking for a solution to manage all freelancers working for my business in one place. It would save up a lot of time not having to log into 4-5 different freelance sites (Elance, Guru etc) to communicate with them, set up new projects etc.


    Thanks!
    Maybe I missing the boat here but you are only required to communicate through these sites for the initial project posting. Direct contact is allowed after that point but you really want to use the site to screen all the bidders. When I used one, I chose to directly email only my top two contenders. After the job was awarded and for repeat work I always went direct.

    Good Luck,
    Pat
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  • Profile picture of the author J. Barry Mandel
    I use Gmail.

    I can chat with my freelancers/VA's using Gtalk.

    Google docs as someone mentioned before can be shared by as many people as you want to have rights to accessing it.

    They would have to just get their own gmail account and then invite you as a friend etc.

    They can send you reports and you would have all of them centralized in one area for easy access in your shared documents area.

    It's a FREE functional solution that works great


    Originally Posted by jakobh View Post

    Hi,

    I've been looking for a solution to manage all freelancers working for my business in one place. It would save up a lot of time not having to log into 4-5 different freelance sites (Elance, Guru etc) to communicate with them, set up new projects etc.

    Does anyone know of a hosted solution, alternatively a script I could install on my own server where I could create individual accounts for each freelancer, assign tasks, let them send me reports, communicate with them etc?

    I'd greatly appreciate any suggestions.

    Thanks!
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  • Profile picture of the author GuerrillaIM
    Also Zoho have some free collaboration services
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  • Profile picture of the author elle56
    You can also look at onehub and myhuddle. We used these two in the past for collaborating with other team members located in other countries. These tools are easy to use. You can create a separate page for each of your member to keep track of his or her tasks.
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  • Profile picture of the author emsplanet
    basecampq is the best solution. It helps you with setting deadlines, stating instructions, handling reports etc. Go for it ..
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