I've gone 'all temp'

Forget employees. These businesses rely entirely on freelancers. That means no taxes, unemployment insurance or labor regulation.

No unnecessary expenses

george mylonakis temp
  • Entrepreneur: George Mylonakis
  • Company: Go Global Logistics
  • Industry: Customs broker
  • Freelancers: 20

After years of working with independent contractors, I took my entire business in-house and hired 35 employees.

What a mistake that was.

I'm still going through the IRS audit because they don't believe I lost nearly half a million dollars.

For three years, we operated at a loss. My company had salespeople we didn't need making promises we couldn't keep. Our six trucks sometimes shipped half empty. Some employees were even stealing from me.

I fired them all, sold the trucks and stopped leasing warehouses.

Now I'm back to partnering with truckers who always deliver at a fixed cost. I always profit. Computer programmers we found on Freelancer.com build and manage our software. Independent shipping companies, foreign agents and warehouse owners all provide what we need.

I was paying people to sit in a chair, whether or not I got productivity out of them. Now I pay for what I get.

Editor's Note: An earlier version of this story included The Marketing Zen Group and CEO Shama Kabani. It incorrectly identified her employees as freelancers. The company maintains a virtual office and employees work from home. However, they are not independent contractors, and Kabani does indeed pay taxes on their labor.
  @Jose_Pagliery - Last updated March 21 2013 09:33 AM ET

Partner Offers

Most Popular