First we had to do some research. Regardless of the fact that it is uncertain which techniques will be used in ten years time, it is however possible to do research on this subject.

Most of the techniques used now have not been developed to the full extend. We have determined the relevance of the current developments to conclude if they can be applied in our scenario.

Our inspiration was definitely from the host- speakers at the seminars. Especially Rob Veldt from Cash4Idea.com and the guys from Microsoft had really inspired us.

Also the Intermediar with their article ‘the 3 myths of flexibel working’ (Dutch article) inspired us.

In Dutch there is a saying: The best captains stand on the shore. Meaning, there are always people that think they know better. Well, why not have these captains on the shore help decide where the boat should go ?

Here is a better example.
Company X wants to launch a new online software package. But they are struggling with some issues in the concept phase because of missing  expertise. Besides this they would also really like to know what the consumer will think of some new features they have in mind and if it actually would make sense to add them.

John Smith is an accountant but spends all of his spare time writing C++ codes for software and has joined many forums to discuss his hobby.

Our concept is a solution for both company X and John Smith and is a virtual community where companies and interested individuals can find each other and finish projects.

Companies that need extra expertise come in contact with people who have the experience they are looking for. The advantage is that there are available experts from all over the world that also can give a fresh view. This can result in new approaches which can increase the quality of the concept.

Freelancers and agencies can also register in the community and state their expertise.

The members who have matching skills will get an invitation to join the project. The company will be able to choose from the replies who would be best to help with the project. This will be made easier with the help of the Recommendation Service (like on LinkedIn). Recommendations are important, the more a freelancer got, the more chance he/she will have to be chosen. After this is done the information is shared and the project can start.

A specific project environment will be created for all chosen freelancers where everybody can work in. To login to this environment you will use an OpenID.

This is an open standard that lets you sign in to many sites or services on the Web. All personal information is stored in here. This means less usernames and passwords to remember and less time spent signing up for new sites.

As soon as a freelancer starts working on the project the “working clock” will register the time that is spend on the task.

All the necessary software needed to complete the project ( for instance a photo-edit program or a 3D program etc.) can be found in the community and will be web based.

When the software is used by anybody within the project, Company X will buy the software license for the duration of the project so everybody involved will be able to use it. Because of the OpenID login it is also registered which freelancer already has a license for specific software and therefore be able toalso use the software within the community.

All communication will be done through Instant Messaging (IM). This has got an important role because it's the communication tool between
project members since they have never seen each other.

Virtually all meetings or group communication will be done with conference calls/chat or video conference.