Working Not Working Inc., a Fiverr company, the leading platform for curated creative talent, launched NTRNL™, a new way to source internal talent and showcase hidden employee passions and expertise for creative ventures and projects. NTRNL allows employees to create human-centered and highly personalized profiles, highlighting their project portfolio, skills, and interests while providing companies with greater visibility into their team’s expertise, passions, and willingness to join new and exciting projects. Following Wieden+Kennedy being the company’s first customer over ten years ago, they are also the first official launch partner of NTRNL.
NTRNL’s advanced search and sourcing capabilities allow any creative organization to find employees for the right projects from its entire workforce – regardless of location, title, or experience. NTRNL also facilitates collaboration throughout an increasingly global workforce, effectively allowing employees to connect based on shared interests and fostering a sense of belonging across team members. The platform can help accelerate new business opportunities by tapping into otherwise unknown employee interests, skills, and experience beyond their day-to-day work. NTRNL will bring together the best teams and give employees more access to the opportunities they care about most.
The announcement comes at a critical juncture across the creative sector, as creative agencies have struggled to adapt to an ever-changing workforce. Employee burnout, spurred on by a growing lack of passion-driven work and career advancement opportunities, has plagued the industry for years. Talent retention remains a top priority for creative agencies, with employee turnover steadily increasing amidst a tough economic climate and an outdated agency model that deprioritizes employee satisfaction. Thus, it is no surprise that over 90% of organizations are concerned about employee retention today.
The problem lies in a lack of corporate commitment to and development of talent. In 2023, only 15% of workers reported that their employer actively encouraged them to seek out new opportunities within the company. Similarly, 47% of workers feel that a lack of opportunities to advance professionally is only increasing employee turnover within their respective organizations.
“As a platform connecting top creatives with the most innovative brands, Working Not Working understands the countless hurdles the creative community faces when it comes to attracting, retaining, and satisfying talent,” says Working Not Working Co-founder & CEO, Justin Gignac. “NTRNL sheds light onto the very talent that makes creative companies agencies successful in the first place and what truly brings them fulfillment. A more human way to look at and engage your humans.”
Working Not Working Managing Director Nicolina Jennings adds, “We set out to create a product that addresses retention by putting the people first. You can successfully retain your top talent, nurture and upskill all employees, all while saving costs from redundant hiring and recruiting externally. Because, at the end of the day, what employees want most is access to the right opportunities and challenges.”
NTRNL is customizable and can be personalized to suit the branding and culture of each organization. For example, Wieden+Kennedy rebranded NTRNL to the Spore Directory as a reflection of something that is meaningful to the agency and its employees. Doing so ensures that NTRNL can fit into any company’s overarching ethos and corporate structure as needed.
As NTRNL’s first customer, Wieden+Kennedy has been rolling out the product across all offices globally since August – effectively providing its 1,800 employees with more ways to stay connected and learn more about one another.
“NTRNL is sparking our efforts to connect employees, allowing for us to further highlight the creative talent this agency strives to attract and nurture,” said Scott Kleiner, Global Culture and Operations Director at Wieden+Kennedy. “With our Spore Directory, it has never been easier to find common interests, past experience and connect enthusiastic employees to tackle projects of any shape and size. NTRNL ultimately allows for our employees to express their unique talents, become inspired by one another, and surface new creative opportunities and outlets.”
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