In 2016, entrepreneur Ted Catino debuted the mobile app GigSmart to connect companies and gig workers on terms beneficial to both. Through GigSmart, Ted Catino assists interested gig economy workers in quickly accessing new opportunities, and businesses and nonprofits in hiring motivated people as the need arises.
From a worker’s point of view, time is money. Instead of having to actively scroll through numerous gig job ads, or undergo lengthy and often-onerous screening and vetting processes company-by-company, workers can use GigSmart to find work and get paid faster.
It’s simple: Create a profile that highlights individual skills and value-added services. Choose a rate of compensation for these services. By building a profile and a steady stream of accomplishments along with client feedback, a worker enjoys the opportunity to become increasingly more trusted and marketable to a range of top-tier businesses.
A business is able to search worker profiles to find the right skills, then send job requests to individual workers. And after the successful completion of a project, a worker is paid 100 percent of earnings, directly through the app.
GigSmart is free for workers, with business customers paying a low 10 percent surcharge to the app in return for the facilitation of the transaction.
The tech news publication AmericanInno, noting the app’s increasing name recognition and applicability, has referred to it as an “Uber” for independent job-seekers. The GigSmart app is indeed so multifunctional that Mr. Catino has secured two patents covering its platform.
