Community and Sense of Belonging in CRM Freelancing

Working in Talent Acquisition I sit in interviews with people who are waiting for the right opportunity to kickstart their freelance career. Something that comes up from time to time are questions about customer "teams" and where they'll find "colleagues" after they make this shift. Amidst all the pull factors such as money and freedom, people are clearly also thinking about the social aspects a traditional model of work can provide.

This loss of a "workplace," even loneliness, can be very real concerns for some. Gallup's State of the Global Workplace 2024 research backs this up, at least partly: fully remote workers, which a lot of CRM freelancing can be, report loneliness at a higher rate of 25%, versus 21% for hybrid and around 16% for on-site workers.

When it comes to freelancing, solo entrepreneurs actually seem quite good at building networks: according to Suomen Yrittäjät, 85% of Finnish solo entrepreneurs are part of some kind of peer network. But that doesn't automatically translate into a sense of community. The same survey found that among those facing work-related challenges, more than a quarter never sought help at all. Here’s the good news: according to Finnish pension insurer Elo, small business owners and entrepreneurs with genuine support from their network report feeling more confident in their ability to keep working, and more optimistic about their future.

These insights are in line with what we hear from our own Xberry network. Having phone contacts is not quite comparable to having real support in your working life. People may choose to go independent for their own personal reasons, but everyone needs some sense of belonging to come from their work, not just from their free-time activities. Growberry believes this is something that, while tricky, can be incorporated into the freelancing landscape. Here are some ways our Xberry model aims to build community:

1. You get to choose

Being part of the Xberry network is entirely opt-in. Our Xberries show up to the events, the group chats, and the lunches because they actually want to, not because it's something some internal HR invited them to six months ago. These are often face-to-face opportunities to chat and genuinely connect with people who share your experience of going independent. Getting to choose a community in your career is clearly a different experience from merely being assigned to one.

We are aware of this and therefore we want to do our part to make Growberry worth showing up for. For example earlier this year, we gifted our active Xberries a bag some practical summer items. See what Modhurima Sil’s post about it on LinkedIn. We are always excited to think of new ways (big and small) to show our Xberries their involvement and work matters.

2. Constant across projects

A solo freelancer's "team" is whoever they happen to be embedded with on a given project, and these connections can of course be meaningful while they last. However, the day the contract wraps, so does that work team. Additionally, some one-off meetups with people in your external network are pretty much the solo freelancer go-to. We at Growberry aim to build something a bit more tangible. An annual Xberry Day, group chats, working lunches you can always show up to when you need a sense of community. Xberries are people who stick around to support your career journey.

3. Peer recognition and support

When you're employed, you have access to meaningful annual review cycles, often a manager who gives you frequent feedback, and peers who have your back. In solo freelance you risk losing some of these structures. Usually nobody is watching your work closely except maybe the client footing the bill, but the same client might not see your professional growth across projects. Xberries can give you some of this recognition and support back. Growberry Success Lead knows what you've actually shipped and puts in a good word for you whenever and wherever they can. You also have a entire group of often fully external peers to spar with or complain to after a bad week. None of these structures depend on staying with one client and you are free to chase your dream projects.

4. Belonging isn't tied to utilization

Our Xberries get to choose when they want to take on new projects and have a say in what their career journey across assignments ends up looking like. It’s up to them if they want to take a break to focus on other things from time to time. In a lot of other working models in the industry, downtime between contracts can feel like a liability, like you're just a cost sitting on the bench. With the Xberry model, you are a solo entrepreneur and valued regardless of your current project status. Showing up to our lunches or sharing input in the groupchat has nothing to do with your utilization rate. You are part of the Xberry community whether you're mid-project or between gigs travelling with your family.

So now, when people I get to talk to ask me about community, I’m happy to say Growberry is choosing to actively build one. This hopefully means there is now one less thing standing between you and your dream career as a CRM freelancer.

Are you a CRM professional thinking about going independent? Fill the form on our Expert Network site and we'll be in touch.