People interested in offering and seeking jobs specifically related to Free Software might find the GNU Herds project interesting...

Suppose your business is focused on Free Software solutions. Or maybe you want a job developing Free Software. Sure, you could try one of the thousands of recruiting businesses. The problem is, you might wind up in a position that has little or nothing to do with Free Software. The people you want to hire may not share your commitment to Free Software. You might try networking within the GNU Herds Free Software Association, a project aimed at bringing together individuals and businesses for whom Free Software is more than just a development model.

GNU Herds lists a handful of business models on their home page, one of which is one I have mentioned frequently in discussions about business models. The Flexible Business Network is closely in line with what I have suggested as a possible business model for a libre-oriented Microsoft (should work for any company). Rather than have a gargantuan monopolist enterprise, the libre business model quite literally drives business into a less structured, more flexible entity - a network.

In a conversation with my sister-in-law (some time ago now), she asked how Microsoft would survive as a libre software company, if it chose that route. I quickly pointed out that it would not - and should not survive as it exists now. It must change. I pointed out that most businesses should focus on developing partnerships in order to be able to handle the 'big' orders. The smaller entities could survive much better independently, and simultaneously collaborate and compete with each other on business opportunities. I referred to "alliances", rather than "networks", but the latter is probably more suitable.

Back many moons ago - o.k., would you believe centuries, Chief? - villages had people who used their talents to help each other out. Think of the village blacksmith, for example. The farmer and builder relied on the blacksmith for horseshoes and tools, while he relied on them for his house and food. Right. That's just good sound economics in play. But people began combining resources to accomplish bigger and better things. Now fast forward back to the present.

Suppose you run a small development shop. Maybe it's just you, or you and one or two other people. A 500-employee company wants you to develop a project for them - and stipulates you must also provide support. But you don't have the manpower for that. So you call up someone in your network who can. They're familiar with your software anyway, as they've worked with you before. Now you're "big enough" to handle the larger company's needs. Still, once the project is over, each organization is still able to seek out new opportunities without the inevitable layoffs, etc.

Of course, Microsoft not only works with development and support partners, they offer their own services as well. In my model, they would spin off this group into smaller entities, who could then continue to work as they always have, albeit with a bit of management overhead. That actually might reduce the management overhead, since their is no longer a need to run something through multiple levels of management for approval.

Now, GNU Herds is an interesting concept, since the association could essentially act as a clearinghouse for projects to be organized and staffed - a sort of network incubator, if you will. Rather than simply expect people to submit resumes and apply for jobs, GNU Herds could help businesses and individuals connect to collaborate on available projects. All the usual jobhunting goes on as normal, but also the exchange of offers and bids.

The aim of GNU Herds is "to assist and encourage people in their paid work as Free Software authors, getting the highest levels of competence and efficiency." The association is global in scope, seeks to make it easy for businesses and individuals interested in Free Software as a business model to communicate and seeks to support a variety of business models, as a matter of flexibility.

And GNU Herds is, indeed, a rare bird. Namely, it is controlled, not by a particular entity, but by its members. To become a member, you must demonstrate some contribution to the Free Software community, though I did not see the specifics of that on the website. The bottom line is, it appears to be organized for, and aiming to offer, jobhunting, professional networking and business development - all in one fell swoop. If they offer tools akin to Hiitch, I suspect they will draw quite a crowd.

The site appears to be in need of some additional English participants, namely to assist with the English language translation of the site. That said, the site is available in six languages. And the site could use a bit of marketing work as well - something to entice people into joining. The only job offers appear to be demonstrations, but I did not register - at least not yet. So I don't know what might be hidden to the un-registered. To be fair, the site displays a notice of being at the beta stage, so it is not very far along in its progress.

All in all, it appears to be an interesting project, and one I want to keep an eye on. I think Free Software is vitally important to sustaining our progress. I also think we need a set of tools to help develop and sustain the development of a Free Software economy. The Free Software Foundation promotes Free Software. Now, here's a site that seeks to help people get paid to write Free Software. It's just one more tool in the Free Software community's box.