ST group: a network of self-employed people

2017 – The ST group provides consultancy and provides training on social technical system theory. The contact address is in Vught, the Netherlands. The ST group was founded in 1990 by Pierre Amelsvoort and Guido Scholtes as a ‘normal’ company with (permanent) employees. Meanwhile, the group has been operating as a network for almost ten years. 

Workplace innovation
Just before the crisis in 2008 the organisation transformed to a permanent network of self-employed people. The organisation consists of three partners who have known each other for longtime. The partners are employed by their own limited company. The three limited companies have a common subsidiary. All sales by the partners pass the subsidiary (no other flows) directly to the individual limited companies. The partners pay a certain percentage of their revenue to the subsidiary. Besides the partners seven self-employed individuals are part of the network; they are named ‘associates’. The primary division of tasks between the partners and the associates is that the partners bring in projects and execute them together with the associates. 

Drivers
The main reason for this transformation was that the founders no longer wanted to bear the responsibility and risk for 14 employees. 

Approach
The intention to transform the organisation is discussed with all permanent staff, except the secretary and they left the company. Then the ST group has continued as a network of a total of 10 self-employed people. 

Result

Already for a considerable period of time the group operates to everyone’s satisfaction.

All participants are relatively autonomous and equivalent. All is transparent and can be discussed. There is less job security and income security, all involved bear the risks of independence themselves. 

Reference

See the attachment: ‘ST-groep: een netwerkorganisatie van zzp’ers’.