NCA Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year
Platform Technology
Finalist
Fabio Rosati
president and CEO
Elance
As the president and CEO of one of the fastest growing and most dynamic staffing businesses, Fabio Rosati is showing what it truly means to work differently.
A native of Italy, Rosati emigrated to the U.S. to attend Georgetown University with the intent to return and eventually run his family-owned business. However, when the business failed, Rosati decided to stay in the U.S. and launched a successful career in management consulting.
He joined Elance in 2001 after being recruited to help stabilize, nurture and grow the struggling start-up enterprise software business.
As a result of his dedication and drive, Rosati revived the fledgling software business, sold it and in 2007 used the proceeds to launch a new and revolutionary Elance platform that propelled the traditional hiring and staffing process for contract talent into the digital realm.
Online staffing enables businesses to hire and connect with contingent staff just in time and fractionally. Rosati’s Elance pioneered the online staffing model and leads in its promotion.
More than 500,000 businesses, ranging from Fortune 500 companies to startups, use Elance to hire a single individual for a few hours or entire teams on an ongoing basis.
A tireless researcher of behavioral science, Rosati also seeks to understand what works for employees in a traditional work environment, and then translates/codes that into the Elance platform.
Every new user starts at Level 0 and is promoted to higher levels based upon points earned each week that come from 20 metrics specific to the work the employee performs. Employees at a higher level earn a higher wage and have more work made available to them.
Rosati also recently hired an independent consultant to analyze Elance’s global social impact. Notably, the report found the company is making its mark on individuals and communities worldwide by providing access to work that otherwise would be unavailable.
How to reach: Elance, www.elance.com
