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by Sharon Shinn The phrase"nine-to-five"conjures up the quin- tessential image of the modern workforce, with every- one arriving in the office simultaneously and everyone walking out in unison at the end of the workday. But that notion is rapidly disintegrating and being replaced by a wholly new kind of worker—one who operates from his home, sets his own hours, and chooses his own projects. Daniel Pink has dubbed these free agents as "tech-savvy, self-reliant, path-charting micropre- neurs"—and he believes they will define the next cen- tury of business. Pink also believes these new workers are redefining the traditional approach to education. Many will be stu- dents who were home schooled at the grade school and high school levels. And at the college level? Pink thinks the free agents of the future may decide to put off high- er education, going directly from high school to the workplace, and choosing to attend college only inter- mittently to acquire specific knowledge. It's an outlook that recasts the future of business and education. Pink, who is based in Washington, D.C, traveled around the United States interviewing hundreds of self- employed and temporary workers to develop the prem- ise for Free Agent Nation. He is a contributing editor for Fast Company magazine and a freelance journalist. In your book, you forecast that fewer people will get college degrees in the future. Instead they'll go directly from high school to the workplace. But if someone doesn't have a degree, especially when applying for a management position, what kinds of qualifiers will employers consider to know this person is right for the job? Part of it is going to be her portfolio of work from previ- ous engagements. How do you measure whether or not an artist is any good? Well, you take a look at her portfolio. And I think that more and more "regular" workers, those who aren't artists, will have the equivalent of a portfolio, whether it's a piece they've written, a strategy they've devised, or simply the balance sheet of a project that shows they actually met their numbers. Those kinds of things are going to matter much more. Many times, degrees have only been proxies for that kind of information. You've noted that for-profit universities are doing a good job of serving free agents, in the manage- ment field and elsewhere. What are they doing photographs by Jessica Lerner that's different from what's happening in tradition- al universities? They're accommodating the institution to the individual, rather than forcing the individual to accommodate himself or herself to the institution. That means they provide everything from classes online to classes at night to classes in many locations to a smorgasbord of offerings. In my view, many online education providers are very customer- centered institutions that are providing some value. I think a lot of community colleges around the country are doing this as well. It's the higher level "prestigious" universities that are having trouble making the transition. At a certain point, people won't be flocking to Ivy League colleges because of the mere reflected glory of the Harvard name. All institutions lose their luster after a certain amount of time if they're not revived and rejuvenated. But aren't there always going to be students and employers who prefer the brand name of an Ivy League school education? Sure. In the 1950s, the phrase "made in Japan" was the sign of a second-rate product; but in the 1980s, "made in Japan" was the sign of a great product. The value of these labels or imprimaturs changes over time. I don't think the Ivy League imprimatur is going to lose all of its value, but I think it's going to lose some of its value as it becomes less of a marker for what someone can do in the workforce. What can Ivy League business schools—or any traditional schools—do to adapt to a changing work environment? I think they need to have a much better sense of who their customers are and a much better sense of what the market demands. I think colleges and universities are going to have to deepen the long-term relationships they have with students. Right now their typical long-term relationships are built around alumni associations—and those are really built around nostalgia and affection for the alma mater. There's nothing wrong with that kind of relationship. However, colleges also can serve a more pragmatic pur- pose in a workforce where people are compelled to con- stantly, constantly upgrade their skills, constantly learn new things, constantly sharpen various aptitudes, and constant- ly find new connections and pathways to work and to other people. Some colleges and universities are doing this already. They offer tours, for example, where the professor takes alumni to Greece, and they all go through the ruins and learn about Greek history. But I think you can also see something like that occur when colleges help alumni devel- op new workplace skills. BizEd MARCH/APRIL 2002 47