You know what HR has been talking about lately? Gig work. Side hustles. Contingent work. Contract work. Interim work. Temporary jobs. In other words, all the variations of work arrangements that are not full-time employment.

But this type of work is notorious for not being managed well. Companies will call a temp firm to find a person to do a task, even if multiple employees in the company’s own workforce could have done the project. There has been little attention paid to the ability of internal employees to find projects at their own companies.

Most companies don’t have a sense of employees’ capabilities. Too frequently, employees with rich and diverse backgrounds are often under-used.

Organizations can benefit by uncovering and unleashing these employee capabilities. Employees can benefit by using their strengths to work on critical projects while obtaining new skills. And sometimes, employees just need some variety in their work to recharge and motivate them.

This is where Project Marketplaces come in. With Project Marketplaces, employees browse for internal projects. And managers can find capable internal employees instead of going externally.

AI matches employees to projects based on employees’ capabilities, their interest, and the needs of a project.

The result is that employees can deploy skills they have but don’t get to use much in their day jobs. Employees get to create, and deepen, relationships with colleagues not in their regular departments or teams. For employees who might consider leaving for a new challenge, this resume-building opportunity provides them another reason to stay.

For the company, instead of spending money and time searching for and training a contractor or temp, managers can engage existing employees. Managers improve productivity by using talent that already understands the organization’s tools, processes, and culture.

Only with deep-learning AI — and matching based on capabilities and potential, can a Project Marketplace truly work.