Margins Like Upwork’s? Here’s How You Can Get There
What if your firm could make 40% more profit on 80% less revenue?
That’s not a fantasy metric from a VC pitch deck. It’s how modern staffing platforms operate and it’s why traditional firms can’t afford to keep doing business the old way.
I’ve seen it happen in real time. Picture a room full of staffing leaders. I ask them: “Would you take better margins, even with less volume?” Heads nod around the table. Then I share Upwork’s latest numbers. Silence. That silence isn’t confusion. It’s the moment when you realise the model you know isn’t the model that wins.
The truth is uncomfortable. Upwork, a platform many in staffing dismiss as “not real recruitment,” just posted profits that outpace major traditional players, despite pulling in a fraction of their revenue. It’s not magic. It’s a different engine.
Why Platforms Outpace Legacy Models
Researchers at Harvard Business Review and MIT Sloan call it platform economics. In simple terms, every new participant makes the platform more valuable for everyone else. That means revenue and efficiency scale faster than headcount or overhead.
OECD studies on workplace automation show that digital tools can cut manual processing time by double digits. In staffing, that means faster matching, cleaner onboarding, and recruiters focusing on relationship-building instead of admin.
Staffing Industry Analysts data shows that digital talent platforms are still a small slice of the global market, around 3% but growing at a rate far above traditional staffing. In other words, the runway is long, and those margins are up for grabs.
And then there’s the talent experience. Harvard’s research on user experience and conversion shows that even small improvements in a mobile-first journey can drive big gains in applications completed, shifts filled, and candidates returning for more work.
This Isn’t About Replacing Recruiters
Traditional staffing isn’t broken. But it is behind. If you’re still chasing growth with more recruiters, more job boards, more contracts, you’re adding weight to a model that needs lift.
You don’t need more muscle. You need a better engine.
That’s why we built StaffUp. A mobile-first platform designed for staffing firms ready to modernise without tearing down what makes them great. We keep your brand, your relationships, your expertise, and give you the tech that powers platform-level margins:
Matching, onboarding, and tracking that run in the background
Compliance (EOR and AOR) is integrated and scalable
Data and workflows that make every recruiter more effective
Bottom Line
This moment isn’t about survival. It’s about transformation. The firms that embrace platform economics, automation, and smart partnerships will redefine what’s possible in staffing. The ones that don’t will keep wondering how others are pulling off margins they can’t match.
If you want to talk about how to adapt the platform playbook to your business, I’m ready. The sooner you start, the sooner you stop admiring margins from afar and start owning them.
