It has been a while since we saw something new in the professional social media scene. LinkedIn started in 2002, and XING followed in 2003. But, unfortunately, nothing much has happened if you look at them beyond aesthetic changes.

But the COVID working revolution has brought more than remote working and decentralized offices; the rise of Polygamous careers.

What are Polygamous Careers

Companies have moved from function-based to project-based. In most firms is strange to stay in the same position or project for more than a year.

In that line, professionals are also becoming project-centric instead of company-centric.

Adobe’s CPO Scott Belsky defined Polygamous Careers as:

“People with multiple skills taking multiple projects and their profession being a portfolio of projects.”

For example:

• A software developer that is a Yoga instructor in the afternoons.
• An analyst working on different projects for the same or different companies.
• Or a government employee that is as well a coffee roaster.

What is Polywork

Polywork is a professional social network founded by Peter Johnston that plots your jobs, learnings, events and achievementsin a timeline.

The entries support multimedia formats.

Additionally, you can add badges to your highlights as well as collaborators.

What makes Polywork Different

LinkedIn is an Online CV. Yes, you can add certificates and courses and write posts, but in today’s world, people are multifaceted, and there is where Linked in falls short.

Polywork speaks less about keyword-based tailored CVs and more about outcomes.

It is also not about titles but your work: Your designs, code, campaigns, analysis, presentations, videos and articles.

LinkedIn is static, Polywork is dynamic. For example, your timeline could show a new job as well as your last week first stand-up comedy.

I read somewhere that the platform is oriented to technology professionals, but I found it also suitable for other careers.

Polywork Multiverse

When you create your profile, you can choose activities you can engage with. For example, advise on resumes, beta test new products, volunteer, or simply a full-time job.

Then other users can contact you based on your preferences.

Space Station is an area to find professionals based on their activities and tags.

There is also a board with all the current opportunities.

Why I love the concept of Polywork

• You can talk about things you are proud of and not only work. In my case, I added my food blog as writing about food is something I love.
• Promotes Meritocracy: In business, a meritocracy means that each person’s performance and talent is used to hire, promote and reward, without any resort to gender, ethnicity, class or nationality.
• Fewer titles, more facts. Titles tend not to reflect the reality and the outcomes of a job in many cases.

What I liked about the Polywork website

• Simplicity, because Simple is Beautiful
• Fluid: everything works well, links, previews, dates. It is an enjoyable and smooth experience.

Things to improve

• Adding tags is time-consuming. You need to select one by one, and there is no option to choose multiple simultaneously.
• Navigation: After I added some of my highlights, the timeline was long. I wonder if a Year Selector similar to Google Photos would make it faster.

• 3rd Party Integrations: I would love to see an API integration that posts in Polywork every time I write in Medium or add a new position on LinkedIn.

How to start with Polywork

Polywork is still testing the waters, and there is a waiting list. You can skip it if you have an invitation.

As an early adopter, Polywork gave me ten invitations for the Beta. Redeem yours here:

Then building your timeline is simple. You can even use your domain to point to your Polywork profile.

Conclusion

Polywork is an exciting concept. As a soft skills and meritocracy fan, I love the idea of showcasing all of yourself as a whole entity and not only positions. And even if you add only your jobs, you can include highlights and milestones that your company, team, or yourself attained.

I wouldn’t be surprised to see LinkedIn doing something similar soon.

Polywork is a professional social media platform for the new work life.