Why now?
It’s worth asking why we didn’t have this expansive view of the workforce all along.
One short answer is that we often did. Specialized suppliers such as ad agencies have been around since essentially the birth of advertising; the first one is usually dated to 1786 when William Taylor opened his office in London. When studios “make films,” they’re mostly writing checks. The actual work is being handled by production companies, who are in turn farming out work to a multitude of specialist contractors, both in front of the camera and behind it.
But the report identifies the changing nature of work as an important driver for more widespread change today. It describes how "The mechanistic, process-driven view of work focused on optimizing job performance has largely given way to a team-based, project-based view of work that’s focused on speed, innovation, and relationships. These changes are compelling some leaders to make new decisions about how to orchestrate their workforces."