Culture, Tech and Trust: What Will Make or Break Your Contractor Strategy in 2025

Part 2 in a 3-Part Series on the Future of Contract Work

If your organisation depends on contract talent, culture and technology can no longer be afterthoughts. Today’s contractors are more selective, more vocal, and more influenced by the work environment you offer. As we uncovered in Part 1 of our 2025 State of Contracting series, expectations have shifted around how contractors want to work. Now, we turn our focus to where and why they choose to work, and what kind of environment keeps them coming back.

In this article, we unpack two powerful insights from our contractor survey of over 550 professionals across Australia: the increasing demand for a principled, transparent company culture, and the evolving relationship contractors have with emerging technologies like AI. The bottom line? If you want to be a client of choice, it’s time to take both seriously.

Culture Matters (Even for Contractors)

Often, when we talk about “company culture,” we think of permanent employees. But the survey makes it clear that company culture matters a lot to contractors, too, just in a slightly different way. Contractors are looking at culture through a practical lens: they care about the aspects of culture that directly affect their daily work and well-being. In fact, the 2025 report found that the top cultural factors contractors value are:

• Open communication and collaboration: 79% rated this as very important. (They want to be kept in the loop and have open channels to talk with managers and team members, even if they’re “just a contractor.”)
  
  
• Workplace flexibility in hours and location: 75% rated as very important. (This ties back to hybrid work and schedule autonomy - a culture that embraces flexible work arrangements, instead of rigid 9-to-5 in-office expectations, is highly attractive.)
  
  
• Ethical behaviour and corporate social responsibility: ~65% rated as very important. (Contractors do consider a company’s integrity and values. They want to work with organisations that “do the right thing” and have a positive impact, which also makes them feel prouder of the work they do.)
  
  

Other cultural elements that scored notably for contractors were things like having constructive feedback mechanisms (about half of contractors said this is very important) and positive onboarding experiences (around 50% also). That’s right - onboarding isn’t just a checkbox process; it leaves a real impression. A smooth, welcoming onboarding can set contractors up for success, while a disorganised one can frustrate them from day one. Think about it: a contractor’s assignment might be only a few months, so if you waste the first week with poor onboarding (no access to systems, unclear project goals, etc.), you’ve burned a big chunk of their time and goodwill. Contractors appreciate when companies get them up to speed quickly and efficiently, with the tools and information they need to excel.

Interestingly, some aspects of culture that are often talked about in full-time employment were less critical to contractors. For example, diversity and inclusion initiatives were rated very important by about 39% of contractors, and inclusion in staff social activities by roughly 37%. It’s not that contractors don’t value diversity or being included - they do - but compared to day-to-day work conditions like communication, flexibility, and ethics, these ranked lower. Many contractors operate a bit on the “outside” of the core employee base, so they may not expect to be invited to every team BBQ or care as much about corporate club activities. Their focus is on respectful, fair treatment in the context of work. As long as they are treated equally in the professional realm (given the info and resources they need, not excluded from important meetings, etc.), they’re generally satisfied. The survey findings suggest contractors prioritise a culture that is transparent, flexible, and principled over one that is socially warm and fuzzy but perhaps less organised or inclusive in work practices.

Implications for enterprises: Company culture isn’t just an HR buzzword - it can make or break your ability to retain great contractors. Here’s what enterprises should do to foster a contractor-friendly culture:

• Communicate openly and often: Loop contractors into team communications and meetings when relevant. Don’t leave them in the dark. For instance, if there’s a project update or a change in direction, make sure contractors hear it promptly from managers (not through the grapevine). An open communication culture tells contractors you value their contribution.
  
  
• Be flexible with “how” work gets done: We’ve touched on work hours and location flexibility, but it’s worth reiterating - a culture that judges by results, not rigid processes, will earn contractors’ respect. Also, be flexible in policies that affect them (within reason). For example, if a contractor wants to observe a different religious holiday or needs a midday break to pick up kids, a supportive culture will accommodate this just as it would for a full-timer.
  
  
• Demonstrate ethics and purpose: Contractors are attracted to organisations with a positive mission and ethical leadership. You can showcase this by emphasising your company’s social responsibility projects or ethical standards during recruitment. More importantly, live those values in everyday decisions. If a contractor spots ethical lapses or a “say one thing, do another” culture, they’ll be turned off quickly. On the flip side, when they see strong integrity, it builds loyalty.
  
  
• Streamline the onboarding process: Treat a contractor’s first day/week with as much care as you would a new permanent hire’s. Have their accounts and equipment ready, give them a proper orientation (even if abbreviated), and introduce them to key team members. A positive onboarding experience tells the contractor, “We’re organised, we’re excited to have you, and we want you to succeed.” That feeling can significantly boost their engagement from the get-go.
  
  
• Foster inclusion (where it counts): While contractors might not insist on being invited to every team social, they do want to feel included in work-related matters. Invite them to team huddles or brainstorming sessions that pertain to their project. Solicit their input and acknowledge their achievements publicly. Making contractors feel like part of the team (and not “second-class citizens”) is a cultural signal that will encourage them to give their best and maybe even stick around for future contracts.
  
  

In short, build a culture that contractors describe as transparent, flexible, and fair. When your workplace has that reputation, word spreads - contractors talk to each other - and you become a “client of choice” in the contracting community.

Contractors and AI: Embracing Tech, Bridging Gaps

It seems you can’t discuss the future of work without bringing up artificial intelligence. So, how do contractors feel about AI in 2025? In a nutshell, they see it as a useful tool, not a threat, but there’s a spectrum of adoption and some gaps to address. According to Oncore’s survey, most contractors view AI pragmatically: they plan to use AI to enhance their work, not necessarily to reinvent their careers. About 63% of contractors said they plan to use AI for specific tasks or projects - things like speeding up data analysis, automating parts of coding or content creation, or handling repetitive tasks. Only a small minority (roughly 12%) aim to fully transform their career around AI integration (these might be folks really diving into machine learning, AI-specialist roles, etc.). On the other hand, about 26% of contractors admitted they’re not considering using AI at all at this stage, whether due to the nature of their work or perhaps uncertainty about how to start with AI.

When it comes to current usage, the data is interesting: over half of the surveyed contractors are using AI tools in their workflow at least every week, and nearly 30% are using AI on a daily basis. These could be tools like coding assistants, AI writing helpers, or data-crunching algorithms that make their work faster and easier. However, a significant chunk - 28% - reported not using AI at all in their work as of now. This split suggests that while many contractors have started embracing AI, there’s still a learning curve and some are on the sidelines, possibly due to a lack of knowledge, training, or suitable opportunities to use AI. The report notes that there’s a clear need for better training, support, and guidance to help more contractors incorporate AI effectively. In other words, contractors are generally open to AI, but not everyone has figured out how to plug it into their toolbox yet.

Another telling statistic: a whopping 77% of contractors believe AI will have a significant impact on their industry or work in the coming years. Only about 16% think AI’s impact will be minimal. So even those who aren’t using AI now are largely aware that they probably will need to eventually. They see the writing on the wall: AI is transforming tasks like coding, writing, data handling, etc., and they expect it to continue. That said, many contractors also recognise the limits of AI - they feel that in roles requiring human judgment, creativity, emotional intelligence, or direct client interaction, AI will be an aid, not a replacement. In conversations, contractors often framed AI as augmenting their work (taking over the boring bits, giving suggestions) so they can focus on higher-value aspects, rather than AI taking their jobs. This aligns with the “enhancement, not replacement” mindset prevalent in the survey.