Freelancer marketplace ODesk files executive employee options of $2.65M

Freelancer marketplace ODesk is giving out $2.65 million to it executives as part of its 2013 executive employee option grants, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

ODesk connects companies who have quick projects or tasks in need of completion with available freelancers and contractors. Sometimes you need someone for those one-off projects: a translator, a blog post writer, a web designer, or app developer. You don’t want to salary those people, but finding the right freelancer or contractor isn’t always easy. Sites like LinkedIn, Indeed, and Monster don’t cater specifically these needs.

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When the freelance industry is projected to be a $5 billion market in the next five years, ODesk and its competitors are needed. ODesk competes with marketplaces such as Elance, and industry-specific freelance marketplaces such as Rev and Grammarly.

Currently the company has 4.5 million freelancers listed on the site. It recently announced that those freelancers have made over $1 billion in the company’s lifetime. Fifty-eight percent of those hiring companies on ODesk are startups.

The filing lists Jonathan Seelig of Globespan Capital Partners, Greg Gretsch of Sigma West, Kevin Harvey of Benchmark, and Robert Frick, along with a number of executives.

ODesk was founded in 2005 and is headquartered in Redwood City, Calif. The company has raised $44 million total in four different rounds of funding.