What MROSupply.com Learned From Hiring 1,000+ Freelancers on Upwork

After more than a thousand freelance hires across ten years, MROSupply.com has turned flexible talent into a business superpower. Director Matt Menashe shares how freelancers became a core advantage for the company, and the lessons learned along the way.

The challenge

MROSupply.com is the e-commerce portal for Mechanical Drives and Belting, a fourth-generation industrial distributor of motors, bearings, gears, and automation equipment. When Matt Menashe joined the company 15 years ago, the industry and customers were still skeptical about going online.

“At that time, they said that no one was going to buy anything online. And they were right,” Matt recalls. “For about three years, we didn't sell anything. Then one day, we got an order for about $3,000.”

From that moment, Matt set out to digitize the business, which required skills they didn’t have in house. Traditional hiring routes were slow, expensive, and often a poor fit for their needs. So he turned to Upwork.

The solution

Matt was already comfortable working with freelancers — he’d used Upwork for more than a decade at previous companies. At MROSupply.com, he first turned to freelancers for support with customer service, data entry, and other admin tasks.

Even back then, the appeal was clear: access to a broad range of skilled talent without the limits of location. “Upwork makes hiring so easy,” Matt says. “I just enter what I’m looking for, and I get exactly who I need.”

 “Upwork makes hiring so easy. I just enter what I’m looking for, and I get exactly who I need.”

That ease and flexibility became a powerful tool when MROSupply.com opened a satellite office in Mexico. Matt simply typed in the city name and skillset to find the local freelancers he needed.

This search precision is a big reason Matt prefers Upwork over traditional hiring resources. “Staffing agencies only show you people who are local or fit their mold, so you don’t always get the right fit,” he explains. “On Upwork, I can search for exactly what skills and background I need.”

That same mindset led to a creative approach to hiring a freelance sales rep. “Sales isn’t my strong suit,” Matt admits. “Through Upwork, I hired a freelance sales trainer to help me structure the project and vet sales reps. Once I found the ideal rep, the trainer stayed on to support him. I ended up with this almost hands-free system where one freelancer helped another do their best work.”

The results

Freelancers now play a central role in how MROSupply.com scales projects and capabilities. “Through freelancers, I’ve been able to bring in hundreds of skills for the company,” Matt reflects. “Thanks to the connections I’ve made on Upwork, some of these relationships have gone on for more than 10 years.”

Freelancers help MROSupply.com stay nimble and competitive, especially as tech continues to evolve. Matt says:

“We’ve used Upwork for everything — from data entry to developers. Now I use Upwork to find AI experts to automate things that are data entry or labor-heavy tasks. The freelancers know exactly what to do and give us a resolution right away.”

Matt doesn’t hesitate to bring flexible professionals into complex technical projects either. For example, when MROSupply.com transitioned to a new enterprise resource planning (ERP) system.

Matt found that local agencies and consultants had high costs and required a huge time commitment before a project could even start. “There’s driving to meetings, Zoom calls, kickoffs, and launches. I think we’re all tired of that stuff,” Matt shares. “Through Upwork, I can find really sharp people, tell them what I need, and be done with it.”

In addition to speed and skills, Matt values the perspectives freelancers bring.

“Upwork gives us access to people with different experiences and viewpoints from all over the world,” Matt notes. “Some come with fresh ideas because they’re early in their careers. Others have worked with dozens of companies and bring entirely new ways of thinking. You can’t find that kind of diversity locally.”

How MROSupply.com builds stronger teams with freelancers

Matt has refined his process for building high-performing freelance teams over the years. After 10 years, he’s found that success doesn’t center on the process, but the people, and he offers five tips for success.

1. Hire the human, not just the skills

“Fit matters as much as skills. When interviewing freelancers, I imagine working closely with them at a trade show for a week and ask myself, ‘Would it be great or will it be terrible?’”

2. Know when to move on

“One of the advantages of Upwork is being able to hire quickly. And if it’s not working out, we can part ways quickly too.”

3. Go global

“Don’t be shy about looking for people in different cities and countries because they often bring in new ideas and fresh perspectives. You may end up with very experienced people that you probably couldn’t afford if they were available locally.”

4. Think creatively about who and how you hire

“Freelancers can do fantastic things from anywhere in the world. So approach work with an open mind about who should do it and how it could get done.”

5. Value people, not just output

“You’re building connections with professionals that you can go back to again and again. Some of our freelancers have been with us longer than some of our employees.”

A decade in, and excited about what’s next

Over 10 years, Matt’s seen how Upwork continues to develop. “One thing that's great about Upwork are the security and vetting features. They’ve gotten better and better over time. Now, it's very robust, very stable, and very dependable.”

But what stands out most for him isn’t the logistics; it’s the mindset of the people on the platform. Matt explains:

“When you’re hiring through other sites like Indeed or LinkedIn, people might be half-interested or talking to you on their lunch break with their phone low. On Upwork, the freelancer is ready to go. It’s clear why they’re there.”

After more than a thousand freelance hires, that clarity and reliability still matter, especially when Upwork makes them so easy to reach.