The rise of the global platform economy, and with it, the increasing number
of professionals among the gig workers and the increasing number of precariety
among highly skilled professionals and professions (Poutanen & Kovalainen 2017,
2016) all give rationale for the question of how adequately the current theories
used are explaining the professionalism and its legitimacy and legitimation
basis in contemporary societies. This paper addresses the question of theories
used in analyzing professionalism and professions. This is done by scrutinizing
the theoretization of professionalism vis á vis theoretization of entrepreneurial
activities and entrepreneurship. Several new ways of organizing professions
increasingly emerge through and with the help of digital platforms and global
work platforms even for professionals. The liminal space of not being waged
worker nor entrepreneur puts professions into new situation. On the other
hand the ‘easiness’ of starting up a business and the ‘toughness’ of building up
the reputation into trustworthy professional do raise new questions concerning
the organization of professions. The argument developed in the paper is to
relate, align and dissect the theories used for the analysis of professions and
professionalism and the theories used for the analysis of entrepreneurship vis a
vis another, in order to seek for new theoretization for the changing professions
in the contemporary societies.