Finding contract work via recruiters
This week I spoke with recruiters about how to find work, what the market is like for contractors, and how to best work together.
This week I've continued my research about contracting, but this time focusing on the future. Even though I've got a contract lined up at the end of the month, I thought it would be worthwhile speaking to a recruiter to find out what the market is like at the moment and to build the start of a working relationship. One of the most significant risks in contracting is that it can still fall through at any point. It's just the nature of the job, so it's worthwhile having a plan as well as connections who can help you find a new piece of work quickly.
I decided to go through my LinkedIn messages as I had a fair few from recruiters when they'd reached out to me for perm roles. Generally, I accept the connection request as you never know when it may come in handy as they may have become beneficial connections.
I messaged around 12 or so, letting them know that I'm now contracting, and I may be looking for something in 6 months but would like to catch up and find out how they work with contractors. I had a bit of a mixed response. Some provided details of their coworkers who dealt solely with contractors, others were happy to chat, and some just didn't acknowledge the content of my message and tried to push perm roles. 🙃
The current market
You might have seen the term IR35 floating around on Twitter or LinkedIn, I had a few months ago and paid no attention to it, but it's a big deal at the moment for contractors and freelancers.
IR35 are rules that have come into place that if a contractor behaves like an employee, the client should be paying the tax as if they were said, employee. Many contractors aren't happy about this as it means that if they behave like an employee even though they are contracting, they will also have to pay more tax which comes out of their day rate… If you want to read more about it, you can here as I'm not 100% clued up on it just yet!
IR35 means that many contractors will be moving to contracts that sit outside of these rules, which I can only assume those outside contracts may be harder to come across. That said, I have been speaking with other contractors who tell me it's nothing to really worry about, and it's just something we need to be flexible with and learn more about overtime.
The recruiters I spoke to also highlighted many companies will plan to hire people full time and do away with contractor roles — not exactly the best news for someone going into contracting.
From what I've learnt looking at portfolio's and companies hiring for full-time roles, I believe there's a shortage of mid to senior designers willing to move to a new position. This shortage is probably an advantage to contractors. I've already seen one company hiring a perm employee now advertise that they are looking for a contractor instead now.Â
Day rates and project lengths
A big part of contracting is the money, it can be very lucrative, and it has to be with the amount of risk it can involve and other admin that needs to be done by the contractor.
I'm happy to talk about what my day rate is currently and money. I know within the industry, it can be very hush-hush, but it's hard for others to see whether contracting is worth considering if they can't find out numbers. So I'm going to be transparent.
I've set my first-day rate project at £450, I'd discussed this rate with recruiters, and they thought it was reasonable. Talking with other design contractors in the product space, they believe my day rate should be £500+ already. That said, when talking with the recruiters, they did believe that I probably could go to £500-£550 in 6 months once I had experience in contracting, which is obviously good to hear.
The recruiters I spoke to also said most of the contracts out are at the lower end though of £350 - £400, so I should keep that in mind, that not every contract that comes my way will be up in the £500's.Â
The book I'm currently reading:Â You're the Business: How to Build a Successful Career When You Strike Out Alone, talks about building a financial buffer so that you can take on lower-paying jobs if contracts are scarce. The book also mentioned that it's okay to take on contracts because it's a project you want to work on or an organisation you're passionate about.Â
One of my concerns around contracting was the length of the project and that I would be switching every few weeks between companies. This apparently is not entirely true for product design. Generally, contracts start at 3 months long and are usually extended to 6 or 9 months, which feels pretty reassuring as it gives me enough time to get stuck into a project without getting bored with what I'm working on. Though, as mentioned before, the client can stop a contract at any point, so the risk is still there.Â
Challenges recruiters face
My favourite question to ask people at the moment, either when hiring someone else or being hired it "What could a product designer / me do to make your life easier?"
It seems most people are caught off guard by that question, I asked this to one recruiter I spoke to, and he had to think for quite some time before answering.Â
However, he said communication is the biggest problem. Generally, recruiters get a bad wrap, but most of them genuinely want to help you and care about you enjoying the contract or role they have placed you in.
Apparently, contractors don't tend to keep the recruiter updated on their wellbeing or how they are getting on in the project. Naturally, this is a recipe for disaster, as this is when you get contractors just handing in their notice or a grumpy client as the work is below par. Â
Instead, recruiters would rather that you voiced you had a problem with the project, the workload or the client. That way, they could swap you onto a new project and replace you seamlessly than risk damaging their and your reputation with a client. But equally, if the client is being unreasonable or there is scope creep of the role, the recruiter can help you. By staying silent and not talking about issues only makes them ten times worse.Â
I hope this insight into recruiters and contractors was useful. If there are any other resources you think would help me on my journey let me know as I’d love to learn more.
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If you have any questions or just fancy a chat? Email me at liz@skyburgerstudio.co.uk or send me a tweet @lizhamburger