Advice needed on breaking into Contracting (in Finance)

[northernladuk]

I do have the experience.

In the last 10 years I have worked in two Tier 1 IBs and one major hedge fund. That is experience enough. I am not junior and I am not a newbie in anything other than contracting. True, that I have not taken on the role of project management for very long, however my BA experience is solid. I am not going for PM roles. However the fact that I have the PM qualification does seem to be desirable. And, coming from a tech background I feel makes it more so as inevitably in FS we are working on software projects.

Just how much experience is needed before one jumps into contracting???

And BTW, I had a good career in various other industries (including media and telecommunications before moving into Finance.

That means absolutely diddly squat... They are your employers and have nothing to do with your experience.

Solid? What does that mean? 6-10 years? Longer? Backed up with a qualification?

PM qualifications are not desirable, they are defacto standard. If you didn't have them you probably wouldn't be getting a sniff. It has to be backed up by 6+ years of experience.

There will be contractors out there with 10-15 years delivering one element, be it PM, BA or whatever as an end to end career. You pop up with your last experience being a PM, bit of BA before that, and whatever before that. It doesn't stack up that well I am afraid.

I don't know how other posters have read this thread but you are starting to sound a bit full of yourself to me. Possible another problem?

[joy division]

Errrr....obviously not...otherwise you would have secured a role after 11 interviews?
Maybe, it is deemed not relevant or current enough?

As I said earlier, the reasons for not securing positions seem to be varied. Admittedly some wanted more experience in specific asset classes for example, but not all. By far, the majority of feedback seemed positive, but still no cigar. As mentioned, on a couple of occasions, roles have been pulled or amended so that the role profile no longer fitted what I could offer. The last interview was a case in point.

I guess the bigger picture is I am not getting far in contracting. I'll have to make some tough decisions about whether to continue trying. What is your view about the Contracting market OUTSIDE of London? Any better?

[MrMarkyMark]

I don't know how other posters have read this thread but you are starting to sound a bit full of yourself to me. Possible another problem?

Unfortunately, I have been reading slightly the same.

There is nothing worse, as I said earlier, than interviewing someone who thinks they are a lot better than they are.
Agencies don't help as they will help candidates write CVs. I even know of one that gave my CV to another contractor to help with his.

Unfortunately, both, the interviewer and the interviewee lose out in this situation.

[joy division]

Unfortunately, I have been reading slightly the same.

There is nothing worse, as I said earlier, than interviewing someone who thinks they are a lot better than they are.
Agencies don't help as they will help candidates write CVs. I even know of one that gave my CV to another contractor to help with his.

Unfortunately, both, the interviewer and the interviewee lose out in this situation.

Ok well thank you for taking the time to make suggestions and for your advice.

Shame you think I am full of myself. Quite the contrary. Tough old world out there, isn't it? I'll take your tips on board and consider going perm again.

[Dallas]

Unless you absorb the feedback you are getting here ye shall remain deluded

[joy division]

Unless you absorb the feedback you are getting here ye shall remain deluded

Haha, very true Dallas!

And I do want people's honest opinions on how they started off. The odds are certainly stacked against anyone trying to break into contracting ATM though!

[Bluespider]

Remain positive...

If you want to go contracting then make it happen.

If contracting is the end goal then you need to drop your expectations elsewhere.
You are currently an untested contractor, there are many, many , many 'contractors' in FS that fancy it and then bottle it after 3-6 months and take a permie role.
some pointers:

1: Be defined, as mentioned above, you don't 'position', you 'are'. lay your Cv out to show you are a BA or PM, but choose. show deliverables met etc
2: Be more flexible on your rate. The biggest barrier i've seen for permies breaking into contracting in FS is their rate expectation. Everyone I know that has successfully made the break in (including myself) has taken an initial hit and then worked back up.
3: Don't limit yourself to FS. a big part of being in contracting is pushing out of your comfort zone. Your skills are transferable embrace that and look for a contract wherever it is.
4: Don't look at rates until you get an offer. You may get a better idea of how much your untested skillset is currently worth. That will change quickly with a successful contract or 2 under your belt
5: Move north? not necessarily as practical but central belt in Scotland is currently recruiting heavily in FS...

[MrMarkyMark]

Ok well thank you for taking the time to make suggestions and for your advice.

Shame you think I am full of myself. Quite the contrary. Tough old world out there, isn't it? I'll take your tips on board and consider going perm again.

Maybe, its the way you come across with the written word?

What is your view about the Contracting market OUTSIDE of London? Any better?

You should be applying outside London as well, IMO. It depends on whether you truly want to be a contractor?
My missus recently got her first contract in Epsom, Financial Services, good rate etc. In fact there were lots of ex IB people there.
She had 10 years of consultancy background, FYI.

[LondonManc]

As I said earlier, the reasons for not securing positions seem to be varied. Admittedly some wanted more experience in specific asset classes for example, but not all. By far, the majority of feedback seemed positive, but still no cigar. As mentioned, on a couple of occasions, roles have been pulled or amended so that the role profile no longer fitted what I could offer. The last interview was a case in point.

I guess the bigger picture is I am not getting far in contracting. I'll have to make some tough decisions about whether to continue trying. What is your view about the Contracting market OUTSIDE of London? Any better?

Don't worry about OUTSIDE of London, try outside of FS

[pr1]

remember that by asking on here you're essentially asking your competition how best to compete with them, you're unlikely to get a list of exactly what to do to make sure you get a contract that they go for too and people here regularly try to discourage newbies from moving into contracting

however, stats do speak for themselves, I think 11 interviews and 0 offers says a lot