State of the Market

[coolhandluke]

Whilst I think both Labour and the Conservatives over the last two decades must take some of the blame, for me most of the blame lies with the corporations seeking cheaper and cheaper resource without considering quality or the total cost of ownership.

I've been on countless projects in which consultancies and contractors have been replaced by InfoSys, TCS etc. This decision was never down to government policy but due to the project falling for the same MO that all Indian consultancies follow.

Low ball the bid / offer time and materials / people for free. This gets the Programme excited, all existing contractors and consultancies are replaced. Then 6 months down the line, come back with ah we didn't mean free...

[fatJock]

There are now so many candidates we are well and truly sunk....another IT role on LI 480 applicants ...the visa system has well and truly scuppered the UK workforce what a sad state of affairs

It's been demonstrated time and time again that folks shouldn't be put off by the number of applications to roles on LI as there is very little quality control. An agent I know had similar, 500+ applications and less than a dozen vaguely worth considering. 80%+ were overseas folks without the skills or needing visa support.

[Cookielove]

Yep I know that..... but the numbers are still eye wateringly high!

[Snooky]

Ricki has done us over. Called over his home boys

What, all the way from Southampton?

[SussexSeagull]

The job boards and to a lesser extent LinkedIn jobs haven't been a great way to get contracts for a few years now. It has all been about the network for me for several years.

Problem is they are probably all in the same boat.

[m0n1k3r]

Many of the best people I know are Indian contractors - as you say its the consultancies (especially the offshore workers) who are by far the worst / least capable.

An Indian contractor mate of mine told me developers are not paid well in those consultancies. Their profit margins are apparently huge. The only way to make a decent living is to quickly become a manager (and stop developing). He wanted to become one of the best Java developers in the world (his own words), so he left and became a contractor.

[m0n1k3r]

There are now so many candidates we are well and truly sunk....another IT role on LI 480 applicants ...the visa system has well and truly scuppered the UK workforce what a sad state of affairs

I posted an IT role on LI before the summer. About 95% of the many, many applicants weren't qualified for the role. They either hadn't even read the job spec, or were applying from countries such as Turkey, Iran or Pakistan with no right to work in the country.

[Cookielove]

Just as I am in the throws of shutting down my Limited company out of the blue I've had a call about a potential outside role, paying £375 - £400 per day with a minimum of 3 days in the office....it's about an hour from me. Not getting hopes up as no doubt someone will offer to do it for tuppence.....

I've been fully remote for 5 years so 3 days minimum per week in an office isn't massively appealing....plus rate is not all that....any thoughts/comments...

[SchumiStars]

Just as I am in the throws of shutting down my Limited company out of the blue I've had a call about a potential outside role, paying £375 - £400 per day with a minimum of 3 days in the office....it's about an hour from me. Not getting hopes up as no doubt someone will offer to do it for tuppence.....

I've been fully remote for 5 years so 3 days minimum per week in an office isn't massively appealing....plus rate is not all that....any thoughts/comments...

That sounds excellent. I would work for free in a office ATM!

[ladymuck]

Just as I am in the throws of shutting down my Limited company out of the blue I've had a call about a potential outside role, paying £375 - £400 per day with a minimum of 3 days in the office....it's about an hour from me. Not getting hopes up as no doubt someone will offer to do it for tuppence.....

I've been fully remote for 5 years so 3 days minimum per week in an office isn't massively appealing....plus rate is not all that....any thoughts/comments...

I'd do it. I actually quite like being in the office though. Not full time, of course, but 3 days is actually a nice balance.