State of the Market

[Dorkeaux]

I've only used my own kit since the end of 2018. Do firms still dole out laptops to contractors?

Sure, some.
In the last 5 years, all my clients have shifted to Citrix implementations instead of secure-ish laptops.
But there are still lots that dole out the laptops.

[ladymuck]

The slightly more security conscious seem to use Citrix. Others just use M365, not always with MFA.

[cyborg1337]

I’ve been a front-end contractor for 15 years. But the current market feels very strange.

I see contract roles that are a perfect match; Same tech, same level, same kind of work and my CV is good, 2 pages, clear, up to date.

So I apply but hear I nothing. No reply at all!

I did get calls for two roles, but both were put on hold...

Are there even real jobs on the market right now? Or are roles being posted without budget or approval?

This is depressing...

[avonleigh]

I’ve been a front-end contractor for 15 years. But the current market feels very strange.

I see contract roles that are a perfect match; Same tech, same level, same kind of work and my CV is good, 2 pages, clear, up to date.

So I apply but hear I nothing. No reply at all!

I did get calls for two roles, but both were put on hold...

Are there even real jobs on the market right now? Or are roles being posted without budget or approval?

This is depressing...

There are jobs but still only a slight improvement on the last 3 years imho. Also the problem is there are so many people out of work currently, it's astonishing. Every other person I see on LinkedIn seems to be 'open to work'. I also saw somebody post a PM contract the other day and had 435 CV's in 6 hours. Then you have AI filtering out CV's, so even if your CV is excellent, you may not even get to the recruiter unless all your keywords match the ad.

[ResistanceFighter]

I’ve been a front-end contractor for 15 years. But the current market feels very strange.

I see contract roles that are a perfect match; Same tech, same level, same kind of work and my CV is good, 2 pages, clear, up to date.

So I apply but hear I nothing. No reply at all!

I did get calls for two roles, but both were put on hold...

Are there even real jobs on the market right now? Or are roles being posted without budget or approval?

This is depressing...

Seeing the same, but parking if the work actually exists or not for one moment, there is a noticible uptick in stuff to actually apply for compared to this time last year.

Im hearing alot of places are prefering to let AI rip on frontend work. I think this is a mistake, but I dont make the rules.

Talking to some higher up decision makers, usually ones with no technical skills, their opinions on AI and what they think it can do is absolutly breathtaking

[Dorkeaux]

Project Management as a role has been on the decline for over a decade.
I've had clients who abolished the role completely in their organisation.
Non-technical BAs as well.
God save you if your prime skills are Microsoft Project and PowerPoint.

Often these roles are redefined as something else. Delivery Manager, Programme Manager, Product Owner, Business Architect etc..
Sometimes no real difference, but usually the clients want people to take more responsibility for delivery and communications.

I find pure development roles (particularly front-end) to be circling the drain. Sorry to be negative.
There are a lot of people out there with the skills and a lot of low-code tools that will do much of the job.
Also immigration (for decades) and AI (go on, laugh it up..).

Sidebar:

I always thought of pure development roles as more of a stepping stone anyway.
My oft-repeated "ants in a microwave" analogy.
I had a developer once tell me that he wanted his work arranged with an inbox and an outbox. That's it.
I told him I could hire a monkey to do that. He was hired to engage with people at various levels in the company, use his domain knowledge and help figure stuff out.
Most times you have to move out of your box.

[hungry_hog]

I think the demise of the PM partly comes from Agile taking off. In the old waterfall days you would need a PM to chase things along. The modern equivalent is probably the Product Owner, but that tends to be a more technical role requiring domain knowledge.
Some of the old PMs I worked with were more like General Melchett from Blackadder Goes Forth than technologists! Shouting and screaming at the lower orders. Beeeeeeaaah!

[ladymuck]

My 20 years contracting career has been as a non-technical BA. I currently have 3 concurrent gigs. Don't have issues finding work.

Being an old fashioned sort, I believe a BA is all about the business - the clue being in the name - what most BAs really are, are Systems Analysts but that title seems to have fallen out of favour.

[Protagoras]

It’s interesting to see how some roles morphed.

Once upon a time, the PM role was significant and there were many well paid jobs for PMI and PRINCE certified bods. It’s a separate discussion, but organisations wanted to embrace ‘agile’ and failed to integrate it with waterfall approaches to get the best of both worlds. I’ve seen some organisations trying to apply agile where it’s inappropriate given the work products. Someone mentioned MS Project and PowerPoint. In the good old days PMOs provided specialists to track and update project schedules and create effective presentations – and there were contractors working in these roles!

The difference between a business analysis and a systems analyst seems almost to be lost. To me, real value-add BAs focus defining problems and processes, plus they have great stakeholder engagement skills and can run workshops effectively. People call themselves BAs where really all their knowledge is about systems and solutions.

And whatever happened to the professional test bods?

If my view of ‘the market’ is correct, there are plenty of well-paid permy jobs out there for people between 25 and 45. The halcyon days of the contract market are long gone for generalists. My suspicion is that most on here are over 45, and may struggle to find permy work - either because of ageism in recruiting or cultural fit issues.

My big gripe with government’s prolonged attacks on the contract market is that it prevents certain people earning a living. This includes those who are older, disabled, and extends to those like myself who simply can’t function as part of a large organisation.

[avonleigh]

It’s interesting to see how some roles morphed.

Once upon a time, the PM role was significant and there were many well paid jobs for PMI and PRINCE certified bods. It’s a separate discussion, but organisations wanted to embrace ‘agile’ and failed to integrate it with waterfall approaches to get the best of both worlds. I’ve seen some organisations trying to apply agile where it’s inappropriate given the work products. Someone mentioned MS Project and PowerPoint. In the good old days PMOs provided specialists to track and update project schedules and create effective presentations – and there were contractors working in these roles!

The difference between a business analysis and a systems analyst seems almost to be lost. To me, real value-add BAs focus defining problems and processes, plus they have great stakeholder engagement skills and can run workshops effectively. People call themselves BAs where really all their knowledge is about systems and solutions.

And whatever happened to the professional test bods?

If my view of ‘the market’ is correct, there are plenty of well-paid permy jobs out there for people between 25 and 45. The halcyon days of the contract market are long gone for generalists. My suspicion is that most on here are over 45, and may struggle to find permy work - either because of ageism in recruiting or cultural fit issues.

My big gripe with government’s prolonged attacks on the contract market is that it prevents certain people earning a living. This includes those who are older, disabled, and extends to those like myself who simply can’t function as part of a large organisation.

Couldn't agree with this post more. I don't think the contract market will ever come back. Unless there is something major like Y2K, which is highly unlikely. But if you have specialist skills you will be fine but most of us don't. On ageism, I thought I wouldn't find a permie job at 55, was looking for last couple of years with rejection after rejection. But got one in the end and start in a couple of weeks. So there is some hope.