State of the Market

[FIERCE TANK BATTLE]

LinkedIn got me a couple of good gigs. I don't post anything, I just get messages from recruiters. Although I am in a contract (thank god, warchest is empty), my contractor phone hasn't rang a single time in several months, so it really does seem bleak.

[hungry_hog]

Do you think this helps? I tried to make it explicit that I am a contractor on LinkedIn and checked the option for Contract Work only. All I got was emails from recruiters for permie roles...

I actually deleted my LinkedIn last year, since I got fed up maintaining it. Was possibly a bit hasty in doing that...

Have you ever found a contract through LinkedIn - or networked contacts through it that led to a contract?

Yep
Was coming to end of one contract and new client (HR person) contacted me. Had never worked in that industry before. Just happened to have a skill they required.
Two interviews within a week, offer shortly after.
Ended up there for 18 months and one of the best clients I have worked for.

I think it has gone downhill though - people treating it like facebook, or interns thanking a company after working there for 5 mins.
"I would like to thank XYZ corp and will return to Oxford Uni where I am on target for a double first whilst also being James Bond"

[TheDude]

Been renewed until June and then I hit the 90 week contractor engagement limit. Timesheet signer wants to keep me beyond then and is exploring options.

I would consider perm but the problem with banks is when you are perm there is no clocking off time.

[gables]

Been renewed until June and then I hit the 90 week contractor engagement limit. Timesheet signer wants to keep me beyond then and is exploring options.

I would consider perm but the problem with banks is when you are perm there is no clocking off time.

Hey Dude, is this from experience or hearsay? And are you talking main stream banks? Ta

[tjccjt01]

Hey Dude, is this from experience or hearsay? And are you talking main stream banks? Ta

My experience with a major investment bank was that you were expected to be available at any time, especially when you were supporting the trading desk. The final straw for me was migrating a database at 4am on a Saturday becuase it was the only time we could take it down. I left and swore I would never go back. Then I ended up going back as a contractor (Albeit in a different part of the bank) and nobody batted an eyelid when I went home at 5:30 on the dot.

[quackhandle]

Remember with LI you can unfollow those people who you connect with then they immediately spam your timeline with post after post of inane drivel.

I have plenty of connections but I hardly follow any of them.

I wouldn't give up on LI, in last 10 years around 70% of my gigs have come directly from that, the rest Jobserve and a few from previous clients/WOM.

qh

[northernladuk]

My experience with a major investment bank was that you were expected to be available at any time, especially when you were supporting the trading desk. The final straw for me was migrating a database at 4am on a Saturday becuase it was the only time we could take it down. I left and swore I would never go back. Then I ended up going back as a contractor (Albeit in a different part of the bank) and nobody batted an eyelid when I went home at 5:30 on the dot.

Depends on what exactly what you do but working on warehouse projects wasn't much different due to the 24x7 nature. The only time we could take it down for changes was 5.30 am on a Saturday morning and during a messy implementation meant we were on it every week for months. Absolutely draining.

[edison]

Remember with LI you can unfollow those people who you connect with then they immediately spam your timeline with post after post of inane drivel.

I have plenty of connections but I hardly follow any of them.

I wouldn't give up on LI, in last 10 years around 70% of my gigs have come directly from that, the rest Jobserve and a few from previous clients/WOM.

qh

This is a good tip. Part of the power of your LI network is the more connections you have, the more second connections you can access. Job opportunities tend to come more from second connections than first level connections.

LI is really pushing the 'Creator' Mode. Like much social media, traffic and engagement tends to be driven largely by posts that are deliberately provocative or click bait. More eyeballs, better advertising rates.

Bear in mind, only about 1% of people in LI post regularly. There are still plenty of people who post and share interesting content, you just have to find them.

[oliverson]

If you use LinkedIn to find contracts are you "active" on it, in the sense that you write publish articles, post to groups, network agressively and that sort of thing? Seems fiarly time consuming to do these things, but maybe I should if it can be worth it.

Yes, I actively insult people on there when I see their moronic posts. Seems to work for me and on many levels!

[willendure]

Hmm. Not sure. I think there's going to period of asset inflation in the housing markets and stocks. Neither one of us know, so I guess we'll check back in 6 months :thumbsup:

Stocks at record highs, housing at record highs. I think the period of asset inflation has already happened. Next up, recession and deflation.

I remember in 2007 credit crunch, the queen was noted for asking "Why couldn't anybody see it coming?". Well of course there were plenty that did, and some that knew how to play it, and a few that did and got very rich. The exact timing of these is unpredictable for sure, but the general trends are not really so hard to comprehend. I don't know how to make money out of a market crash and recession, but I am at least prepared by holding safer assets and keeping cash on the sidelines.

Just heard, I will get an interview for a outside IR35 public sector job (pushing their stuff to the cloud). Fingers crossed I get it, because that could be a cushy place to sit the next recession out.