Working Interview

[Big Blue Plymouth]

Good afternoon.

I am a contractor in the web development field and I have been out of contract for less than a week during this time I have had a number of agency approaches to me regarding some possible roles for me to do.

I am not particularly desperate at this stage as I have many other things to be doing with my time but I am being pushed into a position by one agency to perform "working interview" at one of their clients which will lead to a job if the interview is successful.

The working interview will last one day and I will be paid the day rate that I said to them I would work for when we had our initial dialogue.

My question is do these things lead anywhere as a general rule of thumb or not? I am not acquainted with this scenario to be honest and, yes, I will get a day's money but the disruption to go up to Birmingham and the upset to the routine I have planned for the next week also makes me feel it's not worth while.

Has anyone any experience of these "working interviews"?

The agency is called Robert Half Associates.

[cojak]

My guess is that the client is after a 1 day consultation, after which they'll use the end result and can say that they paid you, thereby stopping you from taking them to court.

But it is only a guess...

[MrMarkyMark]

My guess is that they are after a 1 day consultation, after which they'll use the end result and can say that they paid you, thereby stopping you from taking them to court.

Funny.........many, many, years ago I went for an interview which went really well, but did not go anywhere.

Later, I ended up taking another role there working for the same guy.
It was widely known that this was a game he played, in fact I was told they had 10 people through the doors for the previous interview, I mentioned.

He later really stabbed me in the back, IMO, by saying he was short of a months budget 2 months into a 3 month contract.
He told me in the morning on the 23rd of December that he had "run out of money" and today would be my last day.

All part of the game, but the only time I have been treated quite that way.

Luckily, within half an hour, I had another contract in another more prestigious part of the same organisation, for another 3 months.

[jmo21]

I don't think there is a rule of thumb for this, it's not a common scenario.

What makes me wary of it is, how many people does it take for them to interview before they are happy?

2 or 3?

10?

10 days (assuming only 1 a day), long time, and a fair whack of money to pay to hire 1 person?

more?

Are you in a very niche area? that would make me suspect they only really want a days consultancy.

[Big Blue Plymouth]

I do not understand what functions they can expect me to perform within the space of one days that will be of utility to them as I will need to be up to speed with their business functions before I can begin the cutting of code. Unless they wish me to deliver something very generic componentised deliverable.

If they conduct their business in this manner I can't understand it because where is the continuity? An endless procession of different developers coming in for a day at a time is not, in my considered opinion, a productive solution.

[Lance]

Are you in a very niche area? that would make me suspect they only really want a days consultancy.

One would have thought if they wanted a days consultancy they would simply ask for that and be willing to pay double. That way they would also have the OPs PI insurance cover in case he's wrong.
I agree though that a day seems a long time for a contractor to prove themselves, especially as they can be kicked off site without any notice.

[missinggreenfields]

My guess is that the client is after a 1 day consultation, after which they'll use the end result and can say that they paid you, thereby stopping you from taking them to court.

But it is only a guess...

If they are paying for it, what's the problem?

[LondonManc]

One would have thought if they wanted a days consultancy they would simply ask for that and be willing to pay double. That way they would also have the OPs PI insurance cover in case he's wrong.
I agree though that a day seems a long time for a contractor to prove themselves, especially as they can be kicked off site without any notice.

Why ask for it and pay double?

I've had two working interviews; one I got nothing out of and suspect was a day's consultancy. The other I started a contract at the same place on the following day.

[kevpuk]

Hhhmmm, well I suppose getting paid a day - if you are not doing anything better anyway - is not such a bad thing?

That said, I had an interesting experience with that Agent mentioned a few years back.....albeit quite unrelated!

[jmo21]

One would have thought if they wanted a days consultancy they would simply ask for that and be willing to pay double. That way they would also have the OPs PI insurance cover in case he's wrong.
I agree though that a day seems a long time for a contractor to prove themselves, especially as they can be kicked off site without any notice.

Maybe they can't afford it. Maybe they are cheap. Maybe the manager is a smart ass.