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how long do you typically stay on a contract?

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  • SussexSeagull
    replied
    Mine have varied between three days and two and a half years, although a my CV only goes down to month level the first one wouldn't stand out so much.

    Probably related to wha I do (testing) and the length of your average software development project does tend to be in the 6-12 month range.

    I would have thought having breaks between contracts over the last couple of years is fairly common - the market was briefly as bad as I have ever known it round about first lockdown time before it recovered fairly quickly - and having a month between contracts is nothing, especially when any security checks happen.

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  • northernladuk
    replied
    Originally posted by pr1 View Post

    Phrase it that you did the job that needed to be done and moved on without wasting the client money for you sitting there after the problem was solved
    As trotted out by every crap contactor that can't hold a gig down

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  • KinooOrKinog
    replied
    Prior to where I am just now, I had three short contracts in 18 months (with a four month break in between two of them) and they all ended for very different reasons. One where the project was binned, one where it was only ever three months, and one I left because my Dad was terminally ill. I also had a period about five years ago where I had another three short ones in a row.

    I've never been asked at interview about the reason for it and I don't believe it's ever hindered me in finding work since the longest I've had between contracts is four months. I honestly don't think clients care. If they like you, they like you.

    If you honestly don't think it's anything to do with your ability then I wouldn't worry about it.

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  • Guy Incognito
    replied
    My median is probably 9 months. Had a few a bit less and a couple of 3 1/2 year ones.

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  • slogger
    replied
    it depends - my longest is 4 years, shortest is a few weeks (I went through a period of going to startups - several went bust, lost financing) - also I have done a period of contract hopping - but for 12 years it was always following someone I worked with - so when they left they took me with them!
    my current contract is 15 months - probably ending in Sept as client finishing project and handing over to customer - initially it was a 6 week contract to deliver a poc, then 3 month renewals...could have ended after 6 weeks if poc hadn't been taken on!

    one thing I have noticed in last few years is that clients now that they are focusing on ir35 status etc do tend to bring in contractors for specific bits of work and then let them go - many years ago lots of contractors where kept on for more bau purposes - so I do think the length of contracts has reduced but in a good way.

    I would be a bit worried about someone who had constantly moved around - I used to have a general rule to look into why someone had been in more than 3 places in last 2 years - especially if they had been with large companies where it usually takes a couple of months just to get onboarded!

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  • northernladuk
    replied
    No such thing as a typical time to stay on a contract. The whole way we work says we cannot answer that question. We come in to do a piece of work for a client and we leave when it's done. It can be anything from a day to years. It's all dependant on the client. I've done everything from six weeks to five years. I can't think of any two contracts that were the same length let alone having a brace of them.

    I'm not surprised you are having problems explaining this to interviewers. I would be asking a lot of questions if I saw a contractor pop up with a raft of minimum term contracts on their CV to be honest. The length of the contract can be based on two things. The work the client needs and the quality of the contractor. We know there is no fixed time for clients work, it varys so the only other factor could be the contractor. If they aren't any good then they get let go at the first reasonable opportunity. There is the factor of the contractor leaving by choice as well but that's still not great.

    I could be way off here and it's highly possible a contractor could get unlucky and just get dealt a bad hand with min term contracts but I've never seen this over a long period. I'm also possibly biased as I can think of three contractors off the top of my head that got let go by a client I was with, all three had a raft of short gigs and in two cases both continued to get short gigs. It's without question that there are a good number of really tulip contractors that can only stay contracting because there are enough clients to fk up with and move on to the next. It's funny because all three thought they were great contractors (IMO a good contractor never brags) and all three blamed the clients every single time. They've got in to a routine and think that's how contracting works now. Hire and fire and move on. It's very odd listening to them. I'm sure most of us have bumped in to someone similar.

    All that said, OP has said there are different reasons so it's quite possible it's just very unfortuanate but it's a very difficult place to be in because on paper the OP has dropped into the catagory of people above and it's possible the client has dealt with, and walked, contractors with the same history. Very difficult situation to be in for sure.

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  • pr1
    replied
    Originally posted by GitMaster69 View Post
    Yeah but I'm having hard time explaining it to the interviewers
    Phrase it that you did the job that needed to be done and moved on without wasting the client money for you sitting there after the problem was solved

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  • GitMaster69
    replied
    Yeah but I'm having hard time explaining it to the interviewers

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  • eek
    replied
    Depends - can be over a year can be a few days if all I'm doing is going in to identify the root cause and solve an issue...

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  • TheDude
    replied
    I have only contracted at banks so shortest - 1 year, longest 3.5 years.

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