Java/J2EE Contractor - Cannot get an interview!

[SomeoneElse]

SomeoneElse - Not Worth Listening To
CowboyBob - Contractor Among Contractors

Wonder who has the most experience in this game, and who is the Aussie who got all upset because I insulted his home country?

Now get back to your £12 per hour support monkey contract and leave us more experienced and intelligent contractors alone. OK boy?

Actually, I'm quite happy earning what I earn. Regardless of your sensitivity to my opinion of you, the fact still remains: your advise (reducing one's stated experience) is both foolish and naive. However, it's nice to know you measure your experience and standing in the industry by the number of post counts on an internet bulletin board. Good for you.

[SomeoneElse]

[QUOTE=NotAllThere;486642]

SomeoneElse - Not Worth Listening To
CowboyBob - Contractor Among Contractors

Wonder who has the most experience in this game...QUOTE]

erm - the game being in this instance "posting at CUK".

SomeoneElse - (there's someone called that on Shout99 - any relation?) - I went through similar to what you are going through a few years ago (different technology). I took the permie shilling until the storm passed.

Sorry mate, not me.

[NotAllThere]

Someone else then.

[DodgyAgent]

Hi All,

I've just moved to London from Australia (coming up to 4 weeks ago). I have been looking for senior java and/or j2ee development work (preferably within investment banking or telco's) with no luck.

I am a senior developer who has been contracting in Australia for 2 and a half years and been in Java/J2EE development for 6 years. I have 2 years of blue chip retail and institutional banking experience and 6 months of investment banking experience alongside 1 year of media and 1 year of Telco experience. I have around 4 years of spring and hibernate (which everyone here seems to love). The rate i have been putting myself is £500-550. I have lowered my rate to £450 to £500 with no luck in the last week.

I have had my CV reviewed by Aston Carter and a few others but even though I have been put up for about 30 positions, which i follow up every 2-3 days, i have not been put forward to interview. I have been told a number of things like:

• My CV is strong and have a lot of skill in java/j2ee
• The market in February is ALWAYS really bad, so be patient
• The market is saturated with UBS developers who have as much java experience, but heaps more industry knowledge

I have no idea what to believe and i feel i am being stuffed around by the agencies. In Australia I am used to only 4-5 agencies helping me get good contracts, here i have dealt with maybe 20. I have read the Newbies guys on contractoruk but yeah no luck.

Can anyone in Java/J2EE give me some pointers about how to maybe rejig my CV so I can at least get to 1 interview!

cheers,

::mark

I have Romanian developers with great skills who only want £250 a day (I still charge them out at £800 though )

[BrilloPad]

I have Romanian developers with great skills who only want £250 a day (I still charge them out at £800 though )

We have 2 at ClientCo - both come from transylvania...

[TheOmegaMan]

Actually, I'm quite happy earning what I earn. Regardless of your sensitivity to my opinion of you, the fact still remains: your advise (reducing one's stated experience) is both foolish and naive. However, it's nice to know you measure your experience and standing in the industry by the number of post counts on an internet bulletin board. Good for you.

I support CowboyBob on this. Who defines what is smart in your world ? You do of course.

In my experience stretching back twenty years the hiring manager often defines the best candidate as one who most furthers their own career. Sometimes even that is not true and a hiring manager does not act rationally - they may hire based on common interests, or social class. Rarely in my opinion do managers hire purely on technical ability and experience especially in highly competitive markets like the banking sector where altruism is nonexistent.

[DodgyAgent]

like the banking sector where altruism is nonexistent.

"Society owes me a living" is back again

[TheOmegaMan]

Nope - society owes me nothing. I do find it rather ironic that capitalists scream about the power of the market and then when it all goes tits up blame the central governments for not bailing them out.

Naturally, reccons should be shot like all other vermin.

[BarbarianAtTheDoor]

I am a capitalist, but I really think the government (in a broader sense) dropped the ball when it comes to the current crisis. Granted, some portfolio devaluatios could not have been avoided, but the fact that banks do not trust each other enough to provide liquidity (which is a basic underlying principle of our economy), speaks volumes about the usefulness of the governing body that's supposed to guarantee the proper operational behaviour of them.

Up until now they enjoyed the 'lighter touch', now they can't value their own portfolios. How is this not the government's fault in huge part?

[TheOmegaMan]

I think you are confusing the causes of the crisis. The financial institutions cannot value their own portfolios because institutions in the US mis-sold sub-prime mortgages. Is it the government's responsibility if a private firm wishes to sell products at below cost price ?

The banks have repackaged all these products into complicated financial structures that are difficult to value without knowing future defaults. Is it government responsibility to ensure that banks take on risk without knowing what that risk is ?

Investment banks take risk in order to make money - that's investment. If the government bails out a risk taker then that's not risk, it's guaranteed profit. Northern rock should have been allowed to fail.