Clients who cant be arsed to sort out renewals

[psychocandy]

Yes, I know its contracting and nothing is guaranteed / can be taken for granted.

Coming up to my 5th renewal with current client. They're never the quickest sorting out renewals but this time they're really taking the piss. Two days left till end of contract.

Got important work on next week with them. Or not as the case may be.

Potentially, I guess I could be canned on friday. Is it me or does anyone think its a common courtesy to, at least, give me the nod in advance as much as possible? To be honest, if it was me and I wasn't planning to renew, out of courtesy, I think I'd let client know a few weeks in advance.

We'll see what happens but its not cool IMHO.

[bobspud]

Its just down to your own relaxed attitude towards letting them do it to you.

Just ask them to confirm things a month or so in advance and when they make non committal noises stick your cv on line and start looking for jobs and taking calls. Customers soon figure out that they are in trouble when you start taking 5 or more calls from agents every day.

[psychocandy]

Its just down to your own relaxed attitude towards letting them do it to you.

Just ask them to confirm things a month or so in advance and when they make non committal noises stick your cv on line and start looking for jobs and taking calls. Customers soon figure out that they are in trouble when you start taking 5 or more calls from agents every day.

Don't get me wrong - I want to stay and renew so don't really want to waste my time every quarter applying for other stuff. Although one day I fear its going to bite me when I get canned suddenly with nothing else lined up.

Also, aint a great deal around at the moment. Would be cool if I could just not turn up one monday after renewal and have something else to go to. Would feel guilty not one bit about not having handed anything over.

On the other hand, sometimes I think its because client is so disorganised that I get the renewals. Seems to lurch from one emergency to another. No way in a million years will they ever arrange a permie replacement for me.

[CheeseSlice]

I once added the guvnor at a previous clientco to Linkedin.
When they started to get sloppy and short notice with info on renewals, the next time it was left very late I changed my Linkedin status to 'available for new contracts from <month>'.

He noticed, and mentioned it to me one day whilst getting a coffee as if he was annoyed or concerned. Nothing bad came of it but another renewal

Focuses the mind...

[bobspud]

Yes my lot have only just offered a fellow contractor another renewal 4 days before he pops off. bit risky given the crap about ir35 that government is going through at the moment.

But I always make sure I get a few interviews in around renewal time because.

A) it keeps my hand in
B) lets me test the market

It's a surprise how badly out of shape you can get if you don't practice.

[hyperD]

I don't bother any more, I get the usual from the client "I've noticed your contract is up and I've been chasing up the agency.." verses the previous agency's voicemails "I've been chasing up the client..." etc

In light of Limp Bizkit: "Rolling rolling rolling..."

[psychocandy]

Yes my lot have only just offered a fellow contractor another renewal 4 days before he pops off. bit risky given the crap about ir35 that government is going through at the moment.

But I always make sure I get a few interviews in around renewal time because.

A) it keeps my hand in
B) lets me test the market

It's a surprise how badly out of shape you can get if you don't practice.

4 days! Chance would be a fine thing. 3 days before I think is their record.

One thing I think of though. If I keep contacting agents before every renewal and then staying with my same client, then I'm gonna piss them off eventually as a time waster.

[psychocandy]

I once added the guvnor at a previous clientco to Linkedin.
When they started to get sloppy and short notice with info on renewals, the next time it was left very late I changed my Linkedin status to 'available for new contracts from <month>'.

He noticed, and mentioned it to me one day whilst getting a coffee as if he was annoyed or concerned. Nothing bad came of it but another renewal

Focuses the mind...

Trouble is there is miles of red tape between the local people who it would affect if I left and those that authorise. Different country in fact.

[NotAllThere]

I got my first contract because the client was a slow renewer, and the former incumbent got annoyed about it and took a contract with another client.

[TestMangler]

4 days! Chance would be a fine thing. 3 days before I think is their record.

One thing I think of though. If I keep contacting agents before every renewal and then staying with my same client, then I'm gonna piss them off eventually as a time waster.

Imagine worrying about an agent thinking you're a time waster

That would be a bit like the bloke that ran away with the schoolgirl worrying what Gary Glitter might think of him