Working for Bob

[northernladuk]

That's already been hinted already, Bob said 'after some time I would like to have discussion with you about going full-time employee'...

Happy to have discussion but already know my answer, unless it's a stonking offer (which it probably won't be). I am hoping my credibility with clientco will help me out in putting off the permie ultimatum.

If the intention is to go perm and continue in the role you might want to think about the IR35 issues. Have you had the contract and working conditions checked yet?

[BolshieBastard]

Had a telephone interview with TaTa bobs for a role on Merseyside about 10 days ago. What a farce. They were incoherent and the questions they asked a bit insulting to be frank.

I mean when you're cv shows you've been involved with testing for a good number of years, would you really ask someone 'can you write test scripts?' Did you bother to read my cv?

TBH, even if they had offered the role I would have turned it down. They were just so fracking useless. If, in the future, I find the end client is TaTa, I wont bother progressing any applications.

[portseven]

If the intention is to go perm and continue in the role you might want to think about the IR35 issues. Have you had the contract and working conditions checked yet?

Not got to that stage yet, but I will be doing all the needful checks.

See I am already talking like a Bob...

[BolshieBastard]

Not got to that stage yet, but I will be doing all the needful checks.

See I am already talking like a Bob...

Are you wobbling your head from side to side as you talk!?

If so, seek help immediately!

[Troll]

Got a offer of a gig back at a client I really enjoyed, but this time it's working through one of the BobCo's - And given my good history with said clientco, Bob wants me to take a bit of a team lead role for some of the other Bob's.

Love to go back to client, don't think I can do it other than via Bob as they have the place sownup. But would appreciate others tales of similar situations.

Read between the lines...BobCo has flooded the place with useless cheap as chips Bobs & they now want a UK national in there:

• To be an coherent interface between the Bobs & Management (if the manager is also a Bob this should raise further red flags)
• To take the sh*t when things go wrong
• To produce meaningful documentation and reports that Bobs seem incapable of doing

It can only end in tears..

[Ignis Fatuus]

Read between the lines...BobCo has flooded the place with useless cheap as chips Bobs & they now want a UK national in there:

• To be an coherent interface between the Bobs & Management (if the manager is also a Bob this should raise further red flags)
• To take the sh*t when things go wrong
• To produce meaningful documentation and reports that Bobs seem incapable of doing

It can only end in tears..

Indeed. Ask yourself why they want you. You may not like the answer.

[quackhandle]

The two most annoying problems when working with bobs are the poor communication and the lack of any kind of proactiveness or ownership. Everything has to be communicated in very simple terms and always have a clearly written action at the end or it just won't happen. The fact that they will always do what they have to to the letter and not a jot more also annoys me. No ownership of the problem, no reciprocal communication and always bringing problems rather than a problem and a possible solution. It's just bloody awful. The group I am with don't seem to have any opinions or ideas that you chat about from time to time which can often completely change the approach to a piece of work. They just do what they are told and nothing more. Very poor from a consultant at any level in my book. Technically outstanding I have to say but that alone doesn't deliver a project.

That describes to a tee the bob DBA in my last but one gig. Went off on holiday 3 times without informing anyone.

qh

[sunflower]

Some offshore developers are ok, others are not. The good ones tend to get head hunted. The offshore co recruits more junior developers and then problems can start. They want to please the customer so much so that they will not admit where problems lie.

A few UK companies are going to bring work back in house after it being in the hands of offshore. Typical scenario: new manager in UK client co finds out the code base has no unit test coverage and realises what this means... If the offshore co deals with business project managers on site rather than technical project managers, they don't spot the problems.

I would not want a no notice contract on such a gig. Very risky.

[Zeon]

I am in the same position.

Worked for a client and got a good few years work out of them. Now back on the same site and working for Bob Co.

I am three months into six month contract and seriously considering telling Bob that I no longer want to except further work. This is the first time I've ever seriously considered doing this.

To sum up - joining Bob Co feels like the worst business decision I've made since starting down the contracting path.

[Scrag Meister]

The two most annoying problems when working with bobs are the poor communication and the lack of any kind of proactiveness or ownership. Everything has to be communicated in very simple terms and always have a clearly written action at the end or it just won't happen. The fact that they will always do what they have to to the letter and not a jot more also annoys me. No ownership of the problem, no reciprocal communication and always bringing problems rather than a problem and a possible solution. It's just bloody awful. The group I am with don't seem to have any opinions or ideas that you chat about from time to time which can often completely change the approach to a piece of work. They just do what they are told and nothing more. Very poor from a consultant at any level in my book. Technically outstanding I have to say but that alone doesn't deliver a project.

WNLUKS

Managed a bob dev team in a previous life and exactly this. No innovation, sign off everything in triplicate, exact specs, very frustrating as the on-shore team they replaced could knock stuff up in a week that took the Bobs 3 weeks or more. Not sure where the savings came into this equation.