Newbie cracking the market

[Scratch It]

You will need to knock that on the head when you become a contractor, That just wont do

That's a fair point, but I have to learn my trade. If i dont spend the time investing in becoming an expert in application now, then I'll never make it as a contractor.

Are you sure you're cut out to be NLUK ?

Boo2

He did say he was hungover... Still steaming drunk?

I wouldn't say applying for contracts whilst still a permie is a no no. Personally that's how I did it. I even know someone that did this with a 3 month notice period. So it does happen. Why put yourself at risk by quitting your job?

That really is food fr thought and would be a perfect solution. When the time comes I'll guess it'll be about the numbers game and applying for contracts up and down this green and pleasant land and hoping four weeks wont be an issue. You are right though, if I can avoid 'jumping of the cliff' so to speak then all the better.

[Scratch It]

Update

Hi everyone - I just wanted to provide an update to this.

In the end, I took the advice to take the time to try to become an expert in my field, and by chance I have moved to the big smoke. I joined a consultancy back at the end of 2015 and have spent time working with the latest and greatest Microsoft BI stuff. I figured that working on projects for a consultancy would provide me with the client facing skills that would be beneficial to a competent contractor, reinforcing the soft skills to go with the technical. This has been a really good move in terms of gaining project management skills.

In the end I decided that it made more sense to get to the top of my game before going for contracts, which also mitigates the risk of not getting a contract - finding an emergency permie role at short notice shouldn't be particularly difficult. So thanks for the advice to everyone on the forum.

Anyway, I'm at the point now where I have 6-7 years experience in BI, as well as hands on experience with the latest microsoft BI stuff which has been released in the last few months, as well as delivering Power BI projects which by all accounts will be facing an uptick in the coming years in terms of demand.

So would I be insane to leave a well paid job to move into a contracting position in the current market? Is 6-7 years experience enough, especially working with the latest and greatest tech? I'm aware legislation has changed since 2013 when i first posted here - I'm comfortable with that - My aim is to operate as a business.

[VillageContractor]

6-7 yrs is probably is on the short side, but depends on how well you interview and how new the technologies you work on.

Take a look at the contracts on the market for what you do and ask yourself whether you could do them, and do them well. If so, it's probably worth applying and seeing how your CV does.

[LondonManc]

Hi everyone - I just wanted to provide an update to this.

In the end, I took the advice to take the time to try to become an expert in my field, and by chance I have moved to the big smoke. I joined a consultancy back at the end of 2015 and have spent time working with the latest and greatest Microsoft BI stuff. I figured that working on projects for a consultancy would provide me with the client facing skills that would be beneficial to a competent contractor, reinforcing the soft skills to go with the technical. This has been a really good move in terms of gaining project management skills.

In the end I decided that it made more sense to get to the top of my game before going for contracts, which also mitigates the risk of not getting a contract - finding an emergency permie role at short notice shouldn't be particularly difficult. So thanks for the advice to everyone on the forum.

Anyway, I'm at the point now where I have 6-7 years experience in BI, as well as hands on experience with the latest microsoft BI stuff which has been released in the last few months, as well as delivering Power BI projects which by all accounts will be facing an uptick in the coming years in terms of demand.

So would I be insane to leave a well paid job to move into a contracting position in the current market? Is 6-7 years experience enough, especially working with the latest and greatest tech? I'm aware legislation has changed since 2013 when i first posted here - I'm comfortable with that - My aim is to operate as a business.

Personally, I'd get a couple more projects under your belt with the latest BI stuff - have you got just Power BI and SSRS or do you have SSIS and SSAS as well?

[Scratch It]

Personally, I'd get a couple more projects under your belt with the latest BI stuff - have you got just Power BI and SSRS or do you have SSIS and SSAS as well?

Full stack projects all the way from requirement gathering, DW design, ETL development in SSIS, cube design in SSAS and front end stuff with SSRS and Power BI. I've worked with Qlikview and Tableau also.

Is this an area that you work in LondonManc?

[eek]

At the moment I think anyone doing BI work is going to have to know Azure especially SQL Data warehouse, Data Lake store and Data Factory - as that is where the growth is likely to be.

Yes it looks expensive but only until you see the actual cost of doing it in house compared to Azure it starts looking cheap provided you remember to switch things off when not in use....

As for Power BI you will definitely need to understand the forthcoming Common Data Model (CDM) as that's going to be the basis of an awful lot within both Power BI and Power Apps gonig forward.

On timing it depends on how good and interesting the work you are getting from the consultancy is. I have far greater control over my career and skillset as a contractor than I ever had as a permie...

However remember the awkward contract is not the first contract but the second and third ones... Getting those is always far more stressful than the first one...

[Scratch It]

6-7 yrs is probably is on the short side, but depends on how well you interview and how new the technologies you work on.

Take a look at the contracts on the market for what you do and ask yourself whether you could do them, and do them well. If so, it's probably worth applying and seeing how your CV does.

Thanks for the advice. The length of time is a moving target. Back when I was first looking at this five years was the advice, though I guess this industry has only existing for a decade or two, so as time rolls, so will the expectations in terms of experience.

I'm certain I could do the work - once I'm through the front door I'm sure I have the attitude, experience and skills to provide an excellent service to the client - the only ? in my mind is whether I could get through the front door. I've recruited BI professionals and seen ex contractor CVs - which are impressive. I present very well at interview and have a good work ethic and attitude, which is often enough to beat the competition in the race for a permie job, though I'm aware that may not be the case with a contract, where results are weighed more heavily then 'good fit' for example. I'm aware that my competition could have more signed, sealed and delivered projects under their belt.

I'm working on developing a bit of a personal brand with the idea of eventually having potential clients contact me as well as going through the typical agency route, though this will take a year or two to pull off, likely more.

I guess I'm trying to be realistic, though I don't want to miss out through over thinking the move and leaving it too late.

[LondonManc]

Full stack projects all the way from requirement gathering, DW design, ETL development in SSIS, cube design in SSAS and front end stuff with SSRS and Power BI. I've worked with Qlikview and Tableau also.

Is this an area that you work in LondonManc?

Similar.

Full end-to-end DW design, ETL, BA, PM etc., but more experience with BusinessObjects and Cognos as the reporting tools. I've worked with SSRS and PowerBI but to a lesser extent. In terms of database techs, I've seen most over the 20 years I've been in BI; mainly SQL Server and Oracle with occasional other stuff like DB2 and Netezza. ETL similar - mainly DTS/SSIS with projects using other tech like Ab Initio.

As you've probably realised by now, project-based work is far more interesting in our line of work.

[Scratch It]

At the moment I think anyone doing BI work is going to have to know Azure especially SQL Data warehouse, Data Lake store and Data Factory - as that is where the growth is likely to be.

Yes it looks expensive but only until you see the actual cost of doing it in house compared to Azure it starts looking cheap provided you remember to switch things off when not in use....

As for Power BI you will definitely need to understand the forthcoming Common Data Model (CDM) as that's going to be the basis of an awful lot within both Power BI and Power Apps gonig forward.

On timing it depends on how good and interesting the work you are getting from the consultancy is. I have far greater control over my career and skillset as a contractor than I ever had as a permie...

However remember the awkward contract is not the first contract but the second and third ones... Getting those is always far more stressful than the first one...

Thanks Eek - I have delivered a project in Azure and hopefully will be working on a project using data lake and data factory in near future. The work is interesting, though I wouldn't say that the clients are particularly sexy or anything.

Why is that the case with second and third contracts? I've heard that quite a bit - I don't understand why its the case though?

[eek]

Thanks Eek - I have delivered a project in Azure and hopefully will be working on a project using data lake and data factory in near future. The work is interesting, though I wouldn't say that the clients are particularly sexy or anything.

Why is that the case with second and third contracts? I've heard that quite a bit - I don't understand why its the case though?

First contract you often get while serving notice. Second contract you need to find after finishing the first - so you have a limited war chest that is rapidly depleting while everyone around your panics... Meanwhile your CV will not be of a clear-cut contractor at that moment...

As an aside, personally, the best time to go contracting is with a new technology that you know more about than anyone else. Yes it limits the contracts you are going for but given that you won't have much competition it should be far easier for you to get it (less competition) and it should also pay well (less competition again). So don't go just yet and get those Azure items on the CV first....