Are all agents t***ts

[HankWangford]

To get good contracts you need a track record of completing successful
gigs in the particular area, it shows you can deliver the goods when required in the short period of time. also if you've done a similar contract you might already have a pre-built solution which just needs some customisations, this is the best way to sell yourself to the client as they know there not taking unecessary risks, also ensures that they pay you well.

HTH

i've seen that gig roll for around three years now, working for a large telco - BT inside Liverpool city council. They think they can get experienced c#, biztalk, sharepoint guys for upto £250 pd.
Joke

[Bright Spark]

remember rates always reflect what kind of person there looking for
based on todays rates I make the following assumption:

£250 p/d, C# = Wizard Driven, Spaghetti code, Copy and Paste Devleloper

£400 p/d, C# = Design Patterns, Enterprise Library, Test Driven, Standards based developer, .

you always get what you pay for .

[Troll]

i've seen that gig roll for around three years now, working for a large telco - BT inside Liverpool city council. They think they can get experienced c#, biztalk, sharepoint guys for upto £250 pd.
Joke

Sounds like a job for Bob Shawadiwadi!

[lukemg]

In my younger and more naieve days, went in to an agency to meet a permie and a contract agent. They both told me I had zero chance of getting a contract and should go perm. I was unsure of my ability at that stage and readily accepted the advice. 4 days later I got a contract and stayed in various contracts continuously working with only weekends in between them for 10.5 years.
It's easy to be manipulated when you are starting out, like car salesmen and estate agents, agents play this game every day. You have to get past the agent first, play the game, get the job in the bag then negotiate hard by finding out the market rate and digging your heels in. I even got stitched up on my current contract by the agent because I was in a weak position.
HTH

[HankWangford]

In my younger and more naieve days, went in to an agency to meet a permie and a contract agent. They both told me I had zero chance of getting a contract and should go perm. I was unsure of my ability at that stage and readily accepted the advice. 4 days later I got a contract and stayed in various contracts continuously working with only weekends in between them for 10.5 years.
It's easy to be manipulated when you are starting out, like car salesmen and estate agents, agents play this game every day. You have to get past the agent first, play the game, get the job in the bag then negotiate hard by finding out the market rate and digging your heels in. I even got stitched up on my current contract by the agent because I was in a weak position.
HTH

Yup I agree, you have just got to be hard nosed and confident in your skillset, when an agent asks what rate you want add 10% onto your requirements, then when they ask about flexibility you can come down 10% and get what you wanted. They will try it on with anybody, no experience or 10 years experience. They will spin bullsh*t about the market being flooded with contractors so the rates have come down, they will spin that they have already put other candidates in for £x lower, dont back down they are just trying to claw back anything they can. If the client wants you and they are worth working for they wont worry about the extra x per day compared to billy hack who will do the gig fora fiver

[Diestl]

The hardest time of all is moving from permie to contractor, this is when you might have to take a lesser rate to get into the game.

[lukemg]

He's right, often the company is sick of trying to find someone who can fit in and has the right skills, getting budgets, talking to agents, getting CV's, interviewing - it's all a pain in the arse. They are not going to say no over 50 notes a day and start from scratch unless they have 2-3 people they like just as much.

[tim123]

To get good contracts you need a track record of completing successful
gigs in the particular area, it shows you can deliver the goods when required in the short period of time. also if you've done a similar contract you might already have a pre-built solution which just needs some customisations, this is the best way to sell yourself to the client as they know there not taking unecessary risks, also ensures that they pay you well.

HTH

Maybe you do. But there's no need for these skills to have been gained in a contract. A successful permi career progression is equally valid.

tim