test please delete

[ladymuck]

so much sql!!

[ladymuck]

Morning all.

Dull and overcast this morning. Currently 16 degree, forecast high of 18 with a 50% chance of rain overall. Pressure dropped slightly to 1007 mBar.

First meeting done. Trying to inhale a coffee before the next one starts.

[NickFitz]

Morning denizens

Grey, dry, 14°C, not as windy as yesterday

[DoctorStrangelove]

People thought it would be like The Day of the Triffids where everything falls apart within a week or so, but it's more like The Kraken Wakes where it happens over a couple of years

I'm beginning to think that "The Second Sleep" is future history.

Though there's time for "Earth Abides".

Morning all

Dry.

Grey.

White sky.

Sunless.

Dark.

Dreary.

18.8 deg in here currently.

1005 mbar.

Tuesday.

Left the kitchen light on overnight again.

[WTFH]

Morning all
Managed most of the walk in the dry, but the last 5 mins saw it start to drizzle.

[covbob]

Morning all.

Grey but not too miserable here.

[vetran]

morning

grey & cool.

egg & cheese on toast.

busy documenting

[covbob]

I'm starting to remember why I dislike chains involving multiple clients. The level of invoice quibbling and multiple approvals gets a bit daft after a while.

I have me -> Ltd -> Agency -> Agency2 -> ClientCo. Sadly Agency2 think they're a consultancy (they're not) and both they and ClientCo are Septics.

Of course that means that ClientCo and Agency2 want "touchpoint" calls to "touch base" with me periodically. ClientCo, that's fine as I'm online with their guys a fair bit. Agency2 not so much - I really have nothing to do with them at all.

We now have an approvals process for any travel I want reimbursing, any work out of hours, anything at weekends... ClientCo ask me to do some work, so I then have to check with Agency, who check with Agency2, who then ask ClientCo, and it all comes back down the chain. No doubt they're all adding % on to anything I charge. Agency2 want to be kept in the loop about what's going on at ClientCo but Agency don't want me dealing directly with Agency2.

It's all the usual situation and we've all been there but bugger me it does add several layers of tulip where none is needed.

That's before we factor in the revolving doors of people in Agency and Agency2, who all want to introduce themselves when they come in, and want to be copied in on emails, but forget to tell me which of their guys have left or moved on...

Rant over.

[WTFH]

Rant over.

10/10. Good rant. It's one of those situations that contractors face where it's worse than HR for a permanent employee.
There's another thread where people are arguing they could never go permanent because of office politics and lots of other reasons, and I can't help thinking that the reasons they give must be because they have only ever worked for a couple of clients and only directly with them (so effectively like a permie). When you stick in multiple layers and complex politics with people taking cuts everywhere, sometimes us and them have things in common.

[ladymuck]

I have been very fortunate in not ever having such a complicated chain. I think the closest comparable scenario I've had was when I worked briefly at Nationwide. MyCo -> Agency -> Consultancy -> Client. Never saw hide nor hair of the consultancy - met them once before I was offered the contract and that was it. I worked directly with the client and the agency paid me. Simples.