Reply to: Been offered a 12 month contract but had no interview

[ukmercenary]

hmmm didn't quite go to plan the contract I was on well kind of ended now I kind of wished I had taken the 12 month contract im currently looking for a job now doh im too indecisive all good experience though.

The only other issue is that ive annoyed of the agency who ive worked for before so maybe they wont like me asking for a work reference maybe i should phone them hmmm

[Svalbaard]

Lol!!! I was once offered a 12 month SAP Programme Mgt. role on the basis of a 10 minute interview discussing various wreck dives I have done.

[ukmercenary]

Thanks for the feedback I have decided to turn down the 12 month contract mainly due to it being about an hours commute and the fact that seems like a complete gamble I will stick with my current contact which is not perfect but is local (and lets me do my private work in the evenings) and gives me the space to look for another role probably a perm role.

[scooterscot]

There is probably something in your contract which will allow the client to get rid of you with no notice in the first week/month if you don't live up to what your CV promises.

WHS++ speaking from experience.

Agent gets you a job just before christmas and is ho-ho-ho all the way to the bank.

[configman]

Be careful it is not one of those contracts that says agent may terminate the contract anytime prior to the start date. This is an old trick where agents get you committed when they have not even seen an offer from client. It also stops you looking for anything else, all the while they will be pushing the client for a contract and if they don't get it they will terminate the contract before start date. This happened to some poor contractor I knew about 10 years ago, only he committed to a 6 month appartment and lost all that money.

[DaveB]

Is it a genuine contract or a 12 month fixed term appointment?

ie Are you on the payroll or billing through a ltd / brolly?

Only asking as the lack of proper job spec sounds like they just want to fill a permie support role without committing to permie terms and conditions.

[Scrag Meister]

Congrats on the contract, but when has 12 months been guranteed to mean 12 months?

I just had a 6 month extension mid November, and ClientCo have terminated after 6 weeks!!! s

Hope it all works out for you.

[Greg Longshaft]

working interview

i think its going to become quite common, they will put a clause in contract to protect themselves for first few weeks, if your rubbish they can simply get rid of you.

i got my current contract on the basis of a short telephone interview and i am still here 8 months later and very happy.

p.

[SueEllen]

I'm not sure I'd want to commit long term to working somewhere I'd never even seen, or met any of the people face to face. But then part of being a contractor is being able to fit into any environment.

I've done it.

In fact I've done it twice. They were the best 2 companies I worked at.

Unfortunately one went bust (years after I left) and the other one was swallowed up while I was there.

Mind you I did have a very detailed job spec both times...........

[Wanderer]

The role its self is a support role but they couldn't provide me with a job spec

Congratulations on the offer of a 12 month contract but it sounds like a bit of a cowboy operation if they won't provide a spec and then recruit someone without an interview (not even phone interview). I'd be inclined to arrange an interview with the client.

If they will recruit someone that easily then you know they will fire you just as quickly so consider your notice period carefully.

Notice cuts both ways though, you could end up in a dead boring job and can't get out quickly to take an interesting one.

On the other hand, you may be boomed. If you do a full year there on a decent rate you can build up your war chest and add another solid paragraph to your CV.

Good luck!

[VectraMan]

I'm not sure I'd want to commit long term to working somewhere I'd never even seen, or met any of the people face to face. But then part of being a contractor is being able to fit into any environment.

They're probably saying 12 months as a carrot to make you accept a lower rate. They'll almost certainly be able to get rid of you at any time, so 12 months doesn't really mean anything. OTOH you may well be committing yourself to work for 12 months with no get out - so check what the contract says about notice periods.

If there's no job spec, thats kind of risky because if they decided to terminate, they could argue that you didnt' meet the skill requirements. if thats not written down, its down to what they say is valid, not you.

Why not, then, write the spec and ask them to ratify it and include it in the contract as a Schedule ?

[kingcook]

I got my current gig (3 monther) after a 5 minute phone chat with a few basic coding questions.

They did insist i went down to see them after this, but it was just to see my face and say hello. I'd been told prior to this (by the agent) that the gig was mine.

[MarillionFan]

Depends very much on the client(re:interview).

I recently got a gig where I had a 10 minute (yes/no style questionairre). They offered me the role based on the agency recommendation(who they trusted).

I actually made them do a 2nd interview just in case they were all closet cases and I didn't want to work for them.

It's rare though.

[northernladuk]

First thing I would do which seems to be missing here is weigh up the pro's and con's of each role. If you do this might you might actually get the answer without having to take the risk of no job spec etc etc...

What is good about the job you are in. What is bad about it. Same for the new job. How will the job you are in look bad on your CV though just out of interest, because you have been there a long time or it isn't utilizing your skills properly? If you are in support and are working on a hardward role out it seems to fit ok.

What about rates, travel, length of contract, size of companies involved (blue chip or unknown little companies)...

From that decide which is best for you. if it is this new role then yes start to think about the risks. Does 1st and 2nd line support really need a job spec? It has a fairly standard set of processes and the like doesn't it. Just what you are support can change?