Reply to: Is it bad or good for contractor to deliver crap quality code/design?

[SupremeSpod]

From a clients point of view, it is better to have something in place that gives a partial solution to a problem than a perfect solution that never gets implemented. So there is a balance to be achieved. Not too crap and not too slow.

AGILE! Works for me!

[escapeUK]

From a clients point of view, it is better to have something in place that gives a partial solution to a problem than a perfect solution that never gets implemented. So there is a balance to be achieved. Not too crap and not too slow.

[minestrone]

Unless they have asked me to sort out a mess or hack a quick fix into a well designed system I just continue in the way it was moving before I turned up. Doing the opposite of what is in place already without instruction is always the worst move.

[NotAllThere]

That can be the case. But for some reason, I get to use the new technology first.

[Sysman]

Work hard and fast, get the job done, get the renewals, or move on. I've worked myself out of a job many times, and never caused me any difficulty. Currently on 6th year with the same clients.

Back when I was implementing shiny new systems I was quite pleased to do the handover and move on.

If you aren't careful you can get trapped in a gig where you do all the work and the others are happy to let you. You can easily end up getting stuck with out of date technology that way.

[northernladuk]

Not really. Troll alert mods!

+1. No one in business that has to sell themselves to a client would ask such a dumb question.

[Durbs]

Not really. Troll alert mods!

Indeed, cant believe anyone actually answered that sensibly.

[d000hg]

Interesting question

Not really. Troll alert mods!

[cojak]

WNATS

Never a problem for me, I'm good and I get extended..

[NorthWestPerm2Contr]

Was one of 2 contractors brought in to deliver a solution about 10 months ago. I delivered BI solution (reporting, database, cube, ETL) very quickly and efficiently and the team were really impressed. The app developer was taking months to deliver a relatively straight forward app. I completed my work and they ended up terminating him thereafter handing the work over to me even though I am a BI specialist. In the end I completed a working app within 3 weeks from scratch. They kept extending me and keeping me on to maintain and do new pieces of work.

Moral of the story: Just do the job you were hired to do and leave the extension decisions up to the clients....

[NotAllThere]

Work hard and fast, get the job done, get the renewals, or move on. I've worked myself out of a job many times, and never caused me any difficulty. Currently on 6th year with the same clients.

[EternalOptimist]

i feel slightly soiled.

work your nuts off to make yourself redundant. and you will never be redundant

[SimonMac]

A contractor is only as good as his reputation, if you do a good job you are just as likely to get renewed maybe on another project or hired again at a later date, doing a bad job may get you extended but its more likely to get you canned.

[Troll]

The Bobs have made careers out of doing Bad Quality

I have made a career out of sorting it out

[BrilloPad]

In my 22 years as contractor I always did a good job. I often moved jobs, but as soon as an old manager wanted someone they thought of me.

I wrote a precious metal system for UBS - did myself out of a job. 9 months later I was back for a money market system for UBS Jersey. In the 9 months my manager was called to the precious metal traders twice - both times to reboot the printer!