Reply to: Day 2 and nothing to do

[d000hg]

I know Admin's not the brightest (although of course we love him anyway) but it can't be beyond him to set up a ******* Morons sub-forum into which certain posters' threads are automatically diverted.

That's what General is.

[Old Greg]

So have we

I know Admin's not the brightest (although of course we love him anyway) but it can't be beyond him to set up a ******* Morons sub-forum into which certain posters' threads are automatically diverted.

[TheFaQQer]

Lucky you - I've got 6 months of this!

So have we

[zoco]

This has happened to me several times. Right now I'm into my second week on the contract and we are still 'waiting for the project to get going', in other words I have s*d-all to do, except sit at the desk doing 'research'. I'm still hopeful though that it will genuinely get going properly - its a nice place to work.

Previous contract never really did get going. I was hired on a 2 month contract to troubleshoot performance on a large system.

It was apparently crucial that I was to start the day after tomorrow as there was loads to do and the situation was desperate. So at considerable personal expense, I booked last minute travel to Europe and duly turned up at the client site at 9am on the agreed day.

It was so crucial that it took half a day to actually get into the building then a week of sitting around before I was able to login to anything. Ten minutes after logging in, I located the source of the performance problem, recommended a parameter change which was implemented that evening. The following day, the system was running like greased lightning - problem solved. I then basically had to fiddle around for the remaining 7 weeks trying to look busy. I must have succeeded because they wanted to extend me - I politely declined the offer.

One thing I've learnt in this game is that its impossible to tell what a contract will be like before you get there.

Lucky you - I've got 6 months of this!

[Arthritic Toe]

This has happened to me several times. Right now I'm into my second week on the contract and we are still 'waiting for the project to get going', in other words I have s*d-all to do, except sit at the desk doing 'research'. I'm still hopeful though that it will genuinely get going properly - its a nice place to work.

Previous contract never really did get going. I was hired on a 2 month contract to troubleshoot performance on a large system.

It was apparently crucial that I was to start the day after tomorrow as there was loads to do and the situation was desperate. So at considerable personal expense, I booked last minute travel to Europe and duly turned up at the client site at 9am on the agreed day.

It was so crucial that it took half a day to actually get into the building then a week of sitting around before I was able to login to anything. Ten minutes after logging in, I located the source of the performance problem, recommended a parameter change which was implemented that evening. The following day, the system was running like greased lightning - problem solved. I then basically had to fiddle around for the remaining 7 weeks trying to look busy. I must have succeeded because they wanted to extend me - I politely declined the offer.

One thing I've learnt in this game is that its impossible to tell what a contract will be like before you get there.

[eek]

Did you read my post " find some work to do...".

The fact that I have a current extension is because I discovered a problem that client co was not aware of, I worked out a solution and now implementing it. There is always work to do and opportunities if client co has a budjet.

One problem is that many contractors are scared to do that fearing IR35.

[Paddy]

I thought as a proper business with MOO, the point was you SHOULD stay away if there's not work to do rather than sit there like a permie taking money to fill a seat.

Did you read my post " find some work to do...".

The fact that I have a current extension is because I discovered a problem that client co was not aware of, I worked out a solution and now implementing it. There is always work to do and opportunities if client co has a budjet.

[Jog On]

I see it similarly to something like a Sky TV subscription. If I buy a new house and get them to turn on the TV/broadband from the moving in date - then that date changes because of an oversight on my part should they hold off and not charge me anything until I've got my **** together?

I don't think they would and that's how a 'proper business' operates. What would a bunch of builders do if you got them all on site and hadn't got the materials they need to start working? Go home and not do any billable time (which they could be doing on a different site) until you sort yourself out?

Time is money

Of course as a contractor on site you can meet your team, shadow people - I've even had stuff printed out and gone over it with good old pen and paper while waiting. Other times we've (a team of 3) sat and played with our phones for 2 weeks while they sort out or logins and machines.

Very wasteful but some clients - mainly banks - choose to do this

[darmstadt]

I've just spent the last 6 months doing **** all due to senior mangement which, if everything goes their way, means I'll be doing 24/7 from mid-September until end November. I had a project for the first 6 months which came in 20 days early but I could have completed in less than 6 weeks apart from having to rely on other team's input. I despair sometimes, then I think of the invoice. I also think that if I had to be here 5 days a week I'd go ******* doolally although I'd be able to buy a new Porsche every year...

[TheFaQQer]

I thought as a proper business with MOO, the point was you SHOULD stay away if there's not work to do rather than sit there like a permie taking money to fill a seat.

I agree.

But finding work to do (eg. learning about the system before you start messing with it) is something that a contractor should be able to do (and to string it out for as long as possible without actually having to do any meaningful work).

[d000hg]

+1

The art of being a contractor is to find some work to do, at least learn about their system FFS.
I will Neg rep you for being so stupid.

I thought as a proper business with MOO, the point was you SHOULD stay away if there's not work to do rather than sit there like a permie taking money to fill a seat.

[Gym beast]

Pretty naïve question (and I still ask a few of those myself!). The OP is probably worried that the project will be shelved in its infancy, which very rarely happens IME. He should realise that the whole mindset of engaging temp staff is to fill in for workload and resource mismatches BOTH existing and likely, emphasis on 'likely'. He should also realise that his boss has his own targets to meet, many/most of which have nothing to do with the contract, and the workload for which can explode at any given time. Finally many/most companies will project-plan the 'Arrange stuff the new guy needs to do his job' not as a milestone but as an ongoing and dynamic task whose duration is allowed until well after he has actually been hired and placed.

Just about every place I've been I've had to wait somewhere between a day and two entire months before getting on with any meaningful work.

[northernladuk]

Psychocandeeeeeeeee!!!

[DodgyAgent]

Park your breakfast
Fill in your timesheet
Walk around office with a piece of paper in your hand
Go for a coffee
Surf the mapped drives for "interesting" stuff
Go for a walk at lunchtime (get a haircut)
Come back and go for a coffee
Ride the escalator (if there's one)
Do the crossword
Go for a coffee and hey presto it's time to go home!

Alternatively you could just log on to CUK and exchange pleasantries with SASGuru

[NorthWestPerm2Contr]

Would I be unreasonable to say to the client that I'll be more than happy to forgo any payment and go and sit on the beach for the next few days until they sort out a login and give me some work to do?

Really, they were adamant I had to start Monday ... Spending all day sat with your head in a health and safety manual is absolute torture.....

Invoice and carry on......

Start up your own project while you wait.