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howto become agency/consultant company

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    #11
    Until you win the work you wont know how many staff you will need, winning your first consulting work can be time-consuming and involves a lot more skill in marketing then attending the odd interview. I would focus on that first and also sound out contacts who would help deliver the work if you win some or recruitment agents to provide staff and likely lead times to deliver the work. Have you considered working capital to pay your staff before the money rolls in?

    No client will expect you to start work immediately unless they pay handsomely for the privilege.
    Make Mercia Great Again!

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      #12
      To paraphrase an old joke, if you want a successful consultancy company I wouldn't start from here.

      It's a lot easier if you find an opportunity to get the first client on board, usually from contacts or current work situation. i.e. the opportunity presents itself rather than chasing it cold.

      Also don't start it with friends if you want them to remain as such. It may start out easy with a client or two covering all the overheads and a reasonable income but when the work dries up someone is usually unhappy about having to do more work than the other(s), unless you're running the business well in terms of communication and expectations of all participants with a major stake in it.

      Freelance consultancy seems to me to be a much easier life. Depends what floats your boat and how deep the water is, some cope better than others, so if you really want to give it a go, give it a go. Good luck, who dares wins.
      Maybe tomorrow, I'll want to settle down. Until tomorrow, I'll just keep moving on.

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        #13
        Originally posted by northernladuk View Post
        The fact you don't know the answers to your questions means you've no chance of making it work.

        Every contractor on earth has though about how to get more staff in and next to none of them have achieved it. The ones that did didn't need to ask basic questions on an internet forum.
        congratulations to that ones who didn't need to ask questions,
        It is also a choice @northernladuk, I am sure many people exists who is able to do, but not doing it. Because it may require too much dedication.

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          #14
          Originally posted by Hobosapien View Post
          To paraphrase an old joke, if you want a successful consultancy company I wouldn't start from here.

          It's a lot easier if you find an opportunity to get the first client on board, usually from contacts or current work situation. i.e. the opportunity presents itself rather than chasing it cold.

          Also don't start it with friends if you want them to remain as such. It may start out easy with a client or two covering all the overheads and a reasonable income but when the work dries up someone is usually unhappy about having to do more work than the other(s), unless you're running the business well in terms of communication and expectations of all participants with a major stake in it.

          Freelance consultancy seems to me to be a much easier life. Depends what floats your boat and how deep the water is, some cope better than others, so if you really want to give it a go, give it a go. Good luck, who dares wins.
          Thanks for sharing thoughts, and I am totally agreeing most of them especially freelance consultancy is very comfortable & safe.

          Originally posted by Hobosapien View Post
          ... usually from contacts or current work situation...
          On each contract, I am signing, "I am not going to do any business directly with end-client without agency"
          And since there is an agency in all contracts. I thinks this creates 2 options;
          1. partnering with agency
          2. old clients
          3. ?

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            #15
            Originally posted by phoenix32 View Post
            On each contract, I am signing, "I am not going to do any business directly with end-client without agency"
            Nothing to stop you not signing and approaching directly. I'd be surprised if it works (rather than just losing you the contract) but anything's possible. Also, you could negotiate for shorter time periods relating to this clause to allow you to do independent business with the end client sooner.

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              #16
              Originally posted by phoenix32 View Post
              congratulations to that ones who didn't need to ask questions,
              It is also a choice @northernladuk, I am sure many people exists who is able to do, but not doing it. Because it may require too much dedication.
              Possibly. So where does that leave the people that can't or don't know how to do it?

              3. Develop a business model and create an offering that's better and more attractive than the competition and go out there and sell it.

              The fact you don't know this is exactly why it will not work.
              Last edited by northernladuk; 2 April 2019, 23:29.
              'CUK forum personality of 2011 - Winner - Yes really!!!!

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                #17
                Originally posted by phoenix32 View Post
                On each contract, I am signing, "I am not going to do any business directly with end-client without agency"
                And since there is an agency in all contracts. I thinks this creates 2 options;
                1. partnering with agency
                2. old clients
                3. ?
                There does not have to be an agency for every contract.
                You can go direct to clients, generally that requires you having a good reputation and getting other contractors to recommend you, or having worked at the client previously.
                If you want to “partner with an agency”, what you are looking to do is work for a consultancy. Plenty of those around.
                …Maybe we ain’t that young anymore

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                  #18
                  Originally posted by phoenix32 View Post
                  On each contract, I am signing, "I am not going to do any business directly with end-client without agency"
                  And since there is an agency in all contracts. I thinks this creates 2 options;
                  1. partnering with agency
                  2. old clients
                  3. ?
                  This is where networking over time pays off. Some clients may want you back, strengthening your relationship with them, allowing you to go direct or suggest a longer term arrangement that bypasses agencies for the type of consultancy you are on about offering (b2b rather than named person contract based).

                  Otherwise it's been known for permies to leave and set up a consultancy to offer their skills back to the client when client realises they've lost a pool of talent they still need. Usually that revolves around domain knowledge of specific systems (bespoke or niche) that the client depends on and people leave en-mass during a takeover or major business change.

                  The other option is to get 'expert' in a new product, service, or methodology and sell consultancy to companies wanting to get in on it, where there is a lack of permanent staff/contractors with the skills yet. Recent examples of that would be Agile in its various forms, various Microsoft Products (TFS, VSTS now Azure Devops), cloud (AWS, Azure) which has grown so large a field there are niche specialities such as IAAS, PAAS, FAAS, security, architecture, migration, Big Data, BI, AI, Machine Learning, ... always new specialist niches being created somewhere in the world of IT. Though you need to be good at 'selling' to convince a client you have x years experience in a niche that has only been public for much less than that.
                  Maybe tomorrow, I'll want to settle down. Until tomorrow, I'll just keep moving on.

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                    #19
                    Bored!

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                      #20
                      Just announce that this is what you are doing.

                      Clients will fall in place wanting your services because....

                      Programmers will fall in place wanting to work for you because....

                      Fill in the blanks. Why will clients come to you? Why will programmers want to work for you? No answers? No go.

                      Figure out the answers. What will you be providing to clients that they can't get elsewhere? What will they be willing to pay for that? What will you be providing to programmers that they can't get elsewhere? What will they be willing to pay (in lower income, as opposed to working direct) for that?

                      It's NOT just a case of deciding you are going to do this and skimming some of the fees for yourself. If you think you'll get something for nothing, forget it. The world doesn't work that way.

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