Trying to move from Perm to Contract

[PpVoid]

Hi All,

This is my 1st post here. I need your expert advice and guidance.

I am working as Team Leader for a FTSE100 company since last 10 years. I am seriously looking to move to contract jobs. I have published my resume on cwjobs and jobsite for contract jobs.
The major hurdles is One month notice to current employer. I do have 6 days holidays to take. so I may make it as 3 weeks notice if employer agrees.

My guess is, due to notice period, no agents are considering me for contracts.
I am thinking to put my papers shortly. but hesitating to do so (you know how big is that decision). Financially, I can support my family for 3-4 months.

- How is Market now? (my expertise in C#, WinForms, MVC3)
- Is it worth taking a risk? Or shall I keep on searching contracts while I am on payroll?
- What do Agents look for in candidates?

Any tips/advice are highly appreciated.

Thanks


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[acontractor]

Hi All,

This is my 1st post here. I need your expert advice and guidance.

I am working as Team Leader for a FTSE100 company since last 10 years. I am seriously looking to move to contract jobs. I have published my resume on cwjobs and jobsite for contract jobs.
The major hurdles is One month notice to current employer. I do have 6 days holidays to take. so I may make it as 3 weeks notice if employer agrees.

My guess is, due to notice period, no agents are considering me for contracts.
I am thinking to put my papers shortly. but hesitating to do so (you know how big is that decision). Financially, I can support my family for 3-4 months.

- How is Market now? (my expertise in C#, WinForms, MVC3)
- Is it worth taking a risk? Or shall I keep on searching contracts while I am on payroll?
- What do Agents look for in candidates?

Any tips/advice are highly appreciated.

Thanks


-

Market currently is in pretty poor state. But it all depends on what are your skill sets (C#/MVC would be ok I think) and how far are you willing to travel. The one month notice will definately be an issue (esp. in this market condition). Having said that people have got contracts who waited for a month or 3 weeks.

I say if you have a decent war chest then hand your notice in and go for it. (btw my defination of decent warchest is atleast 3 months without any income.)

Good luck and keep us posted.

[JamJarST]

Market currently is in pretty poor state. But it all depends on what are your skill sets (C#/MVC would be ok I think) and how far are you willing to travel. The one month notice will definately be an issue (esp. in this market condition). Having said that people have got contracts who waited for a month or 3 weeks.

I say if you have a decent war chest then hand your notice in and go for it. (btw my defination of decent warchest is atleast 3 months without any income.)

Good luck and keep us posted.

I think 3 months is risky personally. Lets say the OP finished his permie role and then it took a month to secure a contract and lets be honest a month can be optimistic. He could well be on a months payment terms which if you are weekly invoicing means you don't start getting paid until 2 months and 1 week after stopping permie job!! If he has expenses like travel and accommodation then he will be struggling.

I had about 3.5 to 4 months warchest when I struck out on the contract road last year, it only took me 2 weeks to secure a contract but it involved high weekly expenses and by the time my first invoice was paid I had used at least 3 months worth of the warchest.

[northernladuk]

Is there a market for team leaders? I see hands on guys and I see PM's. I don't tend to see team lead type roles. When you apply for a contract you must be a 100% fit for a the role. A team leader does not make a good hands on guy. Clients are not looking for useful people that can add to the business long term.

Depends on what you plan on aiming for when you are contracting. Bearing in mind one team leader looks after what, 5 or 6 guys means at the very least there are a sixth less roles compared to hands on.

When you do your research make sure you pick roles you can do from day one. Don't kid yourself with 'I could do that I guess'. If you cannot demostrate you have been doing it longer and better than the next guy you won't have a chance.

Would be glad to be proved otherwise about the team lead role of course but thats what I think you need to be careful of.

[PpVoid]

Market currently is in pretty poor state. But it all depends on what are your skill sets (C#/MVC would be ok I think) and how far are you willing to travel. The one month notice will definately be an issue (esp. in this market condition). Having said that people have got contracts who waited for a month or 3 weeks.

I say if you have a decent war chest then hand your notice in and go for it. (btw my defination of decent warchest is atleast 3 months without any income.)

Good luck and keep us posted.

Thank you, acontractor.

I think 3 months is risky personally. Lets say the OP finished his permie role and then it took a month to secure a contract and lets be honest a month can be optimistic. He could well be on a months payment terms which if you are weekly invoicing means you don't start getting paid until 2 months and 1 week after stopping permie job!! If he has expenses like travel and accommodation then he will be struggling.

Hi JamJarST, your post was quite informative. Thanks for highlighting it.

Is there a market for team leaders?

Hi northernladuk, I agree. I am not looking for Team Leader contracts, but Developer role. Luckily I got real hands-on in my current role. Thanks to Agile SCRUM...


Thank you, all for your advice. I really need to make sure of minimum 3-4 months war chest before taking the next step.
I hope there is a light at the end of the tunnel. I will keep you posted.

Cheers