I've done mostly contract work because I liked the freedom when I was younger. Now I notice a lot of people my age have moved on to management or jobs "higher on the ladder" while I stress about the uncertainty of income when contracts end. I assume the lifestyle might suit people who are extraordinarily good networkers, but I feel mostly tired these days. My younger self didn't know about the fatigue the responsibility for a family brings.<p>In a fixed career you have a chance to build something up, while in contracting you're often back to square one with each new contract. You might have more experience, but you don't have the sort of trust and responsibility which you earn if you work long enough in a company or with the same group of people.<p>It's hard to find truly permanent jobs these days.<p>I think it's also biting companies in the long run, as I notice more and more graveyards of abandoned projects and services running without anybody present who was involved in building or setting up. But those costs don't seem as obvious to those in charge who'd rather not have to hire permanent workers.<p>(I work in software engineering and security.)
I am taking a break from being a senior sysadmin because I got burnt out for the third time and am happily pursuing a data science degree. I've been the contractor and the employee.<p>My two cents is that companies have become so focused on killing upward mobility on purpose as a cost saving measure due to what I feel is increasingly more short term thinking. I can't tell you how many times during my contracting days I heard a story about how $company used to have one or more full time employees who setup, managed, and knew all their systems, but they decided they would rather save the salaries and just use the contractor "when needed". Of course half the time it was some halfassed MSP type shop that didn't know their ass from their elbow, didn't really care about being proactive, and milked billing enough the companies ended up spending just as much money as the salaries but with 1/8 the effectiveness. Throw in outsourcing to foreign countries (Goldman Sachs) and abuse of H1Bs and yeah, I'd say the rise of contract workers is killing upward mobility.<p>That said, its not the contractors fault, its managements. My view is this is largely because the CTO and CIO positions are failing to properly brief the Cs/board of directors on why they shouldn't be doing this, and that is largely because the CTO/CIO is too much a management and not enough tech. Often I would even see companies without a CTO/CIO, and some poor greybeard would be haphazardly trying to run an IT department and speak board speak at the same time, in the end doing neither well because they had little backing from higher up.<p>This is why so many companies are literally drowning in their own technical debt due to greediness and short term thinking!<p>I think its time for more technical people to go get an MBA and shake up the stagnant CTO/CIO positions.<p>For a long time I just wanted to be in a cold data center all day with my head in a terminal doing good work. As a senior sysadmin though I have learned that I should have been playing the politics game in the meeting room to protect my department and the company. I wish I had learned this sooner.
Contract workers or Uber workers is a bad deal for all, with some short term gains.<p>For a worker, yes, its less of office politics and having to deal with crappy co-workers. But that is how you grow. I learned so much when I am working with people than being all alone. So, having couple of people approach the same problem in different ways, helps you learn, teach & grow. I was learning something new everyday, when I was working in a team. Plus contract jobs are effecting the basic needs of human beings - "food, clothing & shelter", due to the very nature of uncertainly. Basically I am more worried about the basics and not as focused at my job when I have a full time job. I feel that I am just completing the task at hand to get paid. I don't analyse the issue and try to find a solution or seek for some improvement. Plus working in a specific domain for a period will help in gaining experience and you have build up skills.<p>For a employer, how much ever you document a solution, there is going to be knowledge gaps. Only when you have someone working on a problem for a while, will they be able to come up with a better solution. Each employee comes come a different background and will view the problems differently. That will bring about a nice work culture.<p>Team work is not given enough credit. Instead, there is always the focus on one rock star that does it all. I personally feel that for that one rock star to actually perform, there needs to be a team behind to support.
I've done a lot of contract work as a software engineer over the past 5 years. It's a good way to experiment with a lot of different companies and industries.<p>It's generally true that contractors can't get promoted within the company. It's not unusual to see 40+ year old contractors still working as engineers.<p>The money is great but you really need to have a low risk investment strategy on the side... I don't think you can get rich from contracting but you can have a very decent retirement.<p>Contracting is good if you're burned out with startups that lead nowhere. It's the closest I've felt to being my own boss.
Upward mobility? Research came out 3-4 years ago I believe that showed that social mobility no longer existed in the US. It is normally measured by how many people die in a different tax bracket from their parents. As of a few years ago, that simply wasn't happening. If you were born to poor parents, you die poor. If you were born to rich parents, you die rich. On the overall statistical scale, there is no mobility.
> “One big issue is training,” notes Bidwell. “As an employee, your employer may pay to train you and keep you up to date on new technologies. They will also give you a chance to try new kinds of work and learn that way. As a contractor, nobody is paying for you to learn<p>I've now been contracting as a developer for as long as I was a permanent employee and I've learnt more as a contractor. Sometimes it's been a bit of luck with a job but the rest is mostly from only having to do the job you're in for - so no reviews, company meetings and the rest, plus I can pick and choose (and afford) to go to more workshops and conferences.<p>It can be easier to be complacent as a perm employee but less so as a contractor.
I come from a blue collar family and was one of the first to take a white collar job in 2007. I planned on making a long term commitment to my first employer, but spent 6 years fighting tooth and nail for more responsibility and money.<p>Eventually I had enough and tried jumping into contracting (but ended up in consulting). At this point my career and pay went through the roof. I'm making (literally) twice as much money now, and finally achieved the title I was after.<p>Most of the companies I've worked at don't value the domain knowledge their current work force has. They waste time and money taking risks on new resources like myself.<p>I don't feel I'm personally a bad investment, but if companies we're willing to prioritize their current work force, I wouldn't have to bounce around employers to get where I feel I'm best utilized.
Or upward mobility was dead and spurred contract working. Rates have changed little in the last 20 years. We know our masters sell us for $120/hour when we only make $40/hour. I was stagnated for 10 years before I went solo in 2006.
Look to Japan for an example of a working underclass of part-timers / contractors and their lack of stability, mobility and career prospects vs full timers.<p>Japan's unusual hiring practices in large traditional corporations (Straight from university or bust) doesn't help.
Any time you can earn more than you spend, and take advantage of compound interest (index funds, etc), you could eventually become rich, i.e. upward mobility.<p>In terms of jobs, it seems there are fewer guarantees and fewer formulas to follow (you used to be able to work somewhere for 30 years and count on a pension).<p>Upward mobility is still alive and well, but it's through self education and using the internet. Constantly improving is the only way to beat the game. Discipline, etc.
Its always struck me as odd that Contractors in IT in the USA don't get the premium you do in the UK. I would expect 3x my FTE rate as a self employed contractor and that's before the better tax treatment even after the reforms to tax on dividends.
Upward mobility to what?<p>As a software contract worker, the last thing I want is "upward mobility".<p>That means more bullshit and less actualy hands on development.<p>Being a contract worker let's you control your taxes better and you can find another gig without feeling like you killed the family cat when you 'leave for another opportunity'.<p>If your thing is upward mobility, then incorporate yourself. Slap on CEO and Director title on your LinkedIn profile and call it a day.
This mentality is far worse then the article describes. The short sighted lack of institutional knowledge is, for technology companies, a serious issue. We are knowledge workers, and we know too clearly how technology management tries to treat salaried developers as inter-changeable. Add in contract technology developers and you have a recipe for success-causes-failure situations as there are black holes in the institutional knowledge of the flagship revenue generating product the company offers.<p>I see time and time again, technology management not grasping it is the comprehensive solution, the product that allows customers to solve their problems without other software that make the difference. Any key technology is great, but without all the "document / project" wrapper, multiple import/export options, and API interfaces that contract developers are often tasked to create that enable the "key technology" to have the accessibility to be successful. Without all the "interface and GUI stuff" you do not have a product. That "interface and GUI stuff" is a core competency, yet technology management rarely recognizes this.
IMHO the single best thing about contracting is not having to deal with office politics and chasing promotions... which is also a downside, career-wise, as you don't get promoted, ever.
As a contract worker it's unlikely you move up thru the organization you've been placed with. You may move up the org of the company who you contract with but your best bet is to opt for the trigger strategy and hop from one job to another with the accrued expertise, of there is expertise you can leverage. If it's repetitive stuff, then, there is little leverage and the best bet might be in moving to the management track.
I'm a consultant and think about going independent every so often. The thing is there's only so many hours to sell.<p>I'd rather be at my firm with bonus tied to account revenue which is generated by teams of people. That way your pay is disconnected from your time and has much more room to grow.
There are costs and benefits to choosing this line of work. The benefit is obviously the freedom to work when you want. Meanwhile, there is a hefty cost of being a contract worker - which comes with a lot of hurdles.