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I posted about this in a thread at https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13872807 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13872807. I think freelancing is dead. To

I posted about this in a thread at https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13872807 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13872807. I think freelancing is dead. To sum it up, employers, including startups that'd dry up their runway in 1 to 3 years, are demanding developers go full time and onsite. As if they really could give job security. That's the frustrating thing. They're making you jump through hoops for work that, save them being acquired, won't last. Yes, exceptions exist. But the new norm is that. And norm means being able to have some sense of reliability, not some person's luck. Yes, I ask recruiters to look around for remote opportunities and they try to help, but the good paying jobs are back in SF and want me in the office. Full time. Nope, no gigs. No one wants 3 months, 6 months. Yeah, I've heard all the talk about consulting. To me, it's just more growth hack / NLP talk about value that doesn't represent the realities of being a developer in our market these days. Startups shun the thought of outside experts or opinions, unless it's a SAAS tool. These CTO's, even if they don't know better, see advice from an outside expert as losing control. I think this is because they want employees who they can mold in their image, rather than someone who could help them in a pinch. The other thing is hiring happens a lot slower. A lot of these places keep passing over qualified candidates because they feel they have so many options. And no, employers aren't winning either with the lack of flexibility they have. Going remote opens up yourself to a ton of candidates. They're ultimately isolating themselves from skilled workers with experience. It's completely understandable to not want to be in SF and to accommodate working remote if you're a seasoned programmer.

BjoernKW 10y ago
The software development world is more than just startups. I work as a consultant in the B2B / enterprise segment. There absolutely is no shortage of work to be done in these areas and these companies are very open to working with freelancers and consultant.
- jMyles 10y ago
  How do you break into that world? And is there room for serious engineering, not just consulting?
  - BjoernKW 10y ago
    Recruiters are one way, not necessarily the best in the long run but a good short-term stopgap approach if you need to quickly find clients. In my opinion the preferable long-term sustainable path is pretty much like in most businesses: Become useful and become noticeable. Create solutions and talk about it. A company website, blog, conference talks, networking events testimonials for instance are useful components of a marketing plan for a consultant. As for the second question I'm not sure this is the right attitude. For example analysing a company's software creation process and pointing out ways to improve it is serious engineering but it doesn't involve writing a single line of code and often is more about human communication than hard engineering facts. Value creation starts when you first talk to a prospective client not just when you write the first line of code.
    - deleted 10y ago
      [deleted]
  - erik998 10y ago
    Most large companies have vendors. You can typically become a vendor via their supply chain management system. They usually have a web page where you can register your company, provide a list of services, and such. You also need to qualify by submitting liability insurance documents and such. This is the best way to route around recruiters. It is hard work though. They usually have vendor fairs where you have a booth and give out brochures, advertise, network with internal managers...

BjoernKW 10y ago

The software development world is more than just startups. I work as a consultant in the B2B / enterprise segment. There absolutely is no shortage of work to be done in these areas and these companies are very open to working with freelancers and consultant.

jMyles 10y ago
How do you break into that world? And is there room for serious engineering, not just consulting?
- BjoernKW 10y ago
  Recruiters are one way, not necessarily the best in the long run but a good short-term stopgap approach if you need to quickly find clients. In my opinion the preferable long-term sustainable path is pretty much like in most businesses: Become useful and become noticeable. Create solutions and talk about it. A company website, blog, conference talks, networking events testimonials for instance are useful components of a marketing plan for a consultant. As for the second question I'm not sure this is the right attitude. For example analysing a company's software creation process and pointing out ways to improve it is serious engineering but it doesn't involve writing a single line of code and often is more about human communication than hard engineering facts. Value creation starts when you first talk to a prospective client not just when you write the first line of code.
  - deleted 10y ago
    [deleted]
- erik998 10y ago
  Most large companies have vendors. You can typically become a vendor via their supply chain management system. They usually have a web page where you can register your company, provide a list of services, and such. You also need to qualify by submitting liability insurance documents and such. This is the best way to route around recruiters. It is hard work though. They usually have vendor fairs where you have a booth and give out brochures, advertise, network with internal managers...