I was approached today by a senior manager I worked with some years ago, asking my advice about freelancing.
I suggested that now was not the best time to leave the comparative safety of a permanent job. A combination of the recession and the impending - and somewhat unpredictable - General Election makes an assured monthly pay cheque something that should not be abandoned lightly.
But I did advise him to increase his networking activity and his web presence.
One thing I have become firmly convinced of over the last fifteen months or so is that the interim market will never be the same again. In my experience, freelancers fall into one of two categories; they either select a handful of reputable agencies and rely on them to come up with suitable contracts, or they spray their CV around like confetti, forging no lasting relationship with any agent and being content to take work from anyone who can deliver it.
Both models, I would suggest, are now fatally flawed.
If the hard times brought on by the recession have taught us one thing, it is the value of networking. Of course, recruitment agencies will always be major players in the interim/freelance market, but when times are hard the pressure increases to get appointments right first time, and the value of personal recommendations comes to the fore.
I've always tapped into my personal network to learn of potential assignments for myself or to pass on potential assignments to others. Now, even that is not enough, and the interims who survive are those who up their networking game and build solid business relationships.
I've dabbled with various networking groups over the last nine months, in a bid to find one that is right for me. Some were dominated by small, local businesses, so I felt they were not the best place for me to commit time and money. Others seemed more like money-generating schemes for their originators. Not scams - that would be too harsh by far - but perhaps a little opportunistic.
I've now settled on two where I feel I can forge the most promising business networks - the Institute of Directors and the Interim Managers' Association. I've yet to attend an IMA networking event, but the IoD ones have started to yeild results, with people I have met really "getting"networking.
I've also, with the help of a handful of like-minded colleagues, started a micro-consultancy - The Freelance Network, www.freelancenetwork.org.uk which is designed to be in part a networking community but, more importantly, it affords each of us the opportunity to add more value for our clients because of the collaborative nature of the organisation and the good blend of skills and experience within the membership.
I firmly believe that the business relationships forged now, while the going is tough, will be the ones to endure, and as the economy revives more and more interim assignments will be carried out by people introduced through personal recommendation.
I suggested that now was not the best time to leave the comparative safety of a permanent job. A combination of the recession and the impending - and somewhat unpredictable - General Election makes an assured monthly pay cheque something that should not be abandoned lightly.
But I did advise him to increase his networking activity and his web presence.
One thing I have become firmly convinced of over the last fifteen months or so is that the interim market will never be the same again. In my experience, freelancers fall into one of two categories; they either select a handful of reputable agencies and rely on them to come up with suitable contracts, or they spray their CV around like confetti, forging no lasting relationship with any agent and being content to take work from anyone who can deliver it.
Both models, I would suggest, are now fatally flawed.
If the hard times brought on by the recession have taught us one thing, it is the value of networking. Of course, recruitment agencies will always be major players in the interim/freelance market, but when times are hard the pressure increases to get appointments right first time, and the value of personal recommendations comes to the fore.
I've always tapped into my personal network to learn of potential assignments for myself or to pass on potential assignments to others. Now, even that is not enough, and the interims who survive are those who up their networking game and build solid business relationships.
I've dabbled with various networking groups over the last nine months, in a bid to find one that is right for me. Some were dominated by small, local businesses, so I felt they were not the best place for me to commit time and money. Others seemed more like money-generating schemes for their originators. Not scams - that would be too harsh by far - but perhaps a little opportunistic.
I've now settled on two where I feel I can forge the most promising business networks - the Institute of Directors and the Interim Managers' Association. I've yet to attend an IMA networking event, but the IoD ones have started to yeild results, with people I have met really "getting"networking.
I've also, with the help of a handful of like-minded colleagues, started a micro-consultancy - The Freelance Network, www.freelancenetwork.org.uk which is designed to be in part a networking community but, more importantly, it affords each of us the opportunity to add more value for our clients because of the collaborative nature of the organisation and the good blend of skills and experience within the membership.
I firmly believe that the business relationships forged now, while the going is tough, will be the ones to endure, and as the economy revives more and more interim assignments will be carried out by people introduced through personal recommendation.
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