Advice for a newbie consultant

Dear Bob …

After a 10-year career as a staff employee (application developer) at various organizations (from tiny to mega), I am about to start a consulting contract. This is my first foray into the contracting arena, although I have been in a consultant role before. Initially it is short-term, but the potential for extension is great.

Other than the typical blurbs that are regurgitated ad nauseum, do you have any gems of advice to offer someone entering this game?

Thanks,

– Eager but Uncertain

Dear Eager …

A lot depends on whether you’re selling your effort or your wisdom … whether, that is, you’re going to be a contractor or a consultant.

If you’re going to be a contractor – a developer-for-hire, for example – it’s a simpler proposition. The typical blurbs that are repeated ad nauseum pretty much cover the ground. One point that isn’t repeated ad nauseum is that satisfying the terms of your contract isn’t enough. It isn’t even what’s most important.

What’s most important is to make sure they like you. If they do, you’ll never get into serious trouble, you will get renewals, and you’ll get good references and referrals. If not, the quality of your work won’t matter very much.

If you’re planning to be a consultant … someone who is hired to provide advice and guidance rather than effort as an alternative to hiring another employee … all of the same ad nauseum advice still matters, as does the advice I just provided.

But wait! There’s more!

Of all the advice I could give, one issue stand out. The first is that you’ll be bringing your intellectual property (IP) into each engagement. You’ll refine it while on the clock, and you’ll develop new intellectual property as well. Which brings up the question of who owns it when you’re done.

Most large companies these days have onerous IP clauses in their contracts. I’ve personally run across quite a few companies that try to reassign ownership of my IP, so that once I include it in a work product I no longer have the right to use it anymore. I’ve run across it enough to be pretty sure it’s a trend.

So here’s my advice: Read the contract carefully. Especially, look for clauses that should be mutual but are, instead, one sided – the non-disclosure agreement is a frequent culprit, and one place the IP issue frequently raises its ugly head.

And don’t be afraid to negotiate. The individual who wants to bring you in will generally take one look at this sort of thing, recognize that you’d be either an idiot to sign it, or desperate, and tell you that “this is something you’ll have to work out directly with Legal.”

So long as you remain good-natured while negotiating, you won’t offend anyone who can affect the decision to engage your services.

– Bob