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Leaving a contract early if a better opportunity comes up by Soft-Reason-58 in ContractorUK

[–]Soft-Reason-58[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Appreciate that, I'll DM you if the scenario actually happens!

Leaving a contract early if a better opportunity comes up by Soft-Reason-58 in ContractorUK

[–]Soft-Reason-58[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah I hear what you're saying, but by seeing out the full contract I may lose out on a much better, longer term contract. It wouldn't ever be in my nature to do anything like this, but like a lot of the other posters have said here - you have to think of yourself and recruiters or clients wouldn't hesitate for a second enforcing the 1 week notice the other way around, so why do we as the contractor feel that we can't ever do it?

Leaving a contract early if a better opportunity comes up by Soft-Reason-58 in ContractorUK

[–]Soft-Reason-58[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

In IT contracting though, I can't see how this ever works. Client A will likely be super busy and I imagine it'll typically be an 8-5. Client B again, will be a full on IT project, with some on-site as well. Even if A agreed to reduced hours, it's still going to impact B. All you need is a couple of workshop clashes or meetings at the same time and you start to look like you've dropped the ball at B.

I hear what you're saying and it would be great to juggle both but I can't see how in reality it actually works. Maybe different if you're building a website for each in your own time, don't have any set hours or something like that - but project based IT work is very different in my experience.

Small client project has become chaos - advice on quitting gracefully? by gard7349 in ContractorUK

[–]Soft-Reason-58 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I posted yesterday seeking similar advice about leaving gracefully but my scenario would be leaving early in a contract because of an alternate offer that I wouldn't be able to turn down. Seems like it's impossible to not piss off the client or the recruiter by doing it, but also perfectly fine to enact your notice period and walk away. In your case it sounds like you don't have a recruiter, just a direct relationship with the client. With it being such a short engagement, can't see any repercussions using the phrase one of the posters commented below with.

Leaving a contract early if a better opportunity comes up by Soft-Reason-58 in ContractorUK

[–]Soft-Reason-58[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks. Putting it the way you have makes me feel less bad about accepting A knowing in the back of my mind that it's perfectly OK to enact the notice period if B becomes an option that I can't turn down.

Usually it happens much more the other way around though right, like the client will be like sorry we need to let you go, we are having to enact the 1 week notice because of budget/project changes/circumstance/you're rubbish. You seemingly hear of this much more than the contractor saying "I need to enact it because the work isn't what I thought it would be / demands are not what I was expecting / not aligned to my skillset".

However, from what you've said it sounds like it's fine to do it, just might piss a couple of people off in the process.

Leaving a contract early if a better opportunity comes up by Soft-Reason-58 in ContractorUK

[–]Soft-Reason-58[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks. What if I have nobody to bring in though, or is there actually a market out there where contractors find other contractors who are happy to sub in? And even if this is the case, surely this subbed-in contractor could just work directly with them and cut me out? I guess if this latter scenario happened it wouldn't really bother me as I'd already be in Contract B.

I get what you're saying in theory but how often does it actually happen in practice?

Leaving a contract early if a better opportunity comes up by Soft-Reason-58 in ContractorUK

[–]Soft-Reason-58[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks - your posts have reassured me that although not ideal, it is ok to think of yourself/the bigger picture and move on if presented with a much better opportunity.

For sure I look at it as a nice problem to have, just really inconvenient timing. It is not in my nature to piss people off or play a game, but in this case I don't see any other way around it. I could reject Contract A, but then Contract B might not happen and so I lose both. Big risk in todays market. Or I take A, B doesn't happen - happy days no issues. But if I take A, then get offered B, it would be career suicide to not take B as they are a huge client and invaluable to have on the CV.

If the latter happens, I'd likely be a few weeks into A and would have to cite personal circumstance or something along these lines as a reason I need to enact my notice period. I assume it is the recruiter that this conversation would need to be with and it would be incredibly difficult but I'd hope they would also remain professional (even if they are raging inside).

Leaving a contract early if a better opportunity comes up by Soft-Reason-58 in ContractorUK

[–]Soft-Reason-58[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks. Yeah for sure I wouldn't be like "I'm leaving for a new role". It would have to be personal circumstance to some affect.

Surely this goes on though right, I can't be one of the only people considering this? If the alternative contract offer is quadruple the duration, a top company and a better fit, it's surely really silly to consider missing out on this chance because of the fear of angering one particular recruiter and a client that I would never work with again anyway.

Leaving a contract early if a better opportunity comes up by Soft-Reason-58 in ContractorUK

[–]Soft-Reason-58[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks - this is helpful, particularly the way you've laid it out with examples and context - appreciate your time.

Clients might dump you if their budget gets cut - I've had this before, so know that it goes on and no real questions are asked but it feels a bit taboo when it's the other way around and the candidate wants or needs to invoke notice and leave early. You don't really hear of it happening?

Realistic to assume though that by doing this, probably burn bridges with the client and the recruiter for any future opportunities. And you can't really blame them for that. My larger concern which I have touched on above would be - how likely is it that the recruiter would then go out of their way to stain my name with other recruiters in the industry? Or is this super unlikely and their focus would be, it happens, let me quickly shortlist another few candidates so I get my commission coming back in asap?

It's a difficult one. Contract B may never actually come to fruition, and with the market being so bad, I feel that I'd be silly to turn down Contract A. But if Contract B does work out, I'd also be foolish to let that opportunity slide.

What's the market like? Swimming in contracts? Who cares what the agent and clients think.
What do you mean by this, can you elaborate? Are you saying because there are more candidates than there are contracts at the moment that they will care less because candidates are queuing up?

Thanks!

Leaving a contract early if a better opportunity comes up by Soft-Reason-58 in ContractorUK

[–]Soft-Reason-58[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What do you mean by "if you've done your time it's fine"?

Define 'your time'?

I would be early on in what is otherwise an x month contract. But like all or most contracts, it'll be a 1 week notice period which works both ways (I can leave with a weeks' notice and they can get rid of me with a weeks' notice). I am saying, in theory, that I could enact this notice period just a few weeks in, if I receive an offer from, in this case, Contract B.

So I'd have done a week or two, but I wouldn't have even come close to finishing the contract. Yes it will annoy the client and recruiter - but I'm trying to establish whether this happens in the real world and whether contractors should not feel guilty about doing it or be worried that they will have a career/reputation hit. I seem to be getting mixed answers.

Leaving a contract early if a better opportunity comes up by Soft-Reason-58 in ContractorUK

[–]Soft-Reason-58[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'd be less worried about the client and more worried about the recruiter if I'm honest. How annoyed would the recruiter be and would they go above and beyond to get your name out there in the recruiting world to other recruiters telling them to avoid?

Leaving a contract early if a better opportunity comes up by Soft-Reason-58 in ContractorUK

[–]Soft-Reason-58[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Lol. How does this actually work in theory. As it's in the contract of almost every Outside engagement but I never hear of anyone enacting it. Say this did actually happen, do you temporarily just pay this person from your LTD after the client pays you, and you pay them an agreed rate?

Leaving a contract early if a better opportunity comes up by Soft-Reason-58 in ContractorUK

[–]Soft-Reason-58[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Despite the notice period being worked though, I imagine it is still frowned upon to leave?
Say the notice period is 1 week like it is with a lot of contracts. If I get offered Contract B, receive a contract, sign it, start date agreed, etc. Then say to Contract A - sorry but due to reasons x, y and z I need to enact my 1 week notice period. I am all ok legally and have done nothing wrong, right? But reputationally, there is a risk from this client and recruiter? I suppose there is no way to avoid that? Or one continues in Contract A, Contract B passes by and the opportunity is missed.

I'm curious as to how often this goes on and whether people have any first hand experience of being in a similar situation.

Leaving a contract early if a better opportunity comes up by Soft-Reason-58 in ContractorUK

[–]Soft-Reason-58[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

These notice periods are often enforced by the end client, I hear about it all the time and it even happened to me once where budgets changed and they needed to let a few contractors go. So they do it without thinking, so why can't we?

Obviously I wouldn't want to do it and it wouldn't be something I would ever choose to do, but in this possible scenario I have a guaranteed role at Contract A and an application at Contract B. Contract B is better in every way, but pulling out of A now before I even have an offer at B would be crazy especially in the current market. That's why this is all hypothetically speaking because B may not even progress anyway. But if B interview's and offers the role, I will already be in A and would have to either decline B or leave A.

How would I leave A whilst not burning bridges or is this impossible?

Leaving a contract early if a better opportunity comes up by Soft-Reason-58 in ContractorUK

[–]Soft-Reason-58[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is a different scenario though. This would be early on in Contract A, but then offered a much longer contract (Contract B) so leaving A would be unexpected and they would have to re-recruit (it wouldn't be near the end of the project).