Contracting sucks but sometimes (especially after layoffs) you have to do what you have to do, so here is my advice. Seek out recommendations from people at IBM that you know well to get an idea of which agencies treat their people well. Setup a LinkedIn account and connect with a few recruiters from your area, a good recruiter will set you up with a position that is a good fit for both you and the client. I'd stay away from the offshore recruiters except as a last resort, they aren't bad people but they usually are not recruiting for the best agencies and some are hard to understand. A recruiter's job is to get money from a client, think of them like salesmen and stick to those who you can meet with face to face and look them in the eye and you should be OK. I've been with IBM for about 14 months now, I am concerned that I will be laid off soon, but I feel that IBM experience (regardless of layoffs) will look at my resume and I hope that I will land a contracting job.
1 reply
I need help; I need to know how to find a contracting job and not being ripped off. I am close to 60 and I really don’t think I could easily find a regular employee job after I had been layoff. So, I think all I could do is picking up some short term contracting jobs with hourly rate. The strange thing is, all these recruiters who had contacted me have non-American names and I really don’t feel I could trust them. I am not a racist; all I want is just a fair rate. Any help and suggestion is welcome.