March 2023 - Langley James IT Recruitment

How to Successfully Interview and Hire IT Contractors: A Guide for Employers

Mar 15, 2023 | Hiring Resources, Tips

With the growing demand for IT contractors, employers need to know how to successfully interview and hire the right professionals for their projects. This guide will provide tips on how to identify the best IT contractors, create a successful interviewing process, and make sure that you are hiring the right person for the job.

From understanding what type of IT contractor you need, to asking the right questions during an interview, this guide will help employers find the perfect candidate for their project. It will also provide insights on how to ensure that you are making a wise decision when it comes to hiring an IT contractor.

The Advantages of Hiring IT Contractors

Hiring an IT contractor can be a great way to get the most out of your IT budget. With the right contractor, you can get access to experienced and knowledgeable professionals who can provide you with the technical expertise you need for your projects. From software development to cybersecurity and networking, there are many benefits of hiring an IT contractor that can help your business succeed.

IT contractors are often more cost-effective than hiring full-time staff, as they don’t require long-term commitments or benefits packages. They also offer flexibility, allowing businesses to scale up or down depending on their needs. Freelance IT contractors can also bring specialized skillsets and knowledge that may not be available in-house. By leveraging their expertise, businesses can save time and money while still achieving their goals.

You may find our blog 8 Reasons to Hire an IT Contractor of interest too.

The Basics of Interviewing & Hiring an IT Contractor

Hiring an IT contractor can be a daunting task, especially when you don’t have much experience in the area. It’s important to remember that interviewing and hiring an IT contractor requires more than just asking the right questions. You need to understand the basics of interviewing and hiring an IT contractor in order to be successful.

Tips on How to Make Sure You Hire The Best IT Contractors

As an employer, it’s essential to make sure you hire the best IT contractors for your business. Hiring the right candidate can be a daunting task, and it requires a lot of effort on the part of employers. However, with the right hiring practices in place, employers can ensure that they are hiring top candidates who will help them meet their business goals. The following are some tips for hiring the perfect IT contractor for your business.

Hire candidates who understand your industry, and have a good understanding of what you do. This is key because it will give them insights into how your business operates and allow them to be more prepared when they’re interviewing with you.
Set clear expectations from the start so that both parties know what they are getting themselves into. For example, if you need someone to come in and maintain all of your company’s computer systems and networks, make sure the candidate understands this before verbally accepting their job offer .This will make the process more efficient and will help reduce the amount of time you spend interviewing candidates.
Ask questions that can determine whether your candidate is a good fit.

1. How Much Experience Do You Have with __________?

This question is a good way to get an idea of the candidate’s experience working on similar projects and for similar companies. The more experience the IT contractor has, the better their chances of success will be. It’s also a good question to ask if the project requires specialised skills that may not be related to what they provide as a typical job function. For example, if your project requires strong Excel skills but their job title doesn’t mention anything about it, this is a good question to ask during your interview to prevent you from hiring the wrong person.

2. How Long Have You Worked As A Contractor?

This question will give you a good idea of what type of experience your IT contractor has had with similar companies, how long they’ve been there, and how well they may be able to adapt to new projects and responsibilities. It will also help you determine if they are used to working on projects that are or have been outsourced, as many companies outsource their IT work these days. .

3. How Do You Feel About the Number of Hours We Have for Work?

A lot of IT contractors work a set amount of hours per week, but others are on-call or work from home from time to time. This question can help you see if your IT contractor prefers being in an office or if they would rather be able to balance their personal life with their job. .

4. Are You Willing to Travel?

IT contractors may need to travel for meetings or training during their career progression. Most IT contractors don’t mind traveling as long as it has been scheduled in advance and is well paid for the time spent away from home and family.

5. Tell Me About Your People Skills

IT contracting isn’t just about technical skills–it’s also about being able to interact with other people on a personal level and having appropriate communication skills.

About Langley James

Here at Langley James, we know our candidates. We have in-depth knowledge of their experience, down to the individual projects they have worked on, their strengths (and their weaknesses). We have access to those details that you just can’t get from a CV alone.

Our talented and specialised consultants work hard to ensure that any candidates we send you are not only a perfect match for the role but your business. To discuss your IT recruitment needs please call us on 0207 099 4839 or email us: langleyjames@langleyjames.com.

We’d love to hear your views on this. Are you struggling to recruit IT staff? Tweet us @ITRecruitment, or follow us on Facebook or LinkedIn

Contract v Permanent – Which is Best for Your Company?

Mar 14, 2023 | IT, Tips

Are you currently looking to hire in IT? If so, there’s a lot to consider. And it may be that the first thing you need to decide is the benefits to you of contract v permanent. Which will you choose when it comes to filling your next IT role? There are advantages and disadvantages of both. Our consultants share their thoughts to help you make the right decision.

What’s the difference? Contract v permanent

A contractor is someone who provides their services to your business. Typically, a contractor is hired for a set period of time, or a set piece of work. A daily rate will be agreed, along with deliverables, deadlines etc. Contractors are usually self-managed and can be left to work independently based on the project brief.

A permanent candidate is an employee that works for you on either a full or part-til basis. They are expected to produce work based on their contract of employment and in return, they are paid a monthly salary on a continuous basis.

Pros and cons of hiring a contractor

When it comes to contract v permanent, it’s important to consider the pros and cons of each. Here’s our top 3 for each –

Pros of hiring a contractor

Hire as and when you have a need. If you have a project that needs completing, or you are experiencing a temporary increase in work, a contractor could be the perfect answer. Also, if you suddenly have a drop in demand, you don’t have to continue to use the services on a contractor. This can save your business money but only paying for the services of a contractor when you need them.
It can actually work out cheaper. Yes, it’s true that contractor rates are usually more expensive than a permanent salary. However, it can still work out cheaper to hire a contractor. With a contractor, the daily rate is all you pay. There’s no paying into pensions or other benefits. It gives a certainly of cost so works particularly well if you have a set budget.
Higher level of expertise. Most of the time, when you hire a contract, you tap into a huge amount of expertise. Having someone in your team who has a lot of experience working for multiple companies can really be more beneficial than you realise. Using their past experiences, they can bring new and exciting things to your business, meaning you could be in a position to tap into this a fast track certain areas of growth.

Cons of hiring a contractor

Continuity. If you want to turn the services of a contractor on and off, you could end up disappointed. Once a project is complete and the contract has come to an end, the contractor will move on to their next role. Therefore, if you want the same contractor back again a few months later, it may not always be that simple.
Day rates can be high. We touched on this above. But, day rates can be high when compared to the salary of a permanent member of staff. Contractors looks for higher rates due to the risks associated with the role not being permanent
IR35 rules – be aware. You can face large penalties if you are in breach of IR35 and need to take extreme care. Make sure that you work with a reputable agency to ensure that you are hiring contractor legitimately.

Pros and cons of hiring a permanent employee

Pros of hiring a permanent employee

Higher level of control. With an employee, you decide when, where and how they work. They are employed directly for you (and in most cases, only you if full-time), so you get to call the shots.
Commitment. When you hire a permanent employee, you both agree on the details of an employment contract. This is a long-term consideration for the employee. Therefore, when they agree to be employed, they are fully dedicated to your company.
Employee engagement levels. A permanent employee has made a choice to join your company as part of their career development. They are more likely to align with your values and are therefore likely to be highly engaged.

Cons of hiring a permanent employee

Commitment. Both a pro and co on hiring permanent employee! You need to be sure that you will be able to pay a monthly salary, plus all the additional costs, every month despite ups and downs.
Employee rights. There’s lots to remember here, from holiday pay, redundancy, maternity, sick pay and lots more.
It can work out more expensive. There’s lots of things that can affect your costs when hiring a permanent employee. From paying agency fees, to higher salaries, you need to have a budget up front. However, to retain your staff, it’s likely that you will also have to invest in training and development too.

Contract v Permanent – which will you choose?

We’ve been helping companies to recruit the very best in IT since 1999. We can advise you on which route is best and can even give you detailed insight into the IT jobs market. Each month, we produce our IT Salary Guide which looks at average salaries and day rates across all areas of IT. We also produce a monthly Report on Jobs so that you can see what’s happening in the market. As ever, we are here to help. So if you are looking to recruit into your IT team, get in touch with our expert consultants today.