The importance of Delivering Good Requirements to Freelancers
My Freelancing Proposal Mistake
I recently submitted a freelancer proposal on surefirehire.com for the creation of a simple application. I assigned a freelancer to a project based on their bid.
However, I made a small mistake. The mistake was that when I created the requirements, I left out an important detail. The particulars of the detail are unimportant in this illustration. What is important, and a lesson learned, is to be very detailed when defining requirements for freelancers.
- Don’t leave proposal requirements open for interpretation.
- List roles and freelancer responsibilities and employer’s responsibilities clearly.
- Document exactly what you wish for the freelancer to provide
- Even go so far as to document what you don’t want the freelancer to do.
Avoiding This Freelance Requirement Pitfall
A strategy to avoid this allow another person to read your requirements as if they are the freelancer. A lot of time, they will have the same questions that a freelancer may have. Plus, the questions asked will ignite your thought process around the freelancer’s application requirements.
A lesson for Employers and Freelancers for Tough Times
Filed under: Freelancing Tips, How To, Opportunities, employer, freelancer
I read a special report in INC. magazine, October 2008 edition, titled “Strategies for Tough Time”. I am uncertain of the author; however, he goes on to suggest different ways that smart business owners are coping with the down-turn in the global economy.
The author argues that to combat an economic down-turn, instead of laying off an employee, consider dropping their hours and allowing the employee to work for another employer at the same time.
If I were the employer and employee, I would take this approach one step further. I would augment my staff by hiring freelancers too. In this example, the employee who is working only ten hours for the given employer, now has the time to take on freelancing opportunities.
Create your own economic stimulus package Today by hiring freelances on surefirehire.com!
Employers and Project Managers: Consider a 60/40 mix of Full-Time Employees and Freelancers
Filed under: Freelancing Tips, How To, Opportunities, freelancer
When staffing a project where you have the option of hiring full-time employees and freelancers, consider a 60/40 mix of employees versus freelancers.
This allows the employer to keep the knowledge within the company once the project is complete; furthermore, during the project, you can hire freelance experts and reap the benefits of freelancers.
Staff your project with surefhirehires
Hiring a freelancer is a reflection of success
Posting a job on Surefirehire is FREE, with no risk!
Have you ever though about becoming a Freelancer
If you have ever thought about becoming a freelancer, I can’t think of a better time in history to start a career as a Freelancer.
Surefirehire.com provides a simple and easy to use platform. It is easy to become a Freelancer. Create an account with surefirehire TODAY.
Working as a Freelancer is the REAL way to earn income at home.
Get Started as a Freelancer
Why Hire a Freelancer
You may want to consider hiring a freelancer for the following reasons:
1. You are not able to hire full-time employee for the project.
2. You have short-term project that you need to staff.
3. You don’t have an expert freelancer as an employee.
Let Surefirehire.com help your business reduce IT and administrative expenses and assist in developing a business idea or pet project. For additional information on surefirehire, visit www.surefirehire.com.
Are you following surefirehire on Twitter Yet?
If you are not, you might miss out on freelance opportunities or blogs on how to reduce administrative costs for small businesses, medium businesses, and entrepreneurs.
follow surefirehire on Twitter: http://twitter.com/surefirehire
Considerations on How to Hire and Manage Freelancers, for businesses, entrepreneurs, and individuals
Using the services of freelancers can be a cost-effective way to fulfill the need for talent. There is no commitment to hire them as long time employees. There is no need to pay any special allowances that are to be paid for full time employees. This makes hiring freelancers a very attractive proposition for businesses that have seasonal workloads.
A project manager needs to work with freelancers to get the task at hand done, by coordinating and overseeing the freelancers’ work.
The project manager needs to have the knowledge about how to effectively deal with freelancers. This only comes with experience, but here are the main points which you can use to get the maximum results from hiring freelancers for your jobs:
Time Tracking
Freelancers can charge their clients either hourly or by the project. If the freelancer is billing by the hour, the project manager can ask them to send in timesheets to track their time. The timesheets can be sent daily or weekly basis, before claiming the payment. The hourly data can be perused by the project manager, to see if the freelancer really needs all the hours that are getting billed. This is fair to both parties because the freelancer gets paid for the time being tracked in the timesheet, and the project manager can be sure that he is paying for the actual hours of work done by the freelancer.
Achievement of project goals
Some freelancers work on project basis. In such cases, time tracking may not be needed, but the payment is based on the actual results achieved. The project manager can also define that a particular task needs to be completed within a set amount of time.
Reliability
Good freelancers can be difficult to get. Good freelancers are reliable, and they stand behind their work, for any support which may be required at a later date. You can ask to verify their feedbacks or testimonials if any, to ascertain how reliable they may turn out to be, before hiring a freelancer.
Organizational skills
A project manager will need to be organized than the freelancers whom he or she is working with. The project manager can choose to use some project organization tools like the open-source Redmine.
Technical skills
The project manager who deals with technical freelancing projects will need to possess the corresponding technical skills, like knowledge of the jargon, terminology, etc. Basic knowledge about the technologies involved in the freelance work, will be needed. Rather than say “I want this to look like so-and-so”, it is more effective to say “I need a flash component developed with 2 animations in 15 second interval”.
Communication skills
The project manager dealing with freelancers will need the ability to make things clear to the freelancers – both technically and non-technically, through the use of effective communication. If you speak and understand only English, and the freelancer speaks and understands a different language better, then that may cause gaps in communication and understanding.
Negotiation skills
Negotiation is an essential business skill, and not the sole purview of the project manager dealing with freelancers. Negotiation skills will be needed for negotiating fair pay rates with the freelancers performing the tasks.
If you would like to have deep-dive on any of the sections above, please let us know.
Consider hiring a freelancer with surefirehire, the next time you consider hiring a freelancer.
Thanks,
The surefirehire Team