Call Your Own Shots

Black Enterprise, Feb, 2001 by Phaedra Brotherton

TORRANCE MOHAMMED PLANNED TO USE HIS COMPUTER SYSTEM engineering and math degree from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst to get a job in corporate America. A serious car accident in his sophomore year derailed his plans, however, forcing him to leave school and return home to New York City. He landed a job through a temporary employment agency as a software trainer.

A friend who worked at the United Nations as a contract computer consultant met Mohammed, 28, at one of his sessions, and was impressed with his teaching style and in-depth knowledge of software. The friend convinced his contractor to hire Mohammed as a computer consultant. Mohammed hasn't looked back since.

Since 1991, he has worked as an IT contractor. "I've worked for a variety of companies and learned something different from each one," says Mohammed, who charges clients $60,000 to $100,000 for contract work. Currently, he works through Manpower Professional, a new division of Manpower, the nation's largest temporary agency dedicated to high-end professionals.

Doing project work, learning new skills, being free to pick and choose jobs and clients, and determining one's own hours have made the free agent lifestyle the work style of choice for many professionals.

Daniel Pink, author of the upcoming book Free Agent Nation: How America's New Independent Workers Are Transforming the Way We Lire, is an expert on the subject of independent professionals, and defines free agents as highly skilled workers who prefer working independently on projects for a variety of clients. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) categorizes free agents among the 12.2 million "alternative arrangement professionals"--8.2 million independent contractors; 2 million on-call workers; 1.2 million temporary workers; and 769,000 workers provided through various contract firms.

There is great demand for the skills and expertise of independent professionals. And you don't have to be a writer to get in on the action. Computer professionals, accountants, auditors, chief financial officers, paralegals, attorneys, sales, and marketing professionals--even middle and senior managers--can find a freelance gig.

But what would make someone want to leave a cushy, stable job with a regular paycheck and benefits to pursue this sometimes erratic lifestyle? "One of the great attractions about working solo is the notion that the business [e.g., projects and assignments] can reflect personal interests and needs," notes Terri Lonier, a solo entrepreneur expert and author of Working Solo: The Real Guide to Freedom and Financial Success With Your Own Business (John Wiley & Sons, $14.95).

There are many other perks that can come with a freelancer's schedule. One of the biggest, depending on your field of expertise, is money. According to American Staffing Association, wages paid to professional employees of staffing firms alone reached $2.8 billion in 1998.

The workload and other responsibilities that bear these wonderful rewards, however, are not for the less than super ambitious. Here's an inside look at what it takes to make this career path work, and tips from professionals who've successfully made the transition from permanent employee to free agent.

LETHARGICS NEED NOT APPLY

So what exactly does it take to make it as a freelancer? Patience, says Mohammed. You also "need to be a go-getter and a take-charge person," he indicates. Because consultants are sometimes viewed as the lowest faces on the totem pole in a company, a sense of humor also helps. You may get those "you're just a contractor" comments from people you'll be working with, and you "can't let that get to you," he advises. Just remember that "you are there to do a job, and if you are good [enough to be] hired and to get the job done, then you are worth the salary or fee you request."

Mohammed's latest assignment is as a contract MIS manager providing technical support at the University of Southern California Medical Center in Los Angeles. He also makes recommendations for purchases, handles training and networking, manages vendors, and performs budgeting tasks.

He especially likes going on assignment; he can focus on doing his job without having to deal with all of the company politics that a regular, full-time employee does. "My contract specifies what I am supposed to do. If I don't like the company, the agency can find me another job someplace else," he says.

As a contracted employee, you get the best of both worlds: a steady relationship with the company as well as a paycheck from it, and the flexibility to move on to something else when other opportunities arise. After working with Manpower for a certain amount of rime, Mohammed could also be eligible for health benefits, vacation, and other perks.

The most important trait needed to survive in the temping world, however, is preparedness. Michelle Matthews kissed corporate life goodbye after nearly 20 years of working in business management for such Fortune 500 companies as KPMG, Andersen Consulting, and IBM. By the rime she founded Atlanta-based Matthews Consulting Group L.L.C. in early 1999, she had a strong foundation of business management know-how to offer nonprofits, Internet start-ups, and Fortune 1,000 businesses.