Six IT contractor career killers

Financial services firms have never been slow to show IT contractors the door when things take a turn for the worse, but there are ways of reducing your employability during more bullish times.

1. Getting involved in office politics:

Water-cooler whinging is not the preserve of the humble IT contractor and impassioned pleas for or against certain colleagues will do you no favours.

"They've been employed for their expertise, so if a contractor believes something is being done incorrectly or could be improved, they should voice their opinions," says Paul Elworthy, associate director in the IT in banking and financial services division of Hudson. "But remember, you're paid to perform a pre-defined set of objectives - don't put people's nose out of joint or think you can leap-frog other people in the organisation."

Julie-Anne Brooks, director, head of IT in finance recruiters The JM Group, adds: "There's one rule about office politics for contractors - don't get involved."

2. Milking contracts by squirreling expertise:

By and large, IT contractors bring expertise to an organisation that cannot be found in-house, but there's such a thing as outstaying your welcome.

"We hired a guy to kick-start the development of a new database for us," says one IT hiring manager, who declined to be named. "It was a six-month contract, with the idea he'd eventually pass on the knowledge to in-house staff. He was here for 11 months - on double the pay of permanent employees - and was being unreasonably secretive. Inevitably, we had to let him go."

3. Loose lips on pay:

One upside of being a contractor is that you generally earn more (on a pro rata basis) than your permanent counterparts. But, it's best to keep mum.

Johnny Walker, associate head of interim markets at financial recruiters Jared James, says daily rate variation can cause disruption in the ranks.

"A know a group of contractors who all discussed their daily rates at lunch one day, resulting in the bank being faced with requests for more money from the more lowly paid ones," he says. "The bank's solution? They let the more expensive contractors go."

"Don't rub the fact you earn more than permanent staff in their face," adds Simon Walker, director of recruiters Project Partners. "You won't last long."

4. A sickly disposition:

Contractors aren't offered sick pay, so obviously any absence comes out of their own pocket. Best not make a habit of it, though, suggests Brooks.

"If you're working on something time critical, in a role no one in-house can perform, it's a bit of an error not to turn up on a regular basis," she says.

5. Developing a flaky reputation:

As we've pointed out before, in reality the City is a pretty small place, so don't tarnish your reputation by breaking contracts.

"If you leave to secure a higher rate at another organisation before the contract ends, or decide to leave because the project doesn't meet your expectations, you can expect to get a name for yourself fairly quickly," says Project Partners' Walker.

6. Goofing off on the company coin:

As this banker shows, not every minute of the working day is spent in a productive manner. Contractors shouldn't expect their employers to be particularly forgiving if they're rumbled.

"I've heard of people taking online training course while they're on the clock," says Brooks. "This is at the extreme end, but time-wasting isn't viewed favourably at all."

Another recruiter suggests IT contractors at one bank spend not insignificant periods of time playing online games, which (obviously) has yet to be discovered by the management.

Can you suggest any more? Let us know below