Quote: I want to find out what a consultant's mission and job is.
My background: I was a freelancer working in electronic systems in the 1970's and then computing during the 1980's and 90's, here in the UK. During that time my wife and I raised a family and we now own and live in, without mortgage, a modest three bedroom home in a good neighbourhood (Surrey Heath). Our home is currently valued at around £250,000 (EU: €351641.60, US: $387262.50 according to google). In the 70's I was a sub-sub-sub-sub-contractor which meant other people got wealthy, while I did all the work, but I digress... I retired, partly for health reasons, at age 50. The term used for us in the 80's and 90's was "Contract { Skill-level | Function }" e.g. Contract Senior Systems Analyst/Programmer or "{ Computer | name of language | Function ] Contractor" e.g. Computer Contractor, COBOL Contractor, or according to my accountant, Tax-efficient LTD (US: LLC) Contractor!
Takeaway: My points are: I may know what I am writing about. Be your own boss. This was some while ago (hopefully still useful to somebody). Other regions on Earth may vary, and... MOST importantly for this discussion... that somewhere along the line the emphasis on contract seems to have been lost.
Assuming that you have a contract with the company / corporation concerned then carry on reading.
You may wish to set aside your engineering approach to this issue (Shock, Horror! OK, just for a short while). View youself as a business person might see you. There are some subtle differences! I have never described myself as an engineer. I have been everything from shop (US: store) assistant through coder to Department head at a sub of a huge US Corp. I've been an employee, a contractor, and hired (and fired) both. I believe that your intellect, your qualifications, and a large measure of common sense is your best guide. Your mission is entirely your call and if you document it and and refer to it often, it will form a large part of your individual success. The job (that you do for the organisation buying your services) should be exactly as specified in the contract, no less, and no more. You didn't specifically ask about strategy, but that is very important, and again, that is your call i.e. you figure it out.
I learned some of the above the hard way from experience. I later realised that at least two out of three of a Personnel department's "Three Tells" for permanent staff can be applied to Contracting/Consulting:-
- Tell me what my job is (Job description, as per your contract).
- Tell me how to do it. (Training. Vital for permanent staff. Should not strictly be necessary if you're selling yourself as a professional, but it is great to get paid to be trained in new skills!).
- Tell me when I'm doing it right, or not. (Regular reviews with your supervisor (aka Customer) are essential, both for YOU and THEM. That is your time and theirs. It should be used to discuss matters only affecting yourself and not be wasted trying to correct other people's shortcomings. As Jane S. wrote, "...[blockages] need to be raised...". Correct, but are you sure they are not "dating" or "an item" even? Imagine now what names you would call yourself if that was the reason for management's apparent head-in-sand approach toward this employee! and worse: the reason they chose not to renew your contract!).
If you wish to discuss your contract, then your accountant would be a good place to start. She or he may advise you to either "suck it up" for the remainder of your four months, or approach the appropriate person in the organisation for a review and/or update of your contract. That should be done anyway as the end of your contract approaches. If you don't have an experienced, qualified, accountant then you're not really a professional IMNSHO. A good one will save you more than you pay them, if not, get a different one.
Your performance (and possible contract extension/renewal) will be not be assessed on how often you implicitly tell your customer that he is doing his job wrong. It will depend on how well YOU work and fit in with what we called the "permie's" or "permie-burgers!", i.e. the permanent staff. It is unlikely to depend on how adept you are at office politics. As a contractor that 'skill' is best left unused.
Unless of course your contract includes provision of (cough) Management Consultancy service(s). {wink}.
Never forget: You are probably worth more than you think you are. Don't sell yourself short, and ENJOY what you do..
That is probably more detail than needed, I hope it helps,
Mart
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