Fair, but I find, and I think this thread is evident, that a lot of folks are actually proactively seeking part-time work for one reason or another. If done correctly, you can actually make more money than an equivalent full-time role.
I'm personally not a huge fan of the over-employment trend, although I do see some arguments for it. A lot of the companies that are looking to hire on fractional jobs are quite explicit that they don't want folks that have full-time jobs (aka are over-employed) because of the negative connotations and consequences.
I'm familiar with Higher Fraction. I believe that the core difference is just that they're an agency that takes a percent markup on your hourly rate, so typically it's 20%.
I think the best software engineers don't need to do this, though, and they can find clients directly through their network or even through places like Fractional Jobs where we connect you directly with clients, and it's your relationship to own.
Here's the thing, and I'm open to thoughts here. But I've found that candidate A can be a great fit for company B, but a terrible fit for company C. I think a match is way more subjective than folks tend to give it credit for, and a rating system (like Uber) makes it seem more objective than it actually is. It works for things like Uber, where you can have hundreds of ratings very quickly, and so it converges on a natural truth. But with fractional clients, I think the N is so small that there's might just be too much noise.
I realize I should probably comment links to some of the better engineering roles we're currently featuring right now. BTW I should also note we don't take a % commission like Upwork, Toptal, etc. So if you get hired you'd work with the company directly and get paid by them direct.
Thanks! Most of the clients hiring engineers tend to be non-technical, especially those hiring Fractional CTOs of course. But sometimes we'll work with CTOs to hire a contractor for their team too.
I think the devs that have the most success have the following qualities:
- They can clearly show their work history (Linkedin, Resume, Github, custom site, etc.)
- They have some baseline level of knowledge/experience in relationship management, i.e. they can talk the talk. You do have to do a bit of "selling", especially when looking for contract work.
This is exactly correct. We're not saying somehow somebody is cheating the system (e.g. by not paying taxes), we're showing how it's a lot more transparent.
[founder of https://fractionaljobs.io here] You're generally correct, though people will certainly use the word fractional in a much more... how do we say... "aspirational" way, if you catch my drift.
[I'm the founder of https://fractionaljobs.io] You'd hire a Fractional CTO when you don't have the need for (or the budget for) a full-time CTO, but still want that level of technical expertise. It's really as simple as that.
If you have a senior engineer that can flex into that role and that's good enough for you, then great. We help a couple companies a month hire Fractional CTOs though for the reasons I stated above. When it works, it can work exceptionally well but its NOT right for every use case.
Hey CJ, I'm the founder of https://fractionaljobs.io . Very cool to hear about your experiences on the hiring side. I'd love to ask you more questions about your ideal SOW, as I'm working on something to directly improve this for hirers (so would love your feedback).
LMK if you're interested and the best way to contact you (or you can reach me at tc at fractionaljobs dot io)
Hey Dave, I'm the founder of https://fractionaljobs.io , if it's helpful you can book a time with me through the website and I can talk you through the pros / cons of hiring a Fractional CTO (and then help you hire one if you want our help).
You can click the "Hire Fractional" button on the website to book a time with me.
FWIW you're describing a great use case for a fCTO.