Contracting? At the Height of Your Career?

You may have seen our recent blog on why you should choose contracting. Sure, it sounds like a great option to transition into the public service, particularly at the start of your career. But now?

Reaching real success in your career is exciting. All those years spent gaining and refining your knowledge has paid off, and you feel a strong sense of confidence in your experience, skills, and knowledge. You’ve also become an expert in your area of specialisation.

But as with all things in life, you may soon find yourself longing for a change of scenery or pace – or pining for new experiences and challenges. Or perhaps you are nearing retirement and are ready to slow down, but not give it all up just yet.

If this is you, why not consider contracting?

Whether you’ve spent the better part of your career working in the public service or a consulting firm, contracting offers a suite of benefits that are difficult to find with permanent roles.

Here are 3 reasons to consider contracting while at the top of your career game.

1. You get to choose the work you do

Working in the same place for over a decade has its perks, but it’s natural to crave change – both in terms of the work you’re doing and who you’re doing it with.

Contracting allows you to work on a variety of projects within completely new departments or teams, without the long-term commitment of permanency.

You can choose projects or initiatives that excite you, such as helping to implement a new system or deliver a new key piece of work, and then stay for 6 or 12 months with a view to extend if you wish to accept it. If not – move on to the next challenge!

2. The rewards are highly competitive

Contracting comes with significant financial rewards – particularly if you have gained specialist knowledge that is hard to come by. This means that departments are willing to be extremely competitive to bring your skillset into their organisation.

Some departments only offer contract roles where the specialist skillset is rare because it’s simply unfeasible to keep someone in this type of role for the long term.

In addition to this type of flexibility, there is also lots of flexibility in how you get paid. We offer 3 options for our contractors, depending on whether they wish to:

• Manage their own pay and tax
• Have us manage their pay and tax
• Accrue annual and other leave entitlements

3. Experience a whole new level of flexibility

Some people choose to contract because they want to work hard for 6 or 12 months, and then take a few months off before starting a new contract.

This downtime could mean spending more time with family, travelling, or just taking time to relax, working on a project at home, or trying a new hobby.

Contrary to a permanent role, this new level of flexibility could give you back time to focus on other life goals.

Want to chat about contracting opportunities?

If you’ve reached a point in your career where you are ready for a change and interested in a new way of working, consider what contracting could do for you.

To learn more about how you can reap the financial rewards and flexibility that contract work provides, contact our team for a friendly chat.