Looking in LA?
A friend and I were at lunch the other day and he was telling me how hard it was for his company to find any CF developers in Los Angeles. I told him that there were plenty if you know where to look. I would like to take a very rudimentary poll of the members of this list who reside in, are moving to, or work in the Los Angeles, CA area. Please let me know what your current situation is: - happily employed - employed and looking - not employed and looking - not employed and not looking I will compile the responses and post to the list. Post your answer here or email me at william [at] softexconsulting [dot] com -- William E. Seiter ~| Want to reach the ColdFusion community with something they want? Let them know on the House of Fusion mailing lists Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/cf-jobs-talk/message.cfm/messageid:4312 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/cf-jobs-talk/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/cf-jobs-talk/unsubscribe.cfm
CreativeCircle.com??
Has anyone heard of this recruiter firm before? I have been speaking to this company via email for about a week now and they are one of the only companies that I have come across that will not discuss the position that they have available, beyond the very generic job description, until I come into the office and sign an NDA with their company. I was hoping there might be someone on this list who has worked with this company before in the Los Angeles area who can confirm that they are a good company to work with or, more importantly, that they are not. Any help would be great. William ~| Adobe® ColdFusion® 8 software 8 is the most important and dramatic release to date Get the Free Trial http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;207172674;29440083;f Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/cf-jobs-talk/message.cfm/messageid:4223 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/cf-jobs-talk/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.11
RE: CreativeCircle.com??
Hey Raj, Can you tell me why? What problems did you find with them? William -Original Message- From: Parikh, Raj [mailto:raj.par...@cdicorp.com] Sent: Tuesday, March 17, 2009 10:42 AM To: cf-jobs-talk Subject: RE: CreativeCircle.com?? Run away from them. -Original Message- From: William Seiter [mailto:will...@seiter.com] Sent: Tuesday, March 17, 2009 1:24 PM To: cf-jobs-talk Subject: CreativeCircle.com?? Has anyone heard of this recruiter firm before? I have been speaking to this company via email for about a week now and they are one of the only companies that I have come across that will not discuss the position that they have available, beyond the very generic job description, until I come into the office and sign an NDA with their company. I was hoping there might be someone on this list who has worked with this company before in the Los Angeles area who can confirm that they are a good company to work with or, more importantly, that they are not. Any help would be great. William ~| Adobe® ColdFusion® 8 software 8 is the most important and dramatic release to date Get the Free Trial http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;207172674;29440083;f Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/cf-jobs-talk/message.cfm/messageid:4226 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/cf-jobs-talk/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.11
RE: CreativeCircle.com??
I found 1 review for that office which described a company's experience with 'seth'. Do you have any personal experience with them? William -Original Message- From: ssl...@rubbergumball.net [mailto:ssl...@rubbergumball.net] Sent: Tuesday, March 17, 2009 10:34 AM To: cf-jobs-talk Subject: Re: CreativeCircle.com?? There are a few reviews of the SF office on yelp... Has anyone heard of this recruiter firm before? I have been speaking to this company via email for about a week now and they are one of the only companies that I have come across that will not discuss the position that they have available, beyond the very generic job description, until I come into the office and sign an NDA with their company. I was hoping there might be someone on this list who has worked with this company before in the Los Angeles area who can confirm that they are a good company to work with or, more importantly, that they are not. Any help would be great. William ~| Adobe® ColdFusion® 8 software 8 is the most important and dramatic release to date Get the Free Trial http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;207172674;29440083;f Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/cf-jobs-talk/message.cfm/messageid:4227 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/cf-jobs-talk/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.11
RE: CreativeCircle.com??
Thanks Raj, I thought it was kind of fishy that they wouldn't give me the NDA to review prior to the onsite meeting. I'll bet they keep you plenty interrupted while you are trying to read that contract too. William -Original Message- From: Parikh, Raj [mailto:raj.par...@cdicorp.com] Sent: Tuesday, March 17, 2009 11:27 AM To: cf-jobs-talk Subject: RE: CreativeCircle.com?? They want to sign a contract that you willonly work with them which is a problem. -Original Message- From: William Seiter [mailto:will...@seiter.com] Sent: Tuesday, March 17, 2009 1:49 PM To: cf-jobs-talk Subject: RE: CreativeCircle.com?? Hey Raj, Can you tell me why? What problems did you find with them? William -Original Message- From: Parikh, Raj [mailto:raj.par...@cdicorp.com] Sent: Tuesday, March 17, 2009 10:42 AM To: cf-jobs-talk Subject: RE: CreativeCircle.com?? Run away from them. -Original Message- From: William Seiter [mailto:will...@seiter.com] Sent: Tuesday, March 17, 2009 1:24 PM To: cf-jobs-talk Subject: CreativeCircle.com?? Has anyone heard of this recruiter firm before? I have been speaking to this company via email for about a week now and they are one of the only companies that I have come across that will not discuss the position that they have available, beyond the very generic job description, until I come into the office and sign an NDA with their company. I was hoping there might be someone on this list who has worked with this company before in the Los Angeles area who can confirm that they are a good company to work with or, more importantly, that they are not. Any help would be great. William ~| Adobe® ColdFusion® 8 software 8 is the most important and dramatic release to date Get the Free Trial http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;207172674;29440083;f Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/cf-jobs-talk/message.cfm/messageid:4229 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/cf-jobs-talk/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.11
RE: Thinking of a career change.. how does one get into Technical Recruiting..
Some technical recruiters work with the concepts of a fisherman's net. They will catch anyone and everyone for a position, good fit or not. Whenever a recruiter contacts me I take control of the conversation, as I have gotten tired of driving all the way down to 'their' office to fill out their paperwork, just to find out that the job they called me about was not suited for me or my experience levels. Just one story of why it pays to take control of the conversation. I was called by a recruiter who was asking me about my skills for a position she had to fill. After about 15 minutes of talking she said she saw that I had expert skills in Java. I asked her where she saw this and she told me the name of a popular resume site. I immediately pulled up my resume there and looked at it to verify that I was not misrepresenting myself and saw that I made no mention of Java at all in my resume. I am sure many of you have dealt with this yourselves. I told her that I did not have expert skills in Java, and asked her if it was pertinent to the job position. She said it was in the list of required skills and she said that she saw it, then she read to me the line I wrote in that resume describing my Javascript skills. I told her that Javascript is a completely different language from Java. To her credit, she did ask me to explain to her the differences. I did. At least she, hopefully, won't make the same mistake in a future recruitment, but if she hadn't been very conversational, I would have wasted my time going to the interview. I guess I am saying this to you, if you choose to join the ranks of the recruiter, make sure you understand what you are looking for. And if, like so many HR departments do, the requirements look like 'programmer soup' as opposed to a specific requirement, ask the HR department to speak directly to the supervisor who needs the employee. The more knowledgeable of the position you are, the better you present yourself. Looking for a web programmer for a specific company who has to have 8 years of experience in: CF, ASP, .NET, C#, PERL, PHP, C++, JAVA, JavaScript, HTML, PHOTOSHOP, et al Is the same as saying you don't know what you are looking for, unless the actual job description describes why all of the same kinds of programming languages. -- William E. Seiter Need to have your mortgage modified? I charge no fees until I am successful, then I charge almost half the rate you would find elsewhere. Professional. Dedicated. Effective. The Easy 24/7 way to get started: http://www.goldengrove.net/ or you can call: (626) 593 - 5501 -Original Message- From: Ravi Gehlot [mailto:r...@ravigehlot.net] Sent: Friday, March 13, 2009 8:02 AM To: cf-jobs-talk Subject: Re: Thinking of a career change.. how does one get into Technical Recruiting.. Just my $0.02 cents...I think that recruiters do help one get a job. Yes, most recruiters are all about business but who is not? They try to get you in and if they can not then they go on to the next one. This is just the nature of their business. They gotta make it work and in order to make it work they have to move fast and find the right candidate for the right position. That's fine. However, what I do not agree with is the fact that most of these recruiters are extremely friendly at first and then it all changes afterwards. I have heard this from most programmers. This is not just coming from me. Also, if they can not get you the job that they have been trying to then they also vanish without a trace (this does not apply to all recruiters). They don't even send you an e-mail to say go look for a new opportunity. I mean, it only takes 5 seconds right? I took 1 week of my time to talk to you and you do not have 5 seconds to say...Hey, it did not work but maybe next time? AlsoI had one recruiter call me every 2 weeks to have me rely information about the company hiring procedures. He wanted to know if anyone was being hired directly by the company instead of his recruiting company. SoI try not to be on either side..I am neutral. But man...you come to me to ask me questions but when I go to you to ask you questions you just ignore me? What kind of recruiter-to-programmer relationship is that? This is not an attack on recruiters. My experience with recruiting companies is OK. Will I work with recruiters in the future. YES. Everybody is entitled to making mistakes right? I am sure they also have a lot to tell about programmers too. This is just my $0.02 cents, Ravi. Jerry Johnson wrote: I was (mostly) kidding. But many programmers and tech types do not realize how _hard_ placement folk work to get someone into a job. It seems like free money when you see how much they added to your contracting rate, or how much you hear they get paid per permanent placement, but believe it or not it is a difficult job. You _need_ to divorce personal feelings for each client from the
RE: MID LEVEL COLDFUSION DEVELOPERS NEEDED 60k to 75k
Where is this position for? What city/state/country? William -- William Seiter IT Web Developer / Consultant ::-Original Message- ::From: sharon nelson [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] ::Sent: Friday, October 10, 2008 10:35 AM ::To: cf-jobs ::Subject: MID LEVEL COLDFUSION DEVELOPERS NEEDED 60k to 75k :: ::We need Mid-Level Coldfusion Developers to work with a team of Sr. ::Developers. In addition to ColdFusion, the position requires ::organizational, development, and interpersonal skills. Must be able to ::develop applications under set deadlines, communicate well with others in ::a team-oriented environment. ::Please send your resume, contact information and availability to ::[EMAIL PROTECTED] . Please feel free to call me at 818-518-5661. We ::are not an agency and we are looking for YOU. :: ::Thank you. :: :: :: ~| Adobe® ColdFusion® 8 software 8 is the most important and dramatic release to date Get the Free Trial http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;207172674;29440083;f Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/cf-jobs-talk/message.cfm/messageid:4055 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/cf-jobs-talk/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.11
RE: What Cold Fusion Job boards are there?
@Dave, A good manager who manages to their employees and who THEY are (the employee) can manage anyone remotely. If they need to be micro, it's because the employee's abilities/skills demand it. It is unfortunate that in my career, I have only found 1 or 2 managers who come even 'close' to that description. @thread, I see both sides of this coin. The benefits of having an employee or contractor on-site as well as the benefits of having a telecommuter. Personally, I prefer to have a 'blended' environment. An environment where although the programmer may work off-site, there is availability to come on-site for department meetings. But then, I hire based on my needs, not necessarily on the needs or the individual programmer. I will, use a telecommuter in positions that I feel can warrant that type of arrangement, but I will also require 'on-site' only as my needs, or my client needs, require it. William ::-Original Message- ::From: Dave Phillips [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] ::Sent: Saturday, September 13, 2008 2:54 PM ::To: CF-Jobs-Talk ::Subject: RE: What Cold Fusion Job boards are there? :: ::I don't think the point here is that a project lead or client shouldn't be ::able to ask the developer a question. That's kind of ludicrous. However, ::calling and asking a question in detail is just as weasy as turning around ::and asking a question in detail. And, better yet, quick questions done ::over ::IM usually don't turn into long conversations, like they can in person. :: ::That said, one thing is TRUE: A manager's attitude and preferences will ::determine whether or not a remote relationship will work. It's not ::whether ::a developer can do it or not, really (although there are probably some who ::are better off to be working in an office, or not developing at all). ::It's ::really what the manager's method of management is. A micro manager (don't ::assume I mean micro managers are bad) can't manage remote employees - they ::will go crazy (both the manager and the employee). :: ::A good manager who manages to their employees and who THEY are (the ::employee) can manage anyone remotely. If they need to be micro, it's ::because the employee's abilities/skills demand it. :: ::Dave :: ::-Original Message- ::From: Phillip M. Vector [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] ::Sent: Saturday, September 13, 2008 4:28 PM ::To: CF-Jobs-Talk ::Subject: Re: What Cold Fusion Job boards are there? :: ::carl starm wrote: :: I find that day to day collaboration is much easy if I can turn around, ::ask a question in detail and get a quick answer. Again not a requirement, ::but my experience has been that having a team together physically has been ::most productive. :: ::Just to note, that person you just asked a question in detail to may now ::have to spend time getting back to what he's doing. :) :: ::It works both ways though.. I once had a client who (no stretching of ::the truth here) called me 10 times a day asking about the project. I ::eventually got it done, but it ended up taking triple the time. :: :: :: :: ~| Adobe® ColdFusion® 8 software 8 is the most important and dramatic release to date Get the Free Trial http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;203748912;27390454;j Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/message.cfm/messageid:4001 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.11
Consultant vs. Employee
I just finished reading this article on the subject: http://www.asktheheadhunter.com/industryinsider6.htm It is very interesting to read the benefits of a Consultant organization compared to a Headhunter, as well as how it works. I was wondering if anyone has any experiences with a good CF consultant company? Or if one even exists? I was also wondering. I am about to start a position as a 1099 employee through a general IT consultant company, it was supposed to be perm-fulltime, but that fell through in favor of Contract work. I was wondering if anyone has any advice on how to handle the 1099 situation. I know that this means that all cash will be handed to me and I become directly responsible for all taxes, etc. Does anyone have any advice for a novice at this type of contract? The consultant office offered a w2 situation, but since all they offered was tax withholding, no benes, I figured it would be more profitable for me to handle it. Put aside taxes in the form of CDs or such and reap the interest gains for my own pocket. I am also interested in reducing my taxes. I have had a side business of consultant work for a while, mainly in front of my computer doing the same development I was being paid fulltime to do. Now that I would be traveling for 1099 status, doesn't that open up my tax deductions widely? Any thoughts would be appreciated. William ~| Adobe® ColdFusion® 8 software 8 is the most important and dramatic release to date Get the Free Trial http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;192386516;25150098;k Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/message.cfm/messageid:3711 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.11
RE: Consultant vs. Employee
Thank you all very much for your advice, suggestions and input. I know this is a better question for a CPA, however this might be something that someone has already researched and can 'guide' me. 1. My entire 1099 contract fits on one page and only mentions my hourly rate, my lack of workman's comp, a brief reminder that I am responsible for my own taxes as well as the standard 'at-will' state text. 2. I am working for the staffing company for the office I will be working for. (I will submit my invoice every 2 weeks and be paid accordingly) Since I have other 'side' clients currently, would the government see this as just 'another' client of my sole-proprietorship? If that is the case, wouldn't that open up my mileage from my main office (home) to the client's office, even though I am there for 40 hours a week? Is there anything that I am missing? William ~| Adobe® ColdFusion® 8 software 8 is the most important and dramatic release to date Get the Free Trial http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;192386516;25150098;k Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/message.cfm/messageid:3728 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.11
Online tests
I have been contacted by a recruiting agency that wants me to take an online test to 'prove' my skills in CF before they will represent me. I took and passed the CF7 certification exam, however I am a horrible test taker. I was hoping there might be someone here who can give me some insight on what kinds of questions will be on this test before going and taking it. The test is called 'ProveIt'. It seems to be a proprietary system to this particular agency. Has anyone taken this particular test before? I would hate to take the test unprepared and ruin any chances of being represented correctly by the agency. Any help would be great, thank you. William ~| Adobe® ColdFusion® 8 software 8 is the most important and dramatic release to date Get the Free Trial http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;160198600;22374440;w Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/message.cfm/messageid:3666 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.11
RE: Online tests
Thank you, About 15 or so years ago I had interviewed with Earthlink for their helpdesk jobs and they didn't want to know the 'book' way to do things, they wanted to know every which way that I knew how to do it. Thanks, William -Original Message- From: Beth Gibson [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Wednesday, March 05, 2008 5:09 PM To: CF-Jobs-Talk Subject: RE: Online tests I am a Recruiter and have used Prove It before. As Phillip said, make sure you are going the correct way and not a shortcut way or it will mark it wrong. For example, and this is an easy example, but if the question was how do you send an email in Outlook - you must go to file and hit new you can't just open a new message. The test is broken down my Basic, Intermediate and Advanced questions and the results will be given as such. You can actually go online and look at the information - www.proveit.com. I ~| Adobe® ColdFusion® 8 software 8 is the most important and dramatic release to date Get the Free Trial http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;160198600;22374440;w Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/message.cfm/messageid:3669 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.11
RE: Online tests
True. Many ways to skin a cat, and fillet/chop/etc that cat as well ;) (No flames please, I am a cat lover myself.) Thank you for the advice. Do you remember which version it was focused on? CF8, CF7, CFMX6.1? Also, do you have a reference in mind that should work well? My first inclination is Ben's CFMX7 CERT dev study guide. -Original Message- From: Phillip Vector [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Wednesday, March 05, 2008 4:13 PM To: CF-Jobs-Talk Subject: Re: Online tests Actually, I've taken the test from ProveIt as well. The best suggestion I can offer is to have a reference book handy. They want the RIGHT answer even though it may show 2 or 3 ways which would work. They want what the book says it correct (though you and I know, there's more then one way to skin a cat). On Wed, Mar 5, 2008 at 3:58 PM, William Seiter [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I have been contacted by a recruiting agency that wants me to take an online test to 'prove' my skills in CF before they will represent me. I took and passed the CF7 certification exam, however I am a horrible test taker. I was hoping there might be someone here who can give me some insight on what kinds of questions will be on this test before going and taking it. The test is called 'ProveIt'. It seems to be a proprietary system to this particular agency. Has anyone taken this particular test before? I would hate to take the test unprepared and ruin any chances of being represented correctly by the agency. Any help would be great, thank you. William ~| Adobe® ColdFusion® 8 software 8 is the most important and dramatic release to date Get the Free Trial http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;160198600;22374440;w Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/message.cfm/messageid:3670 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.11
Guru Disputes?
I was wondering if anyone here has had to deal with a Guru Dispute (as the 'guru')? I was wondering if anyone has any insights on how to resolve the mediation in the guru's favor (the one providing services)? William -- William E. Seiter Have you ever read a book that changed your life? Go to: www.winninginthemargins.com Enter passkey: goldengrove Web Developer / ColdFusion Programmer http://William.Seiter.com ~| Adobe® ColdFusion® 8 software 8 is the most important and dramatic release to date Get the Free Trial http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;160198600;22374440;w Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/message.cfm/messageid:3658 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.11
RE: Guru Disputes?
From Guru.com Client and Contractor don't agree on something. In my case, the money has been in Guru's escrow account and the client has been non-responsive since I finished the project. Now the Client wants all of their money back from the Escrow account. William -- William E. Seiter Have you ever read a book that changed your life? Go to: www.winninginthemargins.com Enter passkey: goldengrove Web Developer / ColdFusion Programmer http://William.Seiter.com -Original Message- From: Phillip M. Vector [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Tuesday, February 26, 2008 6:33 PM To: CF-Jobs-Talk Subject: Re: Guru Disputes? Guru Dispute... Is that where 2 creatures who don't like light fight to the death?... Oh.. sorry.. that's a Grue. What exactly IS a Guru Dispute? William Seiter wrote: I was wondering if anyone here has had to deal with a Guru Dispute (as the 'guru')? I was wondering if anyone has any insights on how to resolve the mediation in the guru's favor (the one providing services)? William ~| Adobe® ColdFusion® 8 software 8 is the most important and dramatic release to date Get the Free Trial http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;160198600;22374440;w Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/message.cfm/messageid:3660 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.11
RE: Dead Beat Clients.
I agree that having a union would be good for working with dead beat clients as well as with obtaining good contracts, but a union should go further. To a client, a union has become the essence of 'good training'. Would we have an apprentice system? Would we develop 'union programming standards'? I think that having a union is a step in the right direction, but it is a long road to get there. Maybe we can have a poll to see how many people would support it. In the mean time I would suggest that everyone have access to a lawyer or a lawyer system (pre-paid legal). This way you can have a lawyer draft a letter when you aren't paid, and you can have your 'basic' contract reviewed. Regarding contracts. Does anyone have any contract examples that have worked well that they would share with the rest of us? William -- William E. Seiter Have you ever read a book that changed your life? Go to: www.winninginthemargins.com Enter passkey: goldengrove Web Developer / ColdFusion Programmer http://William.Seiter.com -Original Message- From: Vincent Cannady [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Sunday, February 03, 2008 10:10 AM To: CF-Jobs-Talk Subject: Re: Dead Beat Clients. Hi Matt, From what I read you have never had many contracts but I can vouch for what Angry Housewife says that I too have been paid when I go client locations to work but when I am up at three o clock in the morning doing work and submit for those hours I never seem to get paid even if I email or IM the client at that time. I have worked in the Contracts Department of companies like Sprint and Cingular and I have seen them get burned and have to resort to Suing to get their money back so again I have to disagree with you about negotiations. A Contract is a contract; here are the three ways you can break a contract per the UCC -Uniform Code of Commerce #1 Incapacity- Mentally Unfit to make a contract #2 Age - To young to be making a contract #3 Breach of contract - One party or another did not complete part of contract So in our case it is almost always number three either the developer did not do ANYWORK (or they signed a completed project contract) or the Client Breached the Contract by not paying Here is the one I find funny- A Client that breeches the contract usually wants to hold you (the Consultant) to a NDA (Non Disclosure Agreement) meaning no contact with his or her end client after they terminated your services even though they have not paid you. Ok. So Jeff has some experience with this so have I, I have worked for two different Law Enforcement Agencies, Two Different Court Houses in two different States, I have friends who are lawyers. I am an expert in Contract Law. And I always look up clients on WWW.PACER.GOV (Federal DISTRICT Court Houses Case Party Index) yet I too get burned so UNLIKE you I do not consider getting burned me not KNOWING how to negotiate. I was my School Debate Champion and have won lawsuits again Fortune 500 Companies representing myself (pro se). The list she talks about is needed. She also has another point no one has picked up on, What about us HAVING A UNION. The all contracts would go thru the Union anynone not paying would be sued by the Union. Programmer would not need to come up with $2000 just to get back $2500. Instead they could pay 120 a year or $10 a Month to belong to a National Technology Workers Union that would have attorneys on staff would could deal with this mess, I think that until that day comes along we should have this list and if the Clients want a list of Bad Programmers they had better pay one of US to create IT! Just my $10,000! On Feb 2, 2008 6:55 PM, angry housewife [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I have watched my husband work very hard for three or four contracts in the last six months where he has only been paid ten percent of his total invoiced hours. My husband never signs a contract where the work has to be completed before he is paid, yet every client of his who has not paid uses this as an excuse not to pay because the work or project is not completed. The only work my husband ever seems to get paid in full for is for work done on-site. I'm sorry, but this really sounds like bad business not on the part of the client, but on your husband's part. If the same client did not pay several different contractors, they are probably at fault. If the same contractor doesn't get paid by several different clients, he is probably at fault. Yes there are deadbeat clients out there. Perhaps a list would be helpful. But maybe your husband doesn't need instead of a list of clients to avoid. Maybe he needs some training / help in drafting contracts and dealing with said dead-beat clients. I've done very little on contract myself, but if I ever started, I would seek some help from someone more experienced first. Someone like Jeff Houser on this list generally has the best advice and has experience with clients of all types.
RE: Dead Beat Clients.
What kind of issues have you seen with the 'Tax Man'? -- William E. Seiter Have you ever read a book that changed your life? Go to: www.winninginthemargins.com Enter passkey: goldengrove Web Developer / ColdFusion Programmer http://William.Seiter.com -Original Message- From: Aaron Rouse [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Sunday, February 03, 2008 2:05 PM To: CF-Jobs-Talk Subject: Re: Dead Beat Clients. Some collective representation for IT workers has its advantages and I am sure disadvantages as well. One thing that has always annoyed me is how IT workers are treated by the tax man vs some other occupations and I think a collective representation could have the power in numbers to change things like that. On Feb 3, 2008 2:36 PM, William Seiter [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I agree that having a union would be good for working with dead beat clients as well as with obtaining good contracts, but a union should go further. To a client, a union has become the essence of 'good training'. Would we have an apprentice system? Would we develop 'union programming standards'? I think that having a union is a step in the right direction, but it is a long road to get there. Maybe we can have a poll to see how many people would support it. In the mean time I would suggest that everyone have access to a lawyer or a lawyer system (pre-paid legal). This way you can have a lawyer draft a letter when you aren't paid, and you can have your 'basic' contract reviewed. Regarding contracts. Does anyone have any contract examples that have worked well that they would share with the rest of us? William -- William E. Seiter Have you ever read a book that changed your life? Go to: www.winninginthemargins.com Enter passkey: goldengrove Web Developer / ColdFusion Programmer http://William.Seiter.com -Original Message- From: Vincent Cannady [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Sunday, February 03, 2008 10:10 AM To: CF-Jobs-Talk Subject: Re: Dead Beat Clients. Hi Matt, From what I read you have never had many contracts but I can vouch for what Angry Housewife says that I too have been paid when I go client locations to work but when I am up at three o clock in the morning doing work and submit for those hours I never seem to get paid even if I email or IM the client at that time. I have worked in the Contracts Department of companies like Sprint and Cingular and I have seen them get burned and have to resort to Suing to get their money back so again I have to disagree with you about negotiations. A Contract is a contract; here are the three ways you can break a contract per the UCC -Uniform Code of Commerce #1 Incapacity- Mentally Unfit to make a contract #2 Age - To young to be making a contract #3 Breach of contract - One party or another did not complete part of contract So in our case it is almost always number three either the developer did not do ANYWORK (or they signed a completed project contract) or the Client Breached the Contract by not paying Here is the one I find funny- A Client that breeches the contract usually wants to hold you (the Consultant) to a NDA (Non Disclosure Agreement) meaning no contact with his or her end client after they terminated your services even though they have not paid you. Ok. So Jeff has some experience with this so have I, I have worked for two different Law Enforcement Agencies, Two Different Court Houses in two different States, I have friends who are lawyers. I am an expert in Contract Law. And I always look up clients on WWW.PACER.GOV (Federal DISTRICT Court Houses Case Party Index) yet I too get burned so UNLIKE you I do not consider getting burned me not KNOWING how to negotiate. I was my School Debate Champion and have won lawsuits again Fortune 500 Companies representing myself (pro se). The list she talks about is needed. She also has another point no one has picked up on, What about us HAVING A UNION. The all contracts would go thru the Union anynone not paying would be sued by the Union. Programmer would not need to come up with $2000 just to get back $2500. Instead they could pay 120 a year or $10 a Month to belong to a National Technology Workers Union that would have attorneys on staff would could deal with this mess, I think that until that day comes along we should have this list and if the Clients want a list of Bad Programmers they had better pay one of US to create IT! Just my $10,000! On Feb 2, 2008 6:55 PM, angry housewife [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I have watched my husband work very hard for three or four contracts in the last six months where he has only been paid ten percent of his total invoiced hours. My husband never signs a contract where the work has to be completed before he is paid, yet every client of his who has not paid uses this as an excuse not to pay because the work or project is not completed. The only work my husband
RE: Dead Beat Clients.
If this list is going to be created, you can probably break it off into groups. 1. Dead Beats 2. Slow Pays 3. Partial Pays (Partial invoices, not partial jobs) I, personally, think this would be a grand idea. I also think that the company/client, should also be able to list on a similar system the names of those consultants that left them in a lurch, walked away from the job, or did something that specifically jeopardized the job. I have recently been speaking to a client who has had 3 people walk away. As much as this is a red flag for me to work with him, it also says something about consultants. Unfortunately, I don't know if it was the client, the consultant, or the job that was too obtrusive to be completed with. I know for myself, such a list may not stop me from working with a client, but it will make me 'stick to my requirements' harder. (If my agreement is weekly invoices, the first missed payment has all work stop until a satisfactory explanation or payment has been received, if it is by 'milestone', no work until payment has been received based on the milestone, etc.) The unfortunate thing about a list like this is that it can't be 'amended'. Once an email is sent on this list, it is forever searchable by the search engines. If you make a 'typo', or if a company name is the same for different companies across regions, then there has been a 'mistake' that cannot be 'redacted'. I think this would be better served using a database similar to the BBB system. I know, for instance, that there is at least 1 client out there who would say some poor things about me, and I about them. What it comes down to is a bad communication issue. (the specs were, apparently, unclear (I had thought that the client meant something, when they had meant something else.) Even though I have billed her for the hours I worked on it, she has never paid, and never responded to additional contact. I have written it off and I hope that we both took a lesson away from it. For me, even if you have worked on a similar project before, address every project as if you have never worked with them on one previously (get all the facts from scratch). Hers, be very clear in your specification documents. And one for both of us; don't just read and confirm each part of the specifications, review them all with the other party to verify the verbiage relates the intent. William -- William E. Seiter Have you ever read a book that changed your life? Go to: www.winninginthemargins.com Enter passkey: goldengrove Web Developer / ColdFusion Programmer http://William.Seiter.com =30099.21321.11 ~| Adobe® ColdFusion® 8 software 8 is the most important and dramatic release to date Get the Free Trial http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;160198600;22374440;w Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/message.cfm/messageid:3621 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.11
RE: Front end developer to a ColdFusion developer
I think what I like the best about the opportunity is that this 'entry-level' position offers a very nice vehicle as part of the Compensation package. £3 - £35000 per annum + Bens I wish more companies would offer professional sports style perks to their offers ;) As far as posting it on the cf-jobs list, I think that it would be very related to CF. I am sure there are many 'lurking learners' here who would be more than happy to learn on the job. William -- William E. Seiter Have you ever read a book that changed your life? Go to: www.winninginthemargins.com Enter passkey: goldengrove Web Developer http://William.Seiter.com -Original Message- From: Judith Dinowitz [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Monday, January 28, 2008 8:57 PM To: CF-Jobs-Talk Subject: Front end developer to a ColdFusion developer Very interesting job posting just came across my desk. This company wants a front end developer who will work his or her way up to being a ColdFusion developer. :) I liked that heirarchy! What do you think of the job posting here - of the way the job is described and the levels, with ColdFusion development being on top? http://www.computerweekly.com/jobs/job/front-end-web-developer-digital-media --10324896.htm -- Judith Dinowitz Editor Fusion Authority The House of Fusion Technical Magazine http://www.fusionauthority.com ~| Adobe® ColdFusion® 8 software 8 is the most important and dramatic release to date Get the Free Trial http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;160198600;22374440;w Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/message.cfm/messageid:3585 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.11
RE: WOW, what a plight!!
Sheesh, I can imagine that was a blow to you. Maybe she will get the type of person she is looking for next, dishonest 'yes' person I guess we just keep 'shopping' until we find where we belong William -- William E. Seiter Have you ever read a book that changed your life? Go to: www.winninginthemargins.com Enter passkey: goldengrove Web Developer http://William.Seiter.com -Original Message- From: RobG [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Friday, January 25, 2008 5:19 PM To: CF-Jobs-Talk Subject: Re: WOW, what a plight!! Wow man, what a story!! I've actually been in a couple of similar situations myself. You had amazing patience sticking it out for as long as you did. I would have bailed probably after the first week, if not sooner. Heck, just recently I got fired for being honest. Yep. Got a call from the woman who hired me, asking how things were going. I told her. I said it's been a week and I haven't been able to accomplish much because of server problems, poor response time, and generally not a whole lot of help from her team members. I said hey, maybe they just aren't that good at mentoring new people... though I doubted any of it was intentional. That was it. It was as if I had used a racial slur to describe her mother. In short, she said I had just trashed her team, and that she didn't think it was going to work out. Didn't matter that I apologized and said hey, I'm frustrated because it's been hard to get stuff done. Nope, that was all it took. So... all the trouble of interviewing, hiring, reading a bunch of manuals to get up to speed on stuff, four days busting my butt to produce, and I get axed for honesty... to the one person you should always be able to be honest with -- YOUR BOSS. Wow. Talk about a touchy-feely, wear-your-heart-on-your-sleeve type. I'm glad it happened now, before I got anymore invested into it. Rob ~| Adobe® ColdFusion® 8 software 8 is the most important and dramatic release to date Get the Free Trial http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;160198600;22374440;w Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/message.cfm/messageid:3576 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.11
RE: WOW, what a plight!!
Thank you, I have pretty much decided not to comment to the company brass about what had occurred. Like you said, who knows what kind of 'reach' they have. I crypted the company name for the exact reason of wanting to keep it out of print, but I know that they need programmers, and if I had had a glimpse, I would have had better interview questions for them. I am not saying that anyone should use my experience to steer away from them, I am just saying that if your life is similar to mine, it may not be your top choice. Obviously they have programmers who have 'worked out' for them, so they can find a good match. It just wasn't me, and the thing that hurts me the most is that if they had been honest with me in the interview process, I probably wouldn't have taken the position. My wife has found some long lost family members in the Minneapolis area, I am not sure we would settle there, but we may be traveling on vacation in that direction soon, ironic. William Seiter -- William E. Seiter Have you ever read a book that changed your life? Go to: www.winninginthemargins.com Enter passkey: goldengrove Web Developer http://William.Seiter.com -Original Message- From: Crow T. Robot [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Friday, January 25, 2008 5:21 PM To: CF-Jobs-Talk Subject: Re: WOW, what a plight!! I agree with P.I. It's a sucky story, a sucky situation that you got into. BUT - there is a silver lining here. Not sure about LA, but from what I have heard from different corners of the US, (good) CF developers are hard to come by. You should put this behind you, and look forward to the next challenge ahead. There are many companies out there that will appreciate your knowledge dedication and should reward you handsomely (both in $$ and quality of life). Good luck, and if you ever would like a job in Minneapolis (doubtful, haha), let me know. We are always on the lookout for good ppl! BTW, I don't think a private note to the HR rep would help you at all. Who knows what kind of reach this company has, and dragging your own name through the mud via the written word won't help you. AND - the HR rep who let your manager walk into a private exit meeting doesn't sound at all professional to me. I'm no HR guru, but this sounds clearly like some kind of privacy violation. If it was worth it, I'd bet it would qualify for legal ramifications against the company. I'll end with an echo from P.I. - keep your chin up! On Jan 25, 2008 6:02 PM, Dr. Who [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: sucks man... keep your chin up! ~| Adobe® ColdFusion® 8 software 8 is the most important and dramatic release to date Get the Free Trial http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;160198600;22374440;w Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/message.cfm/messageid:3575 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.11
WOW, what a plight!!
I was just let go yesterday. The reason was simple, but as I review the short time that I was with the company, there were tremendous factors that were involved with that eventual demise of my employment for this company. I certainly am to fault, but just as much, if not more, is the company and management. I was interviewed last October, extensively, for a position with Z3NC0N [EMAIL PROTECTED] (the alphanumeric was added to keep this out of the search engines), later to become P30PL3 M3D1@, running 37 dating websites. I was described a position for a company that was moving to Los Angeles in Mid November, but would continue having an office in Arizona for a few months. The office is an open and friendly environement that viewed productivity above all else. I was told that I would fly to Arizona 1 or 2 times during November and December for training, but would be posted out of the Los Angeles office the rest of the time. After discussing this with my wife, we agreed that 1 or 2 times would be an okay sacrifice, for the upside potentials that the position would give me. (We have a 'troubled' son, so we discussed the travel at length) I took the position and asked many, many questions regarding the street address of the LA office, along with other questions, but was given no response to the location of the LA office. The friday before I would start the position in mid-november, I caught the bad flu that was going around. Even though I was very sick, I decided to go ahead and take the flight and start the new job, instead of postponing until I felt better. When I arrived at the job that following Monday, I was not received with open arms. My direct manager did not, at any time during my time there ever, look or sound happy to see me. I was immediately given project to work with and it was, if not said, intoned that I was now to prove myself. (By the way, the flight made my flu much much worse). My office was 1 of 4 fullsized 'teacher' desks in a 10x10 room. My boss sat behind me and to the left, my co-worker (his younger brother), sat directly behind me. I wasn't allowed to plug in my earbuds to help me to focus on the work at hand. I was expected to be 'up to speed' on their systems almost immediately. I was expected to know what was in my bosses head. He would give me a task to accomplish, not respond to my questions, or if he did he acted 'put out' that he had to deal with me. I was also informed that the 'deal' for the LA office had fallen through, and even though I could work from home on fridays (my flights had been arranged for Monday thru Thursday), I would be required to fly to Arizona every week until an office was found. Due to the increased plane travel, my flu symptoms lasted until the week prior to the holidays. I had been told in the interview (undocumented) that those weeks that I flew, the Friday's would be mine, since the interviewer understood the extra hours involved with flying back and forth. My new 'boss' did not mirror that consent, he actually considered the 'flight time' to be on my time and when I came in around 11am on Mondays and left at around 4:30pm on Thursdays, I was 'ill-preforming'. My home life severely decomposed as my son started acting out at school and at home with my wife. This along with my severe lack of feeling appreciated at work started me to look at this position and company with disgust. I felt that if I could make it to the Los Angeles office, I would be out of his direct influence (he indicated he was probably not moving with the company) and I would be able to concentrate on the work at hand (not having to worry about my home, my next flight, my hotel, my rental car, etc, etc). At no time during my employment did my supervisor ever give to me any positive or constructive criticism. The last conversation I had with him about my performance (before being removed), was my asking him how he felt my progress was. He said that it was 'good'. Then five minutes later he took me into a private room and began to drill me down on all of the work I had been doing. At the end of the meeting, I asked him, 'So does this now cancel out what you had just told me on my performance a few minutes ago.' His response was that his head was full of some other issues he was working on and hadn't had a chance to really process my question. The very next morning, they terminated my employment, citing that I wasn't 'fast' enough for them. I was asked by the HR representative (my bosses #1 fan) if there was anything that she could do for me. I asked her if she meant, 'Can I give them any feedback?'. She replied that she would be interested in some. I started by saying to her that the next time she hires someone for the LA office, actually have them work in the LA office. I started to continue to talk, but my supervisor walked into the room and broke up the conversation. What I wanted to say: 1. Send my manager to 'manager training school', with
RE: Want to move into .Net?
/I also thought the response was pretty funny. / /I certainly didn't think it required any sort of response from the /original poster, unless a ha, ha. Do you want the job? you know you /are jealous type of humor-rebuttal. / /And it went downhill from there. I don't remember seeing the original job poster reply. -- William E. Seiter Have you ever read a book that changed your life? Go to: www.winninginthemargins.com Enter passkey: goldengrove Web Developer http://William.Seiter.com ~| Adobe® ColdFusion® 8 software 8 is the most important and dramatic release to date Get the Free Trial http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;160198600;22374440;w Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/message.cfm/messageid:3510 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Jobs-Talk/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.11
