Consultancy, freelance, or permanent role — which to choose?

Working on engagement for a consultancy, freelancing on your own account, or being hired in a permanent role at an end client? Which is best given my level of experience and my expectations?

I have a tech profile — I'm a developer or a Data Analyst — and I'm wondering what's the best way to sell my skills?

If you only have 2 minutes, we invite you to watch this short interview with Christophe, CEO of Bluecoders, to find out what type of contract might suit your profile.

AND! If you have 3 more minutes, this article recaps Christophe Hébert's advice and the pros and cons of each career choice!

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To start, watch out! Each environment doesn't suit every profile and won't necessarily meet your expectations!

The first question to ask yourself is: What do I want to do?

#1 Working on your own as a freelancer

Being freelance means having skills to sell. So if your only goal is to make a lot of money but you don't have enough skills, clients won't fall from the sky and you won't earn much.

You often hear: "When you're a dev, all you need is a computer and an internet connection to work" or "I work on the beach, under the Thai sun" … Yes, it sounds great! But these devs went through several companies before launching into the freelance adventure, built up a network, and took the time to grow into experts.

It makes everyone want to do it, but watch out for the dark sides! As the name suggests, the independent worker is alone.

Joining a company, working there a few months to follow a roadmap, push a product or service forward, then leaving — that doesn't suit everyone. In terms of belonging, team spirit, and depth of subject matter, there's clearly better!

You'll be alone to manage your accounting, you won't have job security, and you won't get a paycheck when you go on vacation… but at the same time, if you can sell yourself well, are very experienced on a topic, and are rather solitary, the best way to make money will be to be freelance!

#2 Being hired permanently at an end client

As Christophe, founder of Bluecoders and former developer, would say: "The best reason to join a company in a permanent role is to grow your skills."

Join a startup or a larger company?

Small companies and startups:

For curious people who want to touch lots of things and especially those who are starting their career, head to small companies and startups in permanent roles, where you'll really have impact and where you'll feel the company needs to invest in you and help you grow.

"A great career always starts with people growing their skills. When I work for someone, what I have to sell is skills!"

Large companies:

At the start of your career, you'll go after benefits. Why not work for a large company if there's interest in the project. Be careful though — large companies sometimes develop their ability to lock in employees. They'll offer you big salaries, profit-sharing, perks… but watch out, they can become golden cages you never quite dare leave, and you may end up spending a sizable chunk of your life there.

If you're at a large company and you feel like you have no impact on the business and things move too slowly, go to a startup or an SMB! You'll really feel how much your action affects the company.

#3 Working on engagement at a consultancy

A good compromise? Watch out!

The new name for SSIIs (IT engineering services companies), ESNs (Digital Services Companies) outsource their skills in IT expertise. Their role is to send consultants on engagement to companies for temporary requested work. In short, you work as an expert within a client's teams for a defined period on a specific project!

In other words, you're a consultant.

You could see this as the solution, the right compromise — since you'll change engagements regularly, develop interest in different topics, and not get bored. But let's not forget you're hired by one company at which you won't actually work. You'll go directly to the client's offices and have an engagement contract. You're sent as a consultant on a mission, inside that client company.

Most of the time, consultancies place their consultants in large companies. Among them, mainly companies in the tertiary sector and particularly the financial tertiary.

"The biggest consumers of consultants today are banks and insurance."