Finding a freelancer that fits

You have a project or task that needs doing and you lack the capacity and/or skills right now to do it in house

You want some extra help – perhaps inviting a freelancer to be part of your organisation?

But – how do you make sure it all actually works?

If these questions leave you feeling a bit like Kevin from Home Alone, read on for solutions that don’t necessarily involve setting elaborate traps or ordering all the room service in a hotel…

Before you start, consider if a freelancer is the right option - bringing in extra help has a financial cost, and requires management attention.   I cover this subject further in my previous blog , (what do you mean you’ve not read it yet?!). 

Think about how freelancers can unlock the potential of your charity

It’s commonly assumed that freelancers are mostly high level strategy consultants coming in to do complex projects and are really expensive. Yikes. In truth though, one of the best ways you can work with freelancers is to help you with operational capacity that you don’t need all the time, like comms support around a campaign, finance support at year end, or help to write a big funding bid with a  short deadline. Getting help with this sort of thing only when you need it can often be more cost effective, enabling you to buy in the expertise you need only when it’s required. If you get the briefing and appointment right, it can really help you get things done now, and if you include it in the brief, upskill your staff or improve your processes at the same time. 

Knowing what you need is a great starting point:

Taking the time to ensure you understand what you need will maximise your chances of getting the right person to help you.

An extra person on board won’t magically solve issues like underperformance, or challenges with leadership, so make sure you are clear on the issue that are stopping things getting done. A consultant brought on board with a specific mandate to help work that out could be game changing for you, but it’s not likely to work asking someone to do this alongside a more operational project – so consider your priorities carefully and brief accordingly. 

A helpful brief includes:

• What is the problem you need to solve – and why is it important, right now
• What is the context – a brief overview of your charity – size, staff makeup, main activities, other issues you have, priorities etc.
• What are the outcomes you are looking for (they can then tell you about their skills and how they will achieve your outcomes)
• What’s your timescale and budget – including the day rate range you think is reasonable (do your research first!), and what additional expenses you will cover (it’s pretty standard for you to cover travel separately, for example)
• A few words about ‘what it’s like to work here’ and your values – so they can demonstrate in a proposal how they’ll support what matters to you in the how, as well as the what

Make sure you are being realistic about the task, time, and budget – if you don’t get a lot of interest, its likely to relate to one or more of these.

Plan a really good appointment process (it’s not the same as recruiting an employee!):

Once you have a really clear brief, get it out there!  You can do this independently, but it’s worth considering using a reputable agency. You’ll be charged a ‘finder’s fee’ – usually a percentage of the day rate – but this is often worth it  in the reassurance and administrative help you’ll get, especially if you are new to working with freelancers. 

A freelancer will generally make a proposal that sets out what they will do, and the cost.  They might propose a specific number of days and a ‘day rate’, or they may propose a fixed price.  If you prefer one approach over the other, state this in the brief.

Bear in mind that if you want them to deliver in person activity like an away day, they are factoring in time to develop and plan, not just the delivery itself. Ditto research for a report, consultation with staff, etc. 

Think about proportionality – for a freelancer, time is their most valuable resource. It’s totally reasonable to have an initial call, ask them for a proposal, and then have a detailed follow up call to choose between your final shortlist – but expecting more than this unless it’s a really big complex project may put people off.  The pay off for you is that generally, appointing a freelancer is a lot faster and less time consuming that recruiting a permanent employee – with the cost benefit you would expect (because remember, your time has a value – and a cost!). 

Expect it to be more effort for a bigger, more complicated assignment, and a lot simpler for something more operational. Appointing a content writer to develop some new pages for your website will be a lot simpler that appointing an interim CEO, even if they are both freelance contractors!  

Make your appointment  - time is of the essence!

Freelancers aim to know what they’re doing over the next 2-3 months, pitching for new work whilst completing other projects, and we generally want to work consistently – this is after all how we make our living!  If you take too long (more than a week or two in my experience) to make a decision, the person you like best might agree to another project rather than wait around for you.  If unforeseen circumstance delay your decision (we all know it happens), let them know when you’ll be back in touch.

Get a contract in place.  Many freelancers have their own contract that covers things like agreed activity and costs, insurance arrangements, GDPR and intellectual property, etc. If you want to draw up your own contract, have it ready to go before you put your brief out.  When drafting your contract, it’s  worth familiarising yourself with the IR35 rules for contractors (link to gov website guidance Understanding off-payroll working (IR35) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) ).  (IR35 is pretty straightforward, so don’t panic!).

If you’ve followed the advice above, you’ve made a great first impression – now nurture the partnership.  Working with a  freelancer is like any other relationship – you get out what you put in.  Keeping in contact, letting them know if anything changes, exchanging honest feedback on what’s working for you and what’s not are great ways to ensure you get what you need, and to secure the fabulous word-of-mouth reputation that you want.  

One last thing….

The biggest challenge for most freelancers (including some I did not get this right with in my early days – sorry!), is when clients don’t pay on time.  Imagine if you didn’t get your salary on payday – not good, right?  So, on behalf of all freelancers, I ask – please commit to getting your processes sorted out before you appoint. This is one way that Blume can really help you, as their platform automates this – providing ease of use for you, and assurance for your freelancer – allowing more time and energy to be spent on the good stuff – getting your project done 😊

Nicola Upton is a Charity CEO turned consultant, who made some early mistakes hiring freelancers but learnt from that experience and managed to deliver great projects and outcomes with the help of their expertise. She wants to make it easier for other charity leaders to get what they need, make the changes they want, and unleash their superpowers.  

Contact Nicola if you are interested in finding out what it would be like to hire her as a freelancer.