What types of programmers tend to be attracted to full-time positions and what types are drawn to contract positions?
Which type are you, and have you swapped between one to another?
Does there come a time in a programmer's life when he/she typically switches from one to another?
Do you find one more challenging than the other?
I've not done a stint in contract work, but I am happy staying in permanent positions. It may not be as lucrative as contract work, but it is more secure. I'm not constantly worrying about not being able to get business for the next day/week/month/year in order to afford food, etc.
Typically programmers will switch over to contract work after retiring, as that way they can cash in on their retirement packages and still have some additional income from working a few hours a week. I'd say 80% of our contractors are in the 55 - 70 age range and they're considered experts in their area, but retired a long time ago from the company after occupying top technical direction, architecture or IT supervision positions.
My career has primarily been a full-time employee working for contracting companies. Which means that I get the stability which a full-time job provides (highly important as I have a wife and kids I like to see nightly) and the challenges of contract work.
The one time when I had a corporate IT job (working for SAKS, Inc. of all places, I was utterly bored and miserable.
I have been working with a contract for the last year and it's a lot more stress. Since requirement change a lot (and I do my best to freeze them) a lot of time is wasted in contract change. And, you need to get other contract all the time... all this time used for "managing" is time you do not program... if you like managing less than programming I think it's ok. Of course, if you have a lot of client and you have some employees that might be easier for you.
This is my last year of contract and I will switch to full time for few years. I might try again contract later, but I feel that currently I am not learning enough and too much apply knowledge the more fast that I can and this is something that I hate.
I've done both. I worked 1 year full-time, then onto a 3 year full-time role and now I am on close to 3 years as a contractor. They are very different situations.
In a full-time job, outside of the work you do you often spend time on career development tasks. You'll meet with managers and get reviews and discuss ways to improve. These are often HR requirements and are used to calculate raises, bonuses and promotions. There is a certain amount of political effort required to move yourself forward. Then there are other HR type benefits including paid vacation, sick leave, medical/dental coverage, pension and matched retirement savings contributions. Finally there are the social benefits since you work on the same team for long periods. You also get familiar with your environment (desk, commute, etc.). Full-time is stable and perdictable.
Contracting is like a new challenge every few months (for me at least - some people end up on long term contracts). I now work on completely new project with new people all the time. It is nice to start fresh and to know you won't look at the same thing day in and day out. The money is significantly better although there are quite a few less benefits. You can take time off whenever you want, but you are paying for it (that goes for sick days as well). I'm young and unmarried so insurance (medical, dental, life) isn't a priority but I know it would be expensive since I wouldn't be under a company umbrella. There is a risk that I won't find work or the only work I will find is undesireable. I can set my rate and I don't have to rely on a manager to give me a raise.
Both are decent ways of life (IMO) and contracting suites me because of my age, lcoation and interest in travel. In the future I plan to start my own business but if that doesn't work out then I will find a good 9-5 when I choose to raise a family.
Here in Florida you can be fired "at-will" which basically means you could go into your fancy desk job the first day and be fired for looking at your new boss the wrong way. Personally, that makes contract jobs a moot point. Why would I want to work a job that is destined to be a dead end? I mean, I love projects and the rush of that instant gratification as much as the next guy but unless you're a contract killer (of tasks that is!) then I'd be willing to bet you'll be looking for a permanent position or at the least a very long contract.
I find that companies looking for a contractor to satisfy an everyday role (i.e. the web guy, batch guy, etc) are generally looking to try someone out or pay less (see: no benefits). I tend to avoid companies who will not put faith or trust in my work. With the policies we have in this state, there's little reason not to.
I did contracts when I went through college for about a year before I realized I couldn't/wouldn't do it anymore. Imagine planning an extravagant vacation only to get a phone call about this addition worth several thousand dollars that you need to do immediately or your client will find someone who can. It is exciting, but eventually the constant fear of new work will haunt you. Granted, I was poor and had to take the work but sometimes it is hard to say no. You have to be the labor, management, and conscience when you contract. No one is there to tell you when to stop, when you're wrong, or even when you need a break.
Just my 2 cents. Not everyone's personality is the same, but I prefer structure.
My 2 cents...
I switched to contracting after working a grueling 6 months in crunch mode, working late nights and weekends on a number of simple projects that really shouldn't have taken that long. The company wasn't willing to invest in the process so pretty much all projects ran like that.
I wanted to be a master of my own destiny.
I'm now a contract C# developer on my 6th contract. I've worked for some of the best companies in London. I'm employed by decent people who have the money to spend on decent process and decent staff. Nearly all of the contract's i've had have asked me to stay on full time and it's been very hard not to take a few of the offers.
But heres the thing... I now earn nearly 4 times as much.
If you do the learning and invest in yourself as a fine developer you can ( usually ) pick and choose the company you want to work for. Although theres a recession coming that may change.
I worked for The Man™ for about 10 years, then decided to do it on my own. There were several reasons.
1) I hate people bothering me when I work, and it seemed like I just couldn't get a job where somebody wasn't always in my face or bugging me.
2) I am very much NOT a morning person. (Today is a rare exception.) I once attended a seminar for a work-at-home business with a friend of mine. It turned out to be one of those scammy triangle businesses, but the guy asked us all 'when was the last time you slept until you were done sleeping?'... and I hated him for that immensely.
3) I hate traffic.
4) I got tired of seeing how much money the company was making vs how much money I was making from my work.
5) I like to travel and move around a lot, and I love being able to take my work with me.
6) Nothing beats sitting around in my Sponge Bob boxers, listening to Pink Floyd and getting in my coding groove.
7) I like being able to choose the projects I want to work on, and make my own deadlines without somebody who wouldn't know GCC from GTE telling me how long something should take me.
I love it :D
I work in the IT staffing/recruiting business (and am also an IT guy). We do a lot of contract-to-hire and direct-hire work. We have some contractors that love the contract work. They love the new experience every couple of months. Since most of our work is contract-to-hire and those employees become full-time employees after 6 months it works out well for our clients who use that period to 'test' and make sure the employee fits well with their team(s).
Contractors on our payroll typically make a decent amount per hour more than a full-time employee. We have to pay them a little more to keep them happy and not jump ship. Really depends on their personality.
~Allen
It's about one thing - health insurance. Can you make enough to cover the huge increases every year? What will you do when you are 50+ and can't cut the mustard anymore? Or are you 25 and don't care?
I spent several years doing the full-time thing for a variety of smaller companies, knowing that I've never liked bureaucracy or dealing with power structures. A few of those companies grew substantially or were acquired, and I quickly left, as I couldn't stand the changes that brought in the work environment.
Four years ago, my then-employer gave me the option of working for them as an outside contractor (basically, I wanted to work off-site, my immediate boss was fine with that, but upper management objected, so this was the solution we came up with to make everyone happy) and I set up shop as a freelancer and, as the ultimate "small business" environment, it's been a perfect fit for me. Even when I've had lean periods and had to worry about whether I'd get another project before my bank account ran out, I've never wanted to go back to the full-time grind. Give me autonomy and variety any day.
Regarding the answer saying that full-time lets you build familiarity with your desk and commute, I'm very familiar with the desk in my spare bedroom and the 30-foot commute from bed to desk. You don't have to do on-site consulting if you don't want to. (I don't want to, obviously. Aside from avoiding traffic, dress codes, and office politics, I also prefer to have multiple projects in progress concurrently. More interesting that way, plus it gives some protection against slow-paying clients.)
I really enjoy contracting.
Here's how it breaks down:
Contract Perm
------------- ------------------------
2x pay Raises without asking (rate changes can be hard)
Paid overtime Vacation and sick days
Flexible hours 401k matching
More challenging Health care plans
Confidence building Less pressure to perform
Better IP rights More security (except in work-for-hire states)
My wife works perm, so we get benefits that way. (I used to get insurance myself... it cost a bit, but not even in the ballpark of the difference between contract and perm)
By "More challenging", I mean a few things. First, contracting forces you to at least occasionally make some effort to sell your skills. I'm not very outgoing... I won't pretend that's easy. However, I usually find it very rewarding (afterward). That's confidence building... I know perms who are scared to death of interviews. I almost enjoy them at this point. I'm very confident now. I absolutely know that would not be the case if I was perm. Projecting confidence is a significant part of being able to get what you're worth.
Next, I believe the technical challenges are greater, as usually a company is hiring contractors to do something relatively difficult and then leave.
As a contractor, I don't have to sign away every idea I ever come up with. Contracts should only cover IP for the project your working on. As a perm, virtually anything you come up with these days your company owns. This was actually a major consideration for me. For example: a friend of mine actually wrote a few chapters for an O'Reilly book, only to have her company block publication. People who come up with a great idea and quit to pursue it technically are stealing their own idea from their employer.
BTW - working full time for a company that turns around and contracts you to someone else is IMHO only good for experience building.
A couple years ago I looked into contract work. The problem is, my wife is disabled, and every health insurance we applied to turned us down. So I have to keep working at a full time job just so we can afford health care.
I'm a full time employee. I never worked for contract.
What I found advantage of full time employee is, 1. The job is more secure.
Scope for improvement and to get higher responsibilities and designations within the organization.
In some good companies, you will be always improving your skills in diverse areas
If you're core programmer, architect, you don't have to deal with marketing matters
Comparatively good pay and it yearly appreciation
Disadvantages 1. The growth in your organization is directly proportional to your skills and how you're dealing with your manager.
Less control over your ideas and suggestions and weak IP policies. when you work for global player, your ideas are considered to be part of that organization
In some companies, you will have to face bad politics even you're skilled enough.
The managers brought up from technical streams most of don't like smart people. They're looking for people who obey them. So you will be a victim of seeing less skilled people going up (again peter principle rocks).
I've enjoyed the dynamic nature of being a contractor for several years now. Other than all the good reasons mentioned in other answers which I totally agree with I'd have to add that it also puts you in a position to attain business skills. Running a business, record keeping, taxes, finances, law, etc. As an employee you never have much of an incentive to learn these things. IMO they're very important.
It is a much easier transition being a contractor if you ever want to start a company that is not a consulting business.