|
First, you already left them. So if they are hanging, it is not your fault.
Second, when being asked back to consult, they are asking to use your most valuable time... Your free time... Weekends.
I look at it this way. If you made $80K/yr ($40/hr) before you left, then as a consultant, you have to start at TRIPLE that ($120/hr). Next, if they want you after you are already working full-time, DOUBLE THAT rate, getting you to $240/hr. Next, if they are the shady type, you make them buy your time, in 10hr chunks, in advance.
Finally, they pick up the cost of the lawyer, up front that will indemnify you and make sure the company will take full responsibility with the ownership of the code.
So, in writing you put those points. Simply put, I am not interested in doing this unless you are willing to pay $250/hr, up front in 10hr increments, and pay the expenses involved in me getting a lawyer to write up a contract that indemnifies me against any damages.
At this point, you are "real estate". You have a specific location in the knowledge of the environment that makes you like a Michael Jordan. You can pick up the ball and move it down the court with ease... You charge "RENT" for that kind of knowledge/ability... And frankly, depending on the size of the company, I wouldn't be against asking for $500/hr...
Why? Because then it becomes them saying no. One of the things I learned (much too late in life), is that if you don't ask, you wont get. When I learned this... I found 1 in 10 will literally take the offer. And if they say NO THANKS... Then there is nothing to feel guilty about!
Now, if they agree, you have to really be ready to do that work for that amount of money... So keep increasing it, until you will GLADLY do the work!
|
|
|
|
|
Matt McGuire wrote: But I've got some guilt on leaving them without another programmer to pick up the load.
That's the problem. You should have no guilt about moving along.
It's nice that you want to help out, but you have no obligation. If you don't want to do it, say so and wish them luck in their endeavors.
Maybe it's smarter of you to have them find another developer, then take on a contract to help bring that person up to speed. Be a mentor to the new person, but don't actually do any of the development. So your knowledge gets passed along, but you shouldn't have any liability for the actual code.
|
|
|
|
|
That's what "service contracts" are for.
And you can put anything in the contract that you want; as long as both parties sign and are of age and sane.
Some institutions require $5,000,000 in liability insurance.
And never promise it will be "bug free" (even if you believe it).
Set limits on response times, response windows, client responsibilities (testing!!!!), etc.
(And say you will work WITH them; not FOR them ...).
AND ... add that agreement can be ended at any time, by either party, for no particular reason.
"(I) am amazed to see myself here rather than there ... now rather than then".
― Blaise Pascal
modified 21-Jun-18 14:50pm.
|
|
|
|
|
Or lighting up with more people trying their hand at the 20 min Arduino Binary Counter challenge. And some of our members are participating in more than 1 challenge - we love that enthusiasm!
Congrats to our spot prize winner of the day - Florian. We hope you enjoy your new Arduino starter kit!
|
|
|
|
|
Does Captain Obvious shave with Occam's Razor?
|
|
|
|
|
|
If he shaves and if he has Occam's Razor and if it's sharp enough...
|
|
|
|
|
Yes, and he buys new blades with common cents.
|
|
|
|
|
|
I recently had a problem at my job. We work for a company abroad as contractor, so all our communication is done by Slack and our tasks are on TFS.
The task I want to talk about, was basically to hardcode some items in a list that came from a database. I warned them all that this would break some other modules in our application, because it used that same data. They just told me to finish that task and go on.
It didn't work out and it broke the application, as I have told them many times before.
But my main complaint is that, they sent an email to my manager saying that the RC was broken because of me. I did have all chat history, so it was easy to prove to my boss that I just did what I was told and even warned them many times about that.
Was I really guilt in all of this? Should I have just ignored thier orders and didn't finish the task?
|
|
|
|
|
You did the right thing. But the next time this happens you should find somebody on "your side" to insist on your line. But maybe that function is missing from your organisation
... such stuff as dreams are made on
|
|
|
|
|
Yeah, basically all my co-workers are on another country, including the scrum master and pm. My boss here just deal with things like contracts, hiring and etc.
|
|
|
|
|
Yeah but such requests should pass the scrum-master, regardless of location.
... such stuff as dreams are made on
|
|
|
|
|
It sounds like you did your job and warned them of the consequences like a professional should. They are the managers and should be practiced with risk management. They made the mistake and are the accountable ones, not you; you did things correctly.
|
|
|
|
|
You did ok.
Good to keep records.
You could have gone to your manager and tell him the requested changes would break the application before doing them.
I'd rather be phishing!
|
|
|
|
|
I faced the same problem many times, it seems some managers deliberately only communicate verbally so they can just deny that they made a wrong request, sigh
|
|
|
|
|
I've taken to always sending a follow up email recapping the conversation, it's better than nothing.
"the debugger doesn't tell me anything because this code compiles just fine" - random QA comment
"Facebook is where you tell lies to your friends. Twitter is where you tell the truth to strangers." - chriselst
"I don't drink any more... then again, I don't drink any less." - Mike Mullikins uncle
|
|
|
|
|
Yeah. I had one boss that I had to do this with all the time for everything he ever told me!
He hated it but couldn't actually complain.
- I would love to change the world, but they won’t give me the source code.
|
|
|
|
|
You did the right thing. Its nice to see someone who cares enough to struggle with the ethics of this all-to-common situation. I'm simply happy you still had the chat available.
When I find myself in this situation, I usually send an e-mail to person I chatted with...something like "I enjoyed our recent discussion about BLAH. If I understood correctly, you would like me to do WHATEVER to BLAH? Since I had some concerns, could you please confirm that I have understood correctly? Thank you." I then CC anyone who is directly affected. This gives anyone who cares a chance to object and creates evidence that is hard to dispute.
One of my old bosses jokingly called this "getting as many fingerprints as possible on the murder weapon"
|
|
|
|
|
That's going to be my new MO
|
|
|
|
|
Listen, you obviously know you are working at the wrong company.
Get a new job where the "other" software engineers are not retarded.
Fresh chips and salsa. Ice cold raspberry seltzer. New job. No retarded software engineers.
Good luck.
|
|
|
|
|
Slacker007 wrote: New job. No retarded software engineers.
I wouldn't put money on that.
|
|
|
|
|
Slacker007 wrote: Get a new job where the "other" software engineers are not retarded.
It sounds like the OP is working for a "coding sweatshop", where the answer to almost any problem will be "shut up and write code". Moving to another "sweatshop" isn't going to change much, and the positions in good companies aren't that easy to get.
Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four. If that is granted, all else follows.
-- 6079 Smith W.
|
|
|
|
|
Why does getting a new job mean it has to be another sweatshop, or that it will be a sweatshop. If people keep looking - like actually don't stop looking, you will find the right place and the right colleagues. It can be done.
|
|
|
|
|
35+ years in...had one perfect job. before an ill-advised takeover (via LBO) drove the company to bankruptcy...still looking. My advice is an old saying...don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good.
That said, if the job is truly miserable (and not simply inconvenient) then find a new one. The worst you can do is be miserable in new surroundings. At least its a change, huh?
|
|
|
|