Technology Resourcing Blog

Contrary to popular conception, recent analysis of LinkedIn’s user base pleasantly surprised us when we learnt that Engineers make up a staggering 15% of all LinkedIn’s users, with Sales lagging behind with just 11% of users.

LinkedIn’s direct ad data reports that almost 24% of their registered users work in ‘Hi Tech‘ industries, representing the largest industry segment, with Finance coming in second at 18% and Manufacturing third at 15%, explaining the hefty number of Engineers.

Less surprising however is the age breakdown which shows that 51% of all LinkedIn users are aged 25-34 years whilst only 23% of users are over 35 years of age.

Professional contractors are used by businesses that outsource work on a freelance basis. While the type of work they carry out varies enormously, there are some fundamental principles which underpin all successful freelance engagements. Here is a summary of the key action points.

1. Has a signed contract been received from the freelancer or agency?

Ensure the engagement is agreed in writing with a ‘contract for services’ or a purchase order for smaller projects.

2. Have Terms of Reference been agreed with the freelancer?

Agree the objectives, deliverables, timescales, budget, reporting structure and how the deliverables will be evaluated. These should be recorded in writing as a statement of work to accompany the contract.

3. Have confidentiality issues been covered?

If the freelancer is likely to be privy to confidential or commercially sensitive information, ensure they sign a non-disclosure agreement.

4. Has a billing process been set up?

Ensure procedures are in place for authorising timesheets or signing off invoices.

5. Is working onsite necessary, where are they going to sit?

Ensure there is a workstation for the freelancer, that appropriate site security and parking advice is issued and that they know who to ask for on arrival.

6. What resources have you agreed to provide? Are they ready?

Ensure any required information or equipment is available and access to any required systems and networks is in place.

7. Are there any issues with connecting the freelancer’s own equipment to your systems?

Ensure the freelancer is aware of technical requirements/restrictions when connecting their equipment to your network (eg security, PAT testing etc).

8. Have you provided relevant information on company policies?

Ensure the freelancer is aware of any relevant security and/or specific health and safety policies.

9. Have project review points been scheduled?

Agree a regular communication schedule to review project milestones. Diarise provisional dates for periodic meetings involving key parties.

10. Have you provided relevant information regarding company procedures?

Provide access to internal standards, procedures and documentation (eg company guidelines, document templates etc).

11. Has the wider team been briefed?

Ensure colleagues are aware of the freelancer’s role in the project and that relevant team members are expecting contact from the freelancer. Make sure a list of key contacts is available to the freelancer.

Source: Business Link’s “11 point checklist to get the best from a freelancer “

Bloomberg has reported that a hedge fund have just paid $20m for approx. 1% of LinkedIn Corp, paying $21.50 per share. This values the company, which remains privately owned at this point, at a staggering $20 billion!

This was a private transaction, so doesn’t represent new investment. In fact Jeff Weiner, LinkedIn’s CEO, declared “We don’t need the investment”, as they still have the $76m they raised from investors back in 2008 sitting in the bank!

The LinkedIn website now has over 70 million members, of which 4 million + are in the UK. Naturally there is now considerable speculation as to whether LinkedIn Corp will now IPO, whilst they remain the clear leader for business professionals to manage their global networks.

Technology Resourcing manage some of the largest, industry specific networking groups within LinkedIn, including:

UK Planning & Project Controls

Building Services (M&E) and Environmental Engineering

UK Signalling Design Engineers

so please feel free to apply to join, mentioning this blog entry, and we will ensure your invitation is accepted.

We have learnt today that 2,900 Atkins staff have received an email warning of impending headcount cuts of up to 20% ie 600 staff, in advance of government spending cuts on transportation infrastructure. This follows 1,800 redundancies across Atkins last year, which left their transportation group largely untouched as profits were strong and expected to continue to rise.

An Atkins spokesman declared that “We are in discussion with colleagues in our highways and transportation business following anticipated public sector spending cuts on transportation projects“. They added that “The uncertainty of the impact of UK public spending cuts continues and we are prepared for a period of tighter Government spending”.

The consultation process for these redundancies is expected to last 4 months, with some employees finishing as soon as October.

This echoes the announcement earlier this month from WSP, another global engineering consultancy, that they are cutting 50 jobs, as they also prepare for a slowdown in government spending on highways.

An introduction of a £2.50 an hour ‘Training Wage’ is being called for by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development on the day that internship schemes for recently graduated students begin across the country.

With CIPD research showing that over a third (37%) of internships are currently unpaid, Internships: To Pay or not To Pay? proposes that all interns are paid a guaranteed minimum wage. It argues that a new ‘Training Wage’ would help reflect the contribution that an intern is likely to make to an organisation, as well as promote social mobility through encouraging people from poorer backgrounds to apply.

Read more at the CIPD website…

Of course our expectations were low, but even so it seems as though our contractors seem relatively relieved with the outcome of the recent emergency budget. Of course we were expecting the swinging Public Sector cuts, and the increase in VAT and Capital Gains Tax, but how about the 1% reduction in small companies tax rate, the £1,000 increase in basic personal tax free allowance and the increase (+£21) in Employer NI threshold? 

But perhaps the most important news for our contractor community is that IR35 is to be fundamentally reviewed, if not abolished all together! In an interview with the Telegraph, Small Business Minister, Mark Prisk, said “We want to make sure that we could undertake a comprehensive review of small business taxation in a way that makes the need for the current IR35 legislation redundant. But we want to make sure whatever we change is a lasting settlement. One of the problems with IR35 is that it’s a constantly changing set of rules.” Please see here for further commentary on this critical interview or here for all the other headlines on this ground-breaking budget and a calculator to check how this budget will affect you personally. Finally, if you’re really bored or having trouble sleeping you can read the full budget by clicking the logo to the right…

On hearing the news of Jarvis’ demise Technology Resourcing’s rail team moved swiftly to secure alternative employment for the Doncaster Design Team.

Despite considerable interest from many of the UK’s leading railway signalling contractors, consultancies and vendors it was Invensys Rail who were the first to interview the team and then quickly secure board approval to hire the majority of the team. Offers of Employment were agreed and despatched within 72 hours and the Designers re-started work in Invensys Rail’s York office earlier this week, all within one month of being laid off. On reflection, many of the Designers feel their redundancy was “a blessing in disguise” since they now have much greater opportunity to develop their careers with Invensys. They are now working on major projects, rather than just renewals and will be broadening their skills to include moving block technology and other metro systems, rather than working exclusively on Network Rail infrastructure.

Technology Resourcing is also now working with the ex-Jarvis Signalling Testers and the Manchester Design team to secure suitable alternative work for them, along with the remaining Assistant Designers from Doncaster.

We thought you might the following summary of this month’s key employment law changes useful:

• Companies with 250+ employees are now obliged to give employees the right to request time off to study or train. From April 2011, this right is extended to all Employers.
• In an attempt to reduce the numbers of employees on sick leave, a new ‘Statement of Fitness to Work’ (aka the Fit Note) was brought in on 6^th April to replace the previous Sick Note. GP’s will declare individuals “unfit for work” or “you may be fit for work taking account of the following advice”. This note lets GP’s suggest to employers changes that can be made to encourage a return to work, such as a phased return to work, altered hours, workplace adaptations or amended duties.
• Good news for parents to be: From 4^th April 2010 the government has increased statutory maternity, paternity and adoption pay from £123.06 to £124.88. Also, looking further ahead, fathers of babies born on or after 3^rd April 2011 will benefit from 6 months additional paternity leave, which can be taken either during the 39 week maternity leave or once the mother has returned to work.
• On 6^th April the Equality Act 2010 received Royal Ascent, but will not come into force until October (2010). This Act brings disability, sex, race and other grounds of discrimination within one piece of legislation, and also makes changes to the law. Please see here for a factsheet from the The Government Equalities Office.

• More tax agreements like the Liechtenstein agreement, to crack down on tax avoidance and evasion. The first three being with Dominica, Belize and Grenada. This is expected to raise £500m
• Those over 60 yrs can work less hours and remain eligible to receive Working Tax Credit, which they will also make easier to claim. They also announced ”considering” scrapping the compulsory retirement age
• Child tax credit will by £4/week for 1 & 2 year olds from 2012 and more free childcare places for pre-schoolers
• 440,000 families have already benefited from tax credits, by £38 more a week
• Inheritance tax threshold will be frozen at the current level (£325K) for the next 4 years
• Basic bank accounts will be accessible to everyone which means an extra 1m people will have access to bank accounts.
• ISA limits raised from £7,200 to £10,200 and each year thereafter in line with inflation
• Cuts to housing benefit paid to those in more expensive properties
• Reforms made to cut pensions bill
• Increased winter fuel payments for pensioners’ will continue into 2011.
• Stamp duty scrapped on properties up to £250,000, for first time buyers, through to 2011. This will be funded be an increase in stamp duty to 5% for properties >£1m.
• The Chancellor announced that borrowing is now lower than forecast last year and is now forecast to be 11.1% of GDP in 2010/11 and then 8.5% of GDP in 2011/12.
• He announced the deficit is £11bn lower than forecast in 09/10 and the government remain committed to halving the deficit within four years.
• Growth predicted at 1-1.5% for this year, but he reduced his growth forecast for 2011 to 3-3.5%, aligning it closer to City forecasts.
• Debt is projected to be £100b lower by ‘13/’14 than that predicted in last year’s budget.
• Bankers’ bonus tax raised £2b in 2009/10
• The Chancellor announced some detail of £11bn efficiency savings, including relocating 15,000 civil servants from London over the next 5 years.
• £5bn cuts in lower spending priorities
• Introduction of a one-off £2.5b growth package to help small businesses, especially investing in key skills
• Guaranteed job or training opportunity for all 18-24 yr olds who have been out of work for 6+ months, until March 2012
• Lloyds & RBS have apparently lent £38b to SME’s and will now be providing £94b in new business loans, at least 50% of which will go to SME’s
• £200m announced for a new ‘growth capital fund’ to help fast growth companies
• Corporation tax rates for small companies maintained at 21%, deferring an earlier intention to raise. Main rate also remains unchanged at 28%
• Annual investment allowance for small business doubled to £100K
• New ‘UK Finance for Growth’ setup to oversee the government’s £4bn support for businesses
• 15% increase in the number of government contracts awarded to SME’s
• Business rates cut from October, for a year, resulting in tax reductions for 500,000 small companies
• VAT registration threshold increased to £70K, from April 2010
• Tax incentives for the British computer games industry
• New green investment bank, controlling £2bn of equity, focused on greener, cleaner energy and transport. The initial focus will be on wind turbines investment
• No change to main capital gains tax rate, but Entrepreneurs’ lifetime relief for capital gains tax doubled to £2m.
• No announcements were made regarding VAT, income tax or National Insurance
• The 3p increase in fuel duty will now be staged, increasing by 1p in April ’10, Oct ’10 and Jan ‘11
• Duty on cider increased by 10% over inflation and Duty on wine, spirits and beer rising rise by 2% (all from Sunday midnight).
• Tobacco duty will rise by 1% over inflation immediately, then +2% every year until 2014.
• £285m additional funding for motorway improvements and expansion projects and £100m extra for local road repairs

Just one week after publishing the government’s plans for a new High Speed Rail network, the transport Secretary has now announced the creation of a new National Skills Academy for Rail Engineering, which will receive almost £3m from the Skills Funding Agency, along with the Tunnelling and Underground Construction Academy, for Crossrail, which will receive almost £5m from the Learning Skills Council.

Lord Adonis commented “Building and maintaining this network  [HS2] would not only create significant new opportunities for the UK’s design, engineering, construction and manufacturing sectors, it would require a new generation of skilled railwaymen and women. Over the next twenty to thirty years the UK will require a step-change in transport capacity and connectivity. We believe high speed rail is the way to achieve this step change and this Rail Academy will help provide the skills we would need to make it a reality.”