100 Job Strategies
100 Job Strategies · 69 of 100
Studio of One
Companies approve vendor spend in days and headcount in quarters. Present accordingly.
In short
Presenting yourself as a small firm rather than an individual jobseeker routes your proposal through procurement rather than recruitment — a process that is faster, decided by the person with the problem, and unconstrained by hiring freezes or headcount approval.
The situation
A manager wants to bring someone in. Two paths are available.
Hiring: submit a headcount request, justify it to finance, wait for the next planning cycle, get approval, write a job description, run a process. Four months if nothing goes wrong.
Engaging a supplier: raise a purchase order within their existing budget. Two weeks, sometimes two days.
The work is the same. The person could be the same. The route determines whether it happens this quarter or next year.
Why this works
Organisations treat headcount and operating expenditure as fundamentally different things, and the approval paths reflect that.
Headcount is a long-term commitment with ongoing cost, employment obligations and organisational implications, so it is controlled centrally, planned annually and frozen whenever budgets tighten. Supplier spend is a purchase, frequently within a manager's own discretionary authority, and it can happen at any point in the year.
Presenting as a studio rather than an individual changes which path you are on. That is largely a matter of framing: a business name, an invoice, a scope of work and a rate, rather than a resume and a salary expectation. The work is identical; the procurement category is not.
There is a perception effect as well. A supplier is engaged for capability; a candidate is assessed for suitability. Suppliers are not screened on employment gaps, unconventional backgrounds or how long they stayed at previous jobs, because those questions are simply not asked of a firm.
It is also the reliable way through a hiring freeze. Freezes almost always restrict headcount rather than project spend, which is why contractors keep arriving at companies that have stopped hiring.
Conversion follows naturally. Many permanent roles begin as engagements where the company decided it wanted the capability permanently.
How to run it
- 1
Create a minimal but real business presence
A name, a simple site describing what you do, an email at that domain and the ability to issue a proper invoice. That is sufficient.
- 2
Register properly for tax
Sole trader, freelancer or company registration varies by country. Get this right before invoicing anyone.
- 3
Write scopes of work rather than applications
Deliverables, timeline, price, assumptions. This is the document procurement expects and candidates never produce.
- 4
Price as a business, not as a salary
Rates must cover tax, unpaid time, equipment and absence of benefits. An hourly rate equal to your old salary is a substantial pay cut.
- 5
Speak to the budget holder
The manager with the problem can usually raise a purchase order. HR cannot help you and procurement only formalises what the manager wants.
- 6
Be genuinely professional about the mechanics
Contracts, insurance where required, clear invoices, defined payment terms. This is what distinguishes a supplier from a jobseeker in disguise.
What to say
When it does not work
- Employment classification risk. Many countries have rules determining whether an engagement is genuinely a supply of services or disguised employment. Both parties can face consequences.
- Underpricing. A day rate calculated from a salary ignores tax, holidays, sickness, equipment and gaps between engagements. Price considerably higher.
- Genuine administrative burden. Invoicing, chasing payment, tax returns and contracts are real work that nobody pays you for.
- Procurement can be slow at large firms. Big organisations have supplier onboarding, security reviews and insurance requirements that take weeks.
- No employment protections. No notice, no sick pay, no redundancy. The rate has to compensate for genuine risk.
The same work can be a four-month hiring process or a two-week purchase order. The difference is which document you send.
Questions
Why is supplier spend so much easier to approve than a hire?
Because organisations treat them as different categories of commitment. Headcount carries ongoing salary, employment obligations and organisational implications, so it is controlled centrally, planned annually and frozen when budgets tighten. Supplier engagement is a purchase, frequently within a manager's own discretionary authority, and can happen at any point in the year. The work being identical does not change which approval path it travels.
How should I price compared with my previous salary?
Substantially higher per day than a simple division of your old salary would suggest. A rate must cover tax and social contributions you previously had deducted, holidays and sick days you are no longer paid for, equipment, insurance, administrative time, and the gaps between engagements when you earn nothing. A common rule of thumb is that a day rate needs to be roughly double the daily equivalent of a salary to leave you in a comparable position.
What are the legal risks of working this way?
The main one is employment classification. Many countries have rules determining whether an arrangement is genuinely a supply of services or is disguised employment, typically examining control over how you work, whether you can substitute someone else, and whether you bear financial risk. Getting this wrong can create tax liabilities for both you and the client. The rules vary significantly by jurisdiction and are worth understanding properly, or taking advice on, before your first engagement.
Does this work during a hiring freeze?
It is one of the more reliable routes through one. Freezes almost always restrict headcount specifically rather than all spending, because the objective is controlling permanent salary commitment. Project and supplier budgets frequently remain available, which is why contractors continue arriving at companies that have publicly stopped hiring. A manager who cannot fill a vacancy can often still engage someone to do the work.
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