Avoiding Body Shop IT Positions    

By Joseph DeSetto
Feature Author

After developing technical skills that are in hot demand in today's tight labor market, you may receive multiple employment offers.  You've considered salary and a variety of other factors, and are about to make your decision.  One consideration you may have neglected, however, is whether your prospective employer really intends to keep you.

"Body shop" employers are those that hire for a project and then terminate the entire team upon completion.  They may give the impression of a long-term relationship and can often be the same employers with a genuine interest in retaining other employees.  So, before you sign on the dotted line, how do you avoid taking a "body shop" position in place of a job with a long-term future?

What to Do During the Interview

Employers are careful to find the right skill set to match their needs.  They can put you through extensive screening interviews with other technical staff and may even require written testing as part of the application process.  It is your responsibility to:

• Ask plenty of questions as to how your skill set factors into their plans.
• Listen closely to the answers and make sure they do not continually refer to the same project.
• Ask what other, smaller projects are currently ongoing that require your skills.
• Press the hiring officials and management for specifics.
• Remember, if you are only hearing about one main role and vague descriptions of other work, you may be talking about a position deemed finite.

Talk to Peers

Talk to your peers in the hiring firm.  This is a good practice anyway, as the prospective employer should be comfortable with your discussing culture and work processes with future coworkers.  In many cases, you'll be able to quickly develop a rapport that allows you to ask directly if the company ever engages in body shopping.

If you don't feel comfortable asking other technical people directly, find a way to discuss any recent hiring or firing of professionals on this project.  If you get answers that indicate professionals were let go because their portion of the project was completed, be aware that the same thing could happen to you.

Negotiate the Contract

One way to avoid the perils of body shop jobs is to only contract yourself for the time needed to complete your work.  The employer may have wanted to fill the role with a contractor in the first place, opting for the illusion of a full-time position only when they couldn't find a suitable candidate.  If you start to sense the employer can only use you for a short time, ask if they would consider a contract position in lieu of a full-time, "permanent" job.

In negotiating a contract, either directly or through a flex employment firm, make sure the employer is willing to fulfill the terms.  Even on a short contract, technical professionals can be hung out to dry if they complete work quicker than the contract terms indicated.  Discuss with your employer the scenario that you may be finished with your role ahead of schedule and make them either agree to find something else for the remainder of the contract or pay your contract in full to let you go. 

Broaden Your Skills

If you do decide to work for an employer you suspect is body shopping, talk to several managers and try to spread your skills across multiple projects.  In the technology world, the harder you are to replace, the better your chances are at longevity.  Filling even minor roles across several departments will increase the employer's interest in keeping you.

Along the same lines, search out niches that no one else has filled.  Sometimes older skill sets that are hard to find will become attractive to an employer who originally intended to use your new skills and send you on your way.

Be Honest

In the end, you have to judge your employer's character and intentions.  Before declining an offer you would otherwise accept, give your employer one last shot.  Tell them you feel they have no future plans for you after the first project.  They may reinforce your suspicion or offer you a short-term contract.  Either way, an employer taking the time to interview you and make an offer deserves an explanation as to why you are choosing another path.  

Perhaps they will use your input to stop body shopping and start offering legitimate project-oriented contracts.  By the time they come around, though, you'll likely be working for another employer where you will have a future.

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