Should Undervalued Employees Become Contractors?

It’s a sad fact that dissatisfaction in the workplace is still common. A survey carried out in 2024 by Drewberry found that 32% of British employees are unhappy in their current job, and that more than half of all employees were planning a job move in 2025. Of dissatisfied employees, most are unhappy with management, pay, or both. A low salary is the single biggest driver of unhappiness, but it also correlates heavily to a feeling that management is unsupportive, with a lack of recognition for individual and team achievements being a key part of that. This is also a powerful recipe to tempt employees to go freelance and work as contractors; when you know the value you’ve given to your firm or your firm’s clients, and that value isn’t reflected either in management support or in your pay packet, it’s hard not to think that doing the same thing as a consultant would put you in a much better situation. But would it?

Key Questions to Answer as a Contractor

There are several questions you need to ask yourself before you become a contractor.  Here are some of the big ones.

Is There Enough Business for Me?

A crowded contractor market means a lot of competition, but no contractors doing the same thing as you can mean instead that nobody hires contractors in that sector. Given strong persuasive skills, you may still be able to win some business, but you’ll then have to show why a consultant is a better model for that industry. Fortunately, there are thriving contractor sectors in IT, finance, construction, healthcare, architecture, and even piloting, to name just a few.

Does My Skillset Cover Enough?

The answer to this will vary widely depending on your industry and your role within it.  In software development, for example, a very narrow skillset that’s in demand is enough to fuel a long contractor career, while marketing creatives may need to be able to handle writing copy, creating art, and/or editing videos. If you’re dissatisfied with your place of work but your skillset isn’t yet broad enough to be successful contracting, look for opportunities in your role to expand your skills and (if applicable) build up your portfolio.

Can I Be My Own Back Office?

A business’ back office team, also known sometimes as Operations, handles all the unglamourous aspects of keeping the business running; they handle scheduling, purchasing, office admin, and accounts, including raising invoices and chasing payments. A contractor going it alone doesn’t have that support unless they bring it in. ICS Accounting is proud of the reputation we’ve built up as contractor accountants. Through our limited company, PEO and umbrella solutions we can even support our clients with the payment cycle.

Can I Successfully Market Myself?

In order to win contracts you need to put yourself out into the market, you need to bring in leads, and you need to work those leads until you can close deals. You need to do all this while leaving yourself enough time to do the work itself and attend to any back office tasks you haven’t outsourced. (And, ideally, you’ll have time to create a work-life balance to suit you on top of that.) Really, this is two skills; it’s the skill of selling yourself, but it’s also about time management. When contractors fail, the shortcoming was almost always in this area, from failing to bring in enough business to spending so much time doing so that another aspect of the business collapses instead. To give yourself the biggest advantage possible, make sure you have any weak spots covered, and make sure you have plenty of time to build your business. If accounting support can help you free up time, get in touch and reap the benefits of our expertise.