The choice of moving from permanent to contract working is becoming a popular option and has its benefits.
We have seen an increase of people moving from permanent to contracted working. This type of working can suit a range of careers including Business Analysts, Project Managers, Technical Support, Software Development and Database Analysts. Contracting offers more felixibility and can be a more lucrative option to permanent.
Here are three reasons why making the change to contracting can be a good option:
Flexibility
This can suit those that want to take some time out between contracts. Some for travelling or those with families taking time off during summer months, making this a good option for full-time working parents.
Lucrative
With different contracting options available you can decide whether having your own company or working under an umbrella company gives you more control over pay and benefits.
Using the Irish Euro tax calculator* will give you an approximation of your monthly take home pay.
* The calculator forms information from a third-party and should be used as a guide only. e-Frontiers are not responsible for the accuracy of the information within.
Exposure to variety of industry sectors
Working in a variety of industry sectors provides the contractor with building on their expertise and exposure to a wide choice of projects and technologies.
Contracting Options
Our guide provides information on options available for working as a contractor, whether you prefer to work as your own limited company or to work under an umbrella company.
Also included is information on our trusted financial partners who will guide you and take care of all your contracting needs.
Current Contractors
If you’re interested in contracting roles please submit your CV below and start the conversation.
Contact one of our recruitment consultants for all contracting jobs.
Trish Lynch specialises in Project Managers, Business Analysts, Test Analysts, Test leads, Test managers, Java and Technical Architects.
Anca Antonica Database Development, Test Automation, .Net and Front-end.
John Ryan specialises in System Support, Security Consultants, Virtualisation Specialists, Infrastructure Consultants, Cloud Automation Specialists
Alexandra Pop Contractor and Customer Success Manager
Are you looking for an opportunity at a top company or a dynamic startup? These organisations often engage with a professional recruitment company to recruit talent for their team. On the other hand, recruiters also search and support their candidates to go through the recruitment process by giving detailed insight and professional advice for their preparation before interviews and assessments. How can you attract the right recruiters who will help you get your dream job?
Our recruiters indicated some key points which they will look for in your profile before reaching out to you.
Upgrade your knowledge and skills
One of their first actions is to make sure your knowledge and skills matching the requirements of a position you want. Therefore, you should update your profile to emphasise your strengths such as your working experience and your new skills which don’t need to be a part of your current job. They could be what you have learned, practised and achieved during your self-learning. Of course, it would be better if you can show recruiters the proofs such as your trial projects or certificates.
Improve your digital footprint
In the technology era, your digital footprint can be the first impression for recruiters as well as employers. During the hiring process, your online activities which show your knowledge as an expert in your realm could be considered as an important factor to make you stand out among the talent pool. It will be ideal for you to build your personal brand on the internet.
Grow your network
Don’t hesitate to connect to recruiters in some LinkedIn groups or at a professional event. They will reach out to you when they make sure they can bring you a great opportunity matching your experience and skills.
Be honest about yourself
Yes, it is an essential factor to bring you a further move in your career. Let recruiters know you are open for a new opportunity is the first step to attract them. You should make it clear about your career orientation and expectations. You can also be transparent about your job hunting background, your worries and even your concern. Based on their understanding of the recruitment market, recruiters can give you some advice to improve your CV or upgrade your skills for the next step.
These days, working from home is not news anymore, let’s just say that most companies will offer the choice to work remotely at least a few days a month. For employees, working from home has become a valid criterion in choosing a certain role over another. People love when the employer shows flexibility because this comes with trust and respect.
The benefits of working from home are well known: we save a lot of time that we would spend in traffic, we could focus easier on the task without being interrupted by anyone, we get time for little tasks like collecting the kids from school, having lunch together, helping with homework, doing some housework and the list could go on and on. This flexibility gives you freedom and sets your mind for work – maybe this is the greatest benefit, once you put away all these things that occupy your mind during the day (little tasks you think about while at work because it has to be done) your brain activity is focused on your work – and this is the key to the increased productivity.
At the same time though, for people working from home, there are lots of challenges. As we all know, people need social interaction in order to feel appreciated. Well, imagine you are always working on your own – it is fun in the beginning, but after a while, you get lonely. You miss the chit-chats over coffee in the morning, you miss the discussions about the latest episode of the most recent series, no beers and fun after work. Your colleagues become some avatars on some messaging platform. It might sound a bit dramatic, but this is very true. In order to avoid this, it would be great to organise visits to the office once in a while, especially when there are important meetings or events in your company. Even having video meetings and calls would do it. This will give you the comfort of being part of your group of colleagues. I tell you, I work in Romania for e-Frontiers a company based in Dublin and every time I get to go to the office (twice a year), I am very happy and it fills me with positive energy and the sense of belonging gets very strong. This year I will be there for the Christmas party (yay!).
The second challenge is that working from home, you can be easily distracted from your work by factors like getting a parcel, electrician visit and so on. That’s why it is so helpful to have a kind of structure in place. It is advisable to have some rituals that help you be more efficient. Some people have a To-Do list ready every morning and then tick off the tasks through the day, others have early calls and make a plan while there are others who go with the flow and get things done. It depends a lot on what sector you work in but at the end of the day, either very rigorous or loose, it all depends on how you feel it works for you and for your team and company.
Another challenge is when it comes to meetings and calling candidates because it is so easy to forget some things especially when you are focused on another task. It would be a good idea to have some sort of reminder in place. To be very honest, to have this sort of meeting, calls, deadline in the calendar is a lifesaver. I met some people who had reminders to finish work 😊and others told me that, after a number of years, there is no difference between professional and personal life (if you remember something at 21:00 o’clock or you have a brilliant idea at 22:00, you just go in your “home office and you have it done”).
My conclusion is that working from home is not for everyone. If you can adapt and if you are very organised, it might be great for you. Otherwise, I am not sure. One sure thing is that working from home will soon be a benefit in every company. And then, companies have to bring something new in order to raise the employee’s efficacity. I understand in Japan they introduced, for the first time, the 4 days working week and the productivity increased a lot. I wonder, is this the way to go forward?
January 2020
For me, coming to work in Ireland is one of the greatest decisions in my life. I not only made a big step forward in my career but also am having a really nice experience with Irish culture and lovely landscapes in Ireland.
What motivated me to come to work in Ireland?
Besides many opportunities for a French girl to work in Ireland, I also take this chance to improve my English by working and living in an international environment. So far, I am proud of understanding many different English accents of speakers from around the world.
As William Butler Yeats, a famous Irish poet introduced his country: “There are no strangers here; only friends you haven’t yet met”. “Exactement!”. I’m so eager to discover the beautiful landscapes and great culture in this Emerald Isle and be around friendly and supportive locals, especially my colleagues.
What are the differences in living and working style between France and Ireland?
As compared with recruitment vacancies in France, there are more opportunities and well-paid jobs for a recruiter to move further in their career. I prefer the requirements and challenges for recruiters working in Ireland. Besides certificates and experience, we focus more on soft skills to become an active team player and a trustful friend for my candidates to support their career development and deliver the best quality services from e-Frontiers.
In my spare time, I love to learn more about the Irish culture with lovely songs, vibrant dance and great beer. However, the downside of living in Dublin is the challenge of getting accommodation and the general expensive living costs.
What are the differences in living and working style between France and Ireland?
As compared with recruitment vacancies in France, there are more opportunities and well-paid jobs for a recruiter to move further in their career. I prefer the requirements and challenges for recruiters working in Ireland. Besides certificates and experience, we focus more on soft skills to become an active team player and a trustful friend for my candidates to support their career development and deliver the best quality services from e-Frontiers.
In my spare time, I love to learn more about the Irish culture with lovely songs, vibrant dance and great beer. However, the downside of living in Dublin is the challenge of getting accommodation and the general expensive living costs.
How could I overcome the obstacle of living and working in Ireland?
The language and different lifestyle could be considered as tough obstacles. However, all were solved quickly as I learned to be more patient and open-minded to accept and integrate myself into a new life which is definitely a big change from my previous life in France. My efforts are paid off. I have really settled into the Irish lifestyle now (though I will always be French!) while enjoying working at e-Frontiers.
In the business battle among B2B technology companies today, Customer Success Manager is one of the major keys to hook and maintain a relationship with clients. How much do you know about this interesting position?
What exactly is Customer Success Manager?
This is a very new and recent title that has only existed the past 7-8 years and many people might not know exactly what a Customer Success Manager (CSM) does or what skills are required to do this job.
Many SAAS companies have created a separate function in their business dedicated specifically on managing the client/customer relationship and ensuring that the clients and vendors goals using their software has a beneficial outcome. This client/customer relationship is managed by the CSM.
What does Customer Success Manager do?
A CSM’s main goal is to create strong and long-lasting relationships with their clients/customers and to make them as successful as possible. The CSM will be the primary contact person for the onboarding of the client/customer, provide the training of platform end user onsite or via online video platforms, identifying opportunities and act as a client advocate and collaborate closely with other teams such as Sales and Technical support.
Which skills are expected in a Customer Success Manager?
The main skills that I believe a CSM needs is excellent communication skills and relationship building skills, empathy and a positive attitude and desire to help clients/customers reach their goals. These soft skills are key factors when trying to reach a successful outcome and a long-lasting, proactive relationship between the parties involved. Other skillsets and experience that are also very useful to have in order to succeed as a CSM, are strong analytical skills, experience, and knowledge in the SAAS or the software industry, Account Management experience, etc.
Customer Success is a title that continues to develop mainly in the SAAS and software industry, and I believe will quickly grow into other industries as well. Although the technical and analytical skills are crucial to have in this role, I do believe that your mindset, positive attitude and drive to help to find the right solution is everything when being a successful Customer Success Manager.
I am happy to listen to your career story and discuss further Customer Success opportunities. Please forward your CV to jehona.jashari@e-frontiers.ie.
Being back in New York means a lot for me, not just from a professional standpoint, but also from a personal standpoint as well. Spending a year living in Ireland is an experience that will impact me for the rest of my days. I believe everyone has a turning point or event that impacts him or her to narrow down their path in life and helps push their journey to a faster start. My decision to buy a one-way ticket to Ireland after graduating from college influenced who I am today had helped lead to my career in recruitment.
I was on the hunt for a job and ended up working in an area that interested me – HR. I had in fact applied for a different job and ended up working for the agency that I went through, which turned out to be a great opportunity for me. It was a chance I took and an unconventional way of getting into something I enjoyed doing- working with people. I enjoyed the hustle, the ups and downs, and the feeling of making a placement after a long process and knowing that there were people who valued my efforts, candidates and clients. I knew it was a career path that I wanted to drive on.
My decision to move back to New York and continue my career in recruitment came at a perfect time as I struck gold covered in orange: e-Frontiers. Before setting upon my solo euro trip I met with Brendan Carroll (CEO of e-Frontiers) about what he was envisioning for a New York based operation.
Right away I knew that I wanted to be part of this unique opportunity. In my mind, I’d be working part of an international startup with a strong and promising blueprint. The potential is strong as I’ve joined a great team and we share the same goals. It means a lot to me to work for e-Frontiers because like the company itself, I’ve got a good story to tell. Anyone can join a well-established firm and continue to coast- but it takes a special kind of person to build something from nothing and that’s what separates my colleague and I from the rest of the pack.
Like e-Frontiers, I pride myself on being personable, honest, and being able to build value for all parties involved- because after all, I did start out as a candidate on the other side of the fence. Living abroad taught me how to step outside of my comfort zone and taught me skills that would help build the foundation of a new office such as empathy, ability to build relationships, ability to adapt, eagerness to learn and develop, and developing communication skills. The challenge this far is what keeps us hungry and motivated as we continue to see the light at the end of the tunnel. It’s not easy but it’s forcing us to learn and grow bigger and faster.
I set out on this journey to continue to create opportunities, take chances, and build connections. We are at the start of our journey here in New York and will continue to build our success just as all e-Frontiers operations have succeeded in doing. Working for e-Frontiers – an Irish company in New York gives me the best of both worlds and I hope to continue to put our name on the map.
May 2019
Malachy Fallon
Here are 5 reasons for you to say that you love your job.
1. Work-life balance
Do you love what you are doing? Do you rest enough before going back to work? The contentment of working productively and having a healthy lifestyle will drive you to more success. If you feel negatively stressed about your work-life balance, tell yourself that it’s time to change and find a job you love.
2. Opportunities
Besides the promotion opportunities, you should consider your personal growth. It is important to have a self-development plan for yourself in the next five years. You may need some advice to upgrade yourself by learning new knowledge and improving your soft skills. The more opportunities that come to you, the more you love your job.
3. Challenge
Why should you love your job which could bring you challenges? Challenging work is considered as a motivation for you to strive and not rest on your laurels. Don’t be afraid of challenges and failure. Be innovative. If it doesn’t work out, experience it and try it again. Remember that failure is the seed of growth and success.
4. Reward
Does your company or your supervisor recognise your efforts? Rewards and encouragement could be tangible or invisible but they are necessary to drive employees to show their best at work. If this is the reason why you don’t love your job, talk to your boss before you make a job change decision.
5. Great place to work
The last reason to make you love your job is your workplace because it is where you will spend 8-9 hours every day. You can recognise whether it is a great place to work by asking some basic questions. Do you feel safe and comfortable with your working environment? Do you get a proper salary and compensation? Does your company appreciate your performance and create chances for your personal growth? Are you working in a supportive team?
If it’s time for you to look for a new job, the e-Frontiers team will be delighted to help you find a job you love and support you throughout the application process.
CV Preparation – Impress your reader with your CV in the first few seconds
The purpose of your CV is to impress the reader within the first few seconds. This is the first step in putting your best foot forward and holding the reader’s interest for them to want to continue reading. This is why your CV must be as relevant to the job specification or advertising requirements as much as possible.
SUMMARY PROFILE
Start with a Summary Profile. This will include a statement of your competencies, how you achieve results and how these will benefit the company and role you are applying for.
One approach to this is to write a personal elevator pitch, summarising who you are, what you do and what you are looking for. An elevator pitch should take about 30 seconds to relay to someone while in conversation. Practice it and you’ll always have it ready for interviews and networking situations.
KEY SKILLS
Follow the summary with a brief outline of Key Technical and Soft Skills.
EDUCATION HISTORY
Your Education History will include third level qualifications followed by other qualifications and certification.
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
At this stage you have caught the reviewer’s attention – well done – they now have a good idea of you and your competencies. It’s time now to provide the reviewer with your professional experience and achievements. This provides more specific insight into how you have achieved the results and re-enforces the information you have provided earlier.
Display your professional career experience in reverse chronological order. Give Company name, title in roles/projects and dates, include months and years.
Describe the results you achieved in your roles giving the reader more insight to your involvement on projects and the results of your input. Give specific examples of projects worked on.
Some examples:
- Introduced the SCRUM agile methodology to development of Business Solutions
- Increased company online performance by getting 56,000 registered users | 28,000 paying subscribers | 3,000+ social media followers
- Implemented effective control procedures. Achieved significant improvements in call response time to 80% of calls being answered in 20 seconds or less.
Use active words to describe what you did to solve problems, (demonstrated, planned, reduced, optimised, accelerated) and use results words to describe how your actions solved the problem (accomplished, eliminated, increased, optimised).
Gaps in your career
If you’ve been lucky enough to have taken time out to pursue further studies or travel, use this as an opportunity to show achievements or skills gained, without providing a travelogue of course.
Formatting, Grammar and Spelling
Microsoft Word is the most common text editors to use and widely used by recruiters – so while making life easy for them – this format also suits most applicant tracking systems – a place where CV formatting can suffer.
Use a simple layout along with commonly used fonts, apply bold for headings and include white space between sections and use bulleted lists, all of which will allow the reviewer a more easily digestible read.
Know how to format text layout using indents, tabs and margins. Avoid hitting the spacebar or hitting the tab key numerous times to align text while it may look like it’s achieving the alignment you want, it certainly won’t save you time, nor will the end result look so pretty especially after it travels through an application tracking system resulting in a “mangled” CV.
Don’t just rely on automatic spell checkers. Read through the text to ensure grammar and spelling is correct, and have someone else review it for you.
Wrap it up
Finally, avoid raising questions in the heads of hiring managers, making sure content is correct and ensure your CV and LinkedIn profile exactly mirror each other. This is one of the main sources for finding out about you used by prospective employers.
Your CV is good to go! Remember, it’s like your visiting card which you hand in to a person who doesn’t know you. Make sure you are happy with the content, format and that it represents you at your very best.
A CV’s content and layout that best represents you is the first step in getting you to the interview stage
Purpose of your CV
The purpose of your CV is to impress the reader within the first few seconds. This is the first step in putting your best foot forward and holding the reader’s interest for them to want to continue reading through your CV. This is why your CV must be as relevant to the job specification or advertising requirements as possible.
Order of Content
SUMMARY PROFILE
Start with a Summary Profile. This will include statement of your competencies, how you achieve results and how these will benefit the company and role you are applying for.
One way to approach this is to write a personal elevator pitch, a 30 second outline summarising who you are, what you do and what you are looking for. Have it ready for any situation on a CV, be confident enough to relay it at an interview or in networking situations.
KEY SKILLS
Follow the Summary Profile with a brief outline of Key Technical Skills and Soft Skills.
EDUCATION HISTORY
Your Education History will include third level qualifications and other qualifications/certification and certification renewal where applicable.
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
You have caught the reviewers’ attention by now and they has a good idea of you and your competencies. It’s time now to provide the reviewer with your professional experience and achievements. This provides more specific insight into your achievements and also backs-up the information you have provided earlier in your Summary.
Display your professional career experience in reverse chronological order. Give Company name, title in roles/projects and dates. Write in first person, (this is about you, written by you).
Instead of writing lists of roles and responsibilities, describe the results you achieved in your roles or on projects giving the reader insight into your involvement on projects and results of your input.
This can be achieved by using active words to describe what you did to solve problems, (demonstrated, planned, reduced, optimised, accelerated) and using results words to describe how your actions solved the problem (accomplished, eliminated, increased, optimised).
Some examples:
- Introduced the SCRUM agile methodology to development of Business Solutions
- Increased company’s online performace by getting 56,000 registered users | 28,000 paying subscribers | 3,000+ social media followers
- Implemented effective control procedures. Achieved significant improvements in call response time to 80% of calls being answered in 20 seconds or less.
Your more recent roles and projects will be the focus of your CV. Include but shorten older roles summarising information if your CV spans many years.
Make sure your content is correct. Titles and dates should represent the actual roles you had. Remember, companies usually do the background check and it’s better to make it right from the beginning.
LinkedIn is widely used by companies to cross-check your CV with your LinkedIn profile. Your CV and LinkedIn profile should mirror each other exactly, otherwise you are creating question marks in the heads of hiring managers.
Gaps in your career
If you’ve been lucky enough to have had travelled or have taken time out to pursue further studies or travel, use this as an opportunity to show achievements or skills gained without providing a travelogue of course.
Formatting, Grammar and Spelling
Microsoft Word is one of most common text editors to use and widely used by recruiters – so while making life easy for recruiters – this format also suits most applicant tracking systems – a place where CV formatting can suffer!
Use a simple “friendly” layout, I’d suggest a one column layout, along with commonly used fonts, separate areas applying bold or a larger font size for headings and include white space between sections and bulleted lists, all of which will allow the reviewer a more easily digestible read.
Know how to properly format text layout using indents, tabs and margins. Avoid hitting the spacebar to layout text as this will end up not looking very pretty after it travels through an application tracking system resulting in a “mangled” CV.
Final checks
Don’t just rely on automatic spell checkers. Read through the text and ensure correct grammar and spelling is used.
Finally read it over and have someone else review it for you.
Wrap it up
Your CV is good to go! Remember, it’s like your visiting card which you hand in to person who doesn’t know you. Make sure you are happy with the content and format of it and think it represents you the best!
We asked one of our candidates about their experience of re-locating to Dublin to work on contracted roles
Ionut is an Oracle consultant with over 12 years’ experience. He started coding in Pascal, C++ and Fox and progressed to become an expert in Oracle database design in the Financial sector. Ionut works in the Financial sector where his work now involves development and performance tuning.
“I love what I do and I strongly believe that a true consultant must be connected both with the evolution of technology and the market in which the business operates in order to be able to provide the best possible solution”.
What made this role appealing for you?
The role was a great opportunity to extend my experience outside Romania.
Did you feel that e-Frontiers were able to find a job for your that was fitted well with your technical skill-set?
e-Frontiers is one of the few agencies that contacted me for a role that was a perfect match with my technical skill-set and as a result we signed the contract for the very first role suggested.
Tell us about the experience you encountered with e-Frontiers along the process of your career move
Long story short: e-Frontiers contacted me for a role in Dublin which was a perfect match for my profile, not a common thing these days. We signed the contract in less than one week and in less than one month I was landing in Dublin for the very first time. Although it’s never easy to relocate, e-Frontiers gave me all the support I needed to make the transition as smooth as possible. But what I appreciate the most is that e-Frontiers are stand up guys, their word is enough to seal the deal and papers are just a formality. They always deliver what they promise and I would highly recommend e-Frontiers to anyone who is looking for a business partner that can be trusted.
