Prophecies from the Oracle of Delphi? Thank you, we don’t need them to know that the demand for external IT collaborations will continue to rise. However, there are still some people who are unclear about what a freelance career entails and how to deal with potential obstacles. As the Slovak market leader in outsourcing IT experts, we will advise you on how to achieve success in an industry that is gradually becoming mainstream.

As a result of modern technology, particularly artificial intelligence, the range of expertise that IT specialists need to possess is constantly expanding. According to a study published by LinkedIn, the skills required by companies will change by up to 65% by 2030. In addition, hundreds of thousands of people in the IT sector have been made redundant on a mass scale in recent years, causing them to lose confidence in the stability and security of full-time employment at a single employer. For many, the pandemic has also changed priorities – they have started to pursue work-life balance. They found a solution in freelancing, which is enjoying its golden era.

What’s The Magic of IT Freelancing

Simply put, freelancing is a career path with greater flexibility and independence. Three-month, six-month or year-long projects are followed by longer breaks during which there is room to travel and relax. In addition, freelancers earn more lucrative pay and have more control over their future. At the same time, freelancing is the opposite of boredom, as each project brings a new team, environment, experience and challenges.

Today, companies of all sizes are adapting to a mixed workforce as they rely on external collaborations more than ever before. Generation Z is also leaning heavily towards freelancing. The World Economic Forum predicts that by 2025, 41% of companies plan to expand their use of outsourcing to cover project work. The growing availability of a highly skilled freelance workforce thus represents a new chapter for the tech industry.

If you, too, are eager to try new things, choose your own projects, and have more control over your finances, chances are you also have freelancing in your DNA. It would be a shame if you missed out on the opportunity to make the best of your skills, but it would be even worse if you struggled with the hurdles of the freelancing journey all by yourself. That’s why we’ve put together a practical insight into the exciting adventures of the Titans who have chosen to work with us. You’ll find out what steps to take when getting started with freelancing, which specialisations are most in demand on the market and what a typical day looks like from the perspective of an IT freelancer.

Benefits of Working with a Reliable Partner

If you would like to try freelancing, simply choose a project and send us your CV via the registration form or email address [email protected]. If you meet our requirements, we will invite you for a personal interview. If you are successful in the selection process, we will sign a framework agreement with you and prepare you to start your chosen project. First, however, you need to get a trade license or start a different form of business. We have summarised all the useful information you will need for this step in a brief guide.

Since you send invoices to TITANS, it cannot happen that the client does not pay you for the project or is late with the payment. Any changes to the terms and conditions also go through us. Our account managers, who are assigned to you, make sure that the terms and conditions are adhered to and that any changes are properly communicated. If you don’t like the project, you can leave after the contractually agreed notice period. If you urgently need to leave early, or if there are unexpected problems that prevent you from continuing the project or starting the project on the agreed date, we will communicate the situation to the client and propose a solution satisfactory for both parties.

If you’ve become used to company benefits in your career so far, you’re probably wondering if, as a freelancer, you’ll get the ones that apply to the client’s internal team. This depends on the company, but you certainly get them from us at TITANS. We believe that even though we are not required by law to do so and most of the time you won’t get benefits in this type of career, you deserve rewards for operating on your own. You can see a tempting range of benefits here. One of them is phone accounting consultancy. If you’re unfamiliar with accounting, we’ll put you in touch with reliable accountancy firms that can handle everything for you.

One Small Step for Man, One Giant Leap for The IT Sector

The advantage of the freelance path is that you don’t have to work 8 hours on a project every day during standard working hours.

Whether you prefer to be productive in the morning, at night, at the weekend or on a holiday, you charge for real hours worked. There may be some companies that require your availability from 9 am to 3 pm, but you will know all the terms of the collaboration in advance. In addition, up to 66% of the projects our freelancers worked on in 2023 were off-site, that is, anywhere outside the client’s office. It all depends on the specific collaboration and the preferences of both parties.

Also, the length of the project depends on the specific case. Short-term projects usually last from 3 to 6 months, while long-term ones last 1 to 2 years. For example, the average length of the initial allocation requested by our clients last year was 7.58 months. However, Titans bring such significant value to projects that they often stay on projects even longer – in 2023, the overall average length of collaboration increased to 23 months. In general, the more stable the market situation, the longer firms can afford to keep an external reinforcement on projects. If the order is not extended by the client, we can look for a new one for you before the end of the project. However, if you want a change, feel free to set aside time for travel or rest.

The Term ‘Career Development’ Takes on a New Dimension

Freelancing not only reshapes your portfolio but also your personality. Every project is an opportunity for you to learn new skills and gain valuable experiences. By working on different assignments in different teams, you will build better communication skills, a new perspective on development, interpersonal skills, resilience to the stress from change and a better understanding of what you would like to focus on in your career.

It’s up to you how much time you invest in your development and how fast you grow. In general, the supply of projects follows market demands and also sets trends. However, you are guaranteed to be able to choose a project, regardless of whether you are programming, testing or designing. If you excel in legacy technologies, this can be your asset with clients who are building long-term, comprehensive solutions built on stable technology. During our existence, we have allocated more than a thousand freelancers to projects, with Java being the most in-demand programming language in the Slovak market last year. Companies were also very interested in reinforcements for JavaScript programming, project management and manual testing.

If you are intimidated by the idea of searching for new projects or negotiating contract terms with clients, we are happy to take you under our wing. More than 30 thousand Titans have joined us so far. After all, we know what it means to be an external IT reinforcement – we’ve experienced it first-hand. That’s why we are a solid support for all of you, from the start of a project to the end of it.