Stand Out From The Crowd

From the desk of…
Michael Gladden -IT Consultant

During my career as a network engineer I’ve had the pleasure of working both contract and full time positions. Some were contract only (project based) and others were contract-to-hire. What I have learned over time is, regardless of employee status, each employer expects a certain level of professionalism from you. In fact, the degree of finesse applied to daily work when you are in a “contract only” positions stands out more. Everything from the way you interact with the “resident” engineers and management, to something as simple as your dress code can set you apart from the pack.

During one of my contract positions, I decided to make an effort to stand out. When I decided to adapt a business casual dress code even when the rest of the team was very relaxed (jeans, sneakers, etc) Monday to Friday, showed respect and appreciation for my job. Even the most junior engineer could, on occasion, get called into a meeting with upper-management. Having taken the effort to put on khakis or a collared shirt can leave a lasting impression that might pay off in the long run.

Another opportunity to distinguish yourself lies in the documentation that you are required to create during your contract. Often times, contract-only positions are created to execute a specific project, during which its pretty much guaranteed that you will either be updating or creating documentation. I’ve noticed that when I create new documentation for projects (MOPs, proposals, Visio diagrams) and insert the company’s logo in the header of that document and/or in the corner of the diagram, people take notice. For example, while working as a design engineer on a project that required lots of documentation, it was required for each engineer to present their findings and design to the rest of the team before presenting to Change Control for approval. Because I decided to include a diagram, outfitted with their logo along with the documents it was very easy to follow what I was doing and why. They said I showed pride in my work- a seemingly small gesture went a long way.

There are so many more small things that can be done and adjusted to ensure your professionalism is perceived as above average. These are just a few that I have seen first hand that worked for me and have been noticed by different levels of management and other engineers. In the world of IT and engineering, these are considered “soft skills” but they can make a big difference regardless of if you are to looking to convert to perm or continue consulting.