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  • 1.  part time help

    Posted 02-02-2012 17:37

    Last year I made substantial money helping one consulting firm when they were overloaded with work.  I have since terminated my agreement with them.  As some of you that follow my posts in this eGroup know I have a full time job at a research institute for which a major element of my work is statistical consulting.  But I still depend on other sources of income to help me pay off other debts and future debts that will come when my sons' student loans become due for payment.  I have found that my own private consulting work helps me with this.  But although I have ongoing contracts with several companies work is spotty and unpredictable and in the current economic environment I am not see much outside consulting work.  I am sure that my situation is common to those of you whose primary income is your statistical consulting business.  But even in tough economic times it seems that some people are overloaded they cannot afford to hire additional help but they do want to maintain good relationships with their clients that expect responsiveness.  If any of you are in that situation and could use a person like me to provide temporary assistance please contact me and we can discuss arrangements.
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    Michael Chernick
    Director of Biostatistical Services
    Lankenau Institute for Medical Research
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  • 2.  RE:part time help

    Posted 02-03-2012 12:19
    Michael,
    You are fortunate to have the full-time job. Many of us, such as myself, have had clients disappear, have financial struggles,..., and don't have another job (or a working spouse or are independently wealthy). I don't mean to minimize your situation, but to empathize. Hopefully someone out there is busier than they want to be and can share with you, and others.
    David

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    David Bristol
    Statistical Consulting Services
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  • 3.  RE:part time help

    Posted 02-03-2012 12:56
    Interesting messages.  I retired from big pharma about 8 years ago and started a consulting firm with a few friends that also just retired.  We have been quite busy for the past few years but the last year has been getting quiet.  Being an independent consultant without a full time job can be difficult.  But some people seem to do it.  I think the rewards can be high but the income is definitely not fixed.

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    Rocco Brunelle
    Senior Statistician
    Bowsher Brunelle Smith LLC
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  • 4.  RE:part time help

    Posted 02-03-2012 17:13
    Certainly loss of income is a concern. When I lost two essentially halftime work orders with a large govt agency when those work orders expired, I started a lot of networking and followup activities.  I now have periodic yet steady work in market research survey data analysis with one client. The other source of periodic income is tutoring work with college, graduate and doctoral students. That has blossomed without almost any effort on my part due to the national tutoring service's (Wyzant in IL) maintaining a website for me (and each such tutor in their "stable") bearing student feedback comments and ratings on my tutoring quality.  Yes, they take a "brokering" fee, but it's nice to have the periodic tutoring pay, tutoring subjects I'm comfortable with.

    I wonder if more networking and outreach activities are needed, especially if usual channels of revenue are slowing down.

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    Milton Goldsamt
    Survey Statistician
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    Original Message


  • 5.  RE:part time help

    Posted 02-03-2012 18:28
    I tried something yesterday that seems to be effective.  I contacted established clients that I have standing agreements with and asked them if they could give me some advanced notice if they intend to use my services so that i can better plan my workload and be responsive to their needs. One responded that they will need me in April, another said they will need me in three weeks.  The others that responded were all nice and some asked how much notice I needed.  I think sometimes just making the contact reminds them that they have you as a potential resource and they realize that maybe they will need you again soon and also that the advance notice is a good idea for them as well as for me.
    Maybe if some of you are having the same difficulty this would be one approach that might help.  Also even if they say that they don't anticipate ever needing you again, at least that is a good thing to know.

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    Michael Chernick
    Director of Biostatistical Services
    Lankenau Institute for Medical Research
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    Original Message