Re: [chiPHPug-discuss] PHP programmer opening (phpWalter)

[Arlo L. <ar...@ar...>]

Normally I would say, "If the pay is too low for you, just don't take the
job," but this really rang true for me:

> It's so sad. And you know what's even sadder? They'll find someone who
> will take this job. And chances are that person will not be all that
> talented, so
> "management" distrusts developers even more, adds more restrictions and
> requirements on the next guy, usually driving the cost even lower.
> 
> Can't tell you how many times I've been asked to "clean up" a project
> because "they" went cheap, and then told my they didn;t have the budget to
> do much because they blew it on the first guy.

I think offering an entry-level wage is fine if an employer is prepared to
have an entry-level person. If the employer isn't knowledgeable enough to
offer a wage appropriate to the experience level, or to evaluate the
experience level in their candidates, that's a problem. This isn't about
Jennifer at all, just a general comment about what I've seen in my own work.

One thing I will often try to do, though, is move the conversation away from
the hourly rate to a total cost estimate. If I can do something in 1/4 the
time for twice the rate, then I'm still half as expensive as the other guy.
Most clients will respond well to honest conversations like that.

By the way, I hired a plumber to come fix my garbage disposal a while back,
and his hourly rate was over 1.5x mine ... maybe we're all in the wrong
business! (smile)

Cheers,
-Arlo

_______________________________

Arlo Leach
773.769.6106
http://arlomedia.com

Find. Be Found.
http://www.newwhitepages.com