Going 1099 is a book that teaches you how to become a solo federal sub-contractor and gain control of your working life, earn more money and unlock more free time. I wrote it because quite a few people have asked me how they can become a 1099. I figured it was best to write a single book that I can send them and that I can share with others who are interested. This newsletter goes out Monday - Friday and covers topics that will help you succeed in starting and maintaining successful 1099 career.
When the prime plays hardball
On of our projects, the government client wanted to bring on one of our current employees. No problem, we submitted a high but fair billable rate to the prime PM. This rate is just a bit below what my partner bills and is in the same LCAT. The prime sent back a low-ball call counter that was 30% lower. What my partner did at this point was to text the government client and update him on the situation. The client said that in these situations the prime usually just cautions him about paying too much and then he just approves the rate anyway. So we stuck to our guns. I don't know how this will turn out, but we suspect the prime (a private equity backed mega-corp) is just trying to improve their bottom line off the backs of their subs. It's not personal. But if you're new to the 1099 world, you may not be used to a prime trying to take advantage of you and you may get insulted or just write them off entirely. The best thing to do in these situations is to make sure you have and use your leverage. In our case, it's a good relationship with the government client. In a solo 1099 situation, you can have a good client relationship but you can also get leverage by finding alternate projects, having a good amount of savings, or just be willing to stay where you are. No deal is better than a bad deal. So don't get thrown off by "hardball" prime negotiation tactics. Keep calm and carry on. If you're interested in learning how to get your first solo 1099 federal sub-contract, check out my book: |
I'm Dale, the author of Going 1099
Going 1099 is a book that teaches you how to become a solo federal sub-contractor and gain control of your working life, earn more money and unlock more free time. I wrote it because quite a few people have asked me how they can become a 1099. I figured it was best to write a single book that I can send them and that I can share with others who are interested. This newsletter goes out Monday - Friday and covers topics that will help you succeed in starting and maintaining successful 1099 career.
One of the reasons a company would bring on a 1099 or a sub-contractor is because bringing on a full time W2 employee would be too risky. If a contract has a limited amount of time left on it and there is a vacancy, companies may not want to hire someone because they're not sure if they'll have billable work for the employee after the contract ends. This is when hiring a 1099 would make sense, even if it reduces their margin. They're trading margin in exchange for a lower risky profile. In...
Hi all, Not returning to the newsletter just yet but thought I'd send out a link to an interview I did with Jonathan Stark on his podcast, Ditching Hourly. https://podcast.ditchinghourly.com/people/dale-davidson Jonathan advocates for getting away from hourly billing in your independent consulting practice. I agree, but I discuss why that's difficult in government contracting but why it might be okay anyway, particularly if you're jus getting started. He's a great follow for those of you who...
Hi all, I've enjoyed writing this newsletter for over a year now, but I've decided to take a hiatus for the time being. There is an extensive archive if you'd like to go back and read the previous ones. As always, if you have 1099 questions, feel free to ping me via e-mail at dale@1099fedhub.com. Good luck to you all! -Dale If you're interested in learning how to get your first solo 1099 federal sub-contract, check out my book: Going 1099: How to become a solo federal sub-contractor and gain...