Working as a freelancer has many benefits: freedom, interesting financial rewards… On the other hand, a freelance professional must fight all the battles on his own. That is where our titanic CARE program comes in.
The desire to do things differently and create values other than just numbers has been with us since the establishment of our company. The motto “People first” does not just apply to our own people; we consider it a wholesome mindset which we want to see reflected in our approach towards our contractors. That is why an idea for a program that would provide our freelancers with exactly the kind of support they lack as self-employed workers was born. CARE was launched in the spring of 2021 and since then has been an important part of our service.
What is the goal of CARE?
“We want freelancers to feel good with us, to have something extra and to be able to trust us. Then it is more likely that the person in question will not leave in case there is a problem with a project (because we know about it and can work on it) or in case the project ends (because they know we will find them another),” says about the reasons for the foundation of CARE Jana Glos, who has focused on contractor care at TITANS since 2021.
How to access CARE and what’s in it?
CARE is easy to access – all it takes is to become a Titan. CARE is here for all Titans working on projects under our banner. In practice, therefore, our communication does not end after the successful placement of a freelancer to a project and grabbing the provision. That is not the way we want to do it. We want to build long-lasting, high-quality relationships. Our goal is to create a community of professionals who will turn to us with confidence and who will work with us for a long term. We want freelancers to have fair and clear conditions and to be satisfied. That is why everyone who starts working with us is automatically “enrolled” into the CARE programme.
Jana describes what exactly such care looks like:
“Our job starts after the agreement placement agreement. A recruiter refers the contractor (IT professional who has signed a contract with us) to CARE, I contact them and schedule an introductory call. During that I discuss contracts, questions and comments, benefits, the referral program, invoicing and the timeline of future contact (so that I do not call everybody every week but according to each person’s preferences). I make sure the freelancer has all the necessary information before they start, and I do a 1st Day Check (initial call on the day of start with a client). I then call again after approximately a month, and then regularly every two to three months. I keep an eye on the end date of the order to start preparing the terms of a new order or a new project in time. All this time, the freelancer has my phone number so that they can call or text me and ask me any burning questions they might have. I also keep an eye on orders that are about to end to work with the sales department on procuring new orders for our contractors in time.”
Apart from the support, we help Titans process various benefits, for example registering with uLekare.cz, external accounting or various outdoor events such as our Summer camp or Christmas meetings. We also provide all our Titans with our iconic merchandise.
Freelancers also benefit from the external status of the CARE service. We are always on hand to help broker communication between the IT professional and the client whereby we constitute a third, objective party. Every Titan can come to us with a problem, even if it is something they would not ordinarily be happy to discuss with HR. It can also be more comfortable to give feedback through us or to negotiate conditions. The feedback we get confirms we do our job right:
“90% of contractors consider CARE a great service, which they are happy to use, surprised that somebody is willing to provide benefits to the self-employed. Our doing the job right also reflects in the average time they spend on a project which is over a year. A lot of them wear our brand clothing in their free time and recommend us further,” says Jana Glos about the reaction to CARE.
It is not always rose-tinted, however. Just like everywhere, even in CARE something occasionally malfunctions. More than anywhere else, communication is important here. Even Jana has had her blunders, which she had to make right:
“Information got muddled, the terms of a contract did not agree, day rates (those tend to be an issue :D). One needs to be able to understand the person they are dealing with and explain it to them. At least, that is how I do it. I come clean and say what we haven’t done right, what mistake has been made and what it means for us. I apologise and go through the options we have. This approach has never failed me. To reach a consensus is sometimes tricky but fortunately we work with people who understand that mistakes can be made.”
CARE team is hiring
Our CARE department is important to us and we have big plans for it. This year, the programme is about to undergo a major update, which will bring the concept to a whole new level. It is something to look forward to.
That’s why we need to strengthen our CARE team. We are looking for someone who is:
“empathetic and communicative. Knowledgeable about their work – although it is alright to sometimes say ‘Honestly, I don’t know at this point, but I will find out.’ They should understand that they will not always be calling at the right moment: sometimes, the contacted person may not have time for you and may be unpleasant. It is also necessary not to take things personally. Me, I often think about the people I take care of even outside of work; how they are, how has this or that been resolved, if their child is better already and the wife back from the hospital. Then I pick up the phone and ask. You have to love this job. Otherwise, there is no point because people will see you don’t .” This is how Jana Glos describes an ideal colleague for the CARE team.
Interested in the CARE programme? Contact us and become one of the Titans. And if you want to become one of the heroes working relentlessly to ensure the whole group of Titans is satisfied, let us know as well. We will be happy to meet you.
