How to make a freelance/contractor feel welcome and engaged – and foster a successful relationship:

• Set up induction meetings with key members of the team, and create a safe space to ask lots of questions and gather intel.

• Have a really clear remit, and communicate the overall mission / end goal for the project – and how you expect the freelancer to contribute to it.

• Invite the freelancer to your drum-beat meetings, and embrace them as part of the team – immersion and diving straight in is the best way to learn.

• Over communicate, and don’t think something isn’t worth sharing – especially if not based in a physical office; the opportunity for idea generation and new angles comes from moments of serendipity.

• Celebrate success, and share achievements and outcomes – this all helps to cement affinity, motivation, and a sense of shared purpose with a freelancer and permanent team members / the wider organisation.

These – and many more moments, including a lovely, unexpected virtual thank you card – is why Alzheimer’s Society did it right in my first freelance job back in early 2023.

And it’s a two way street:

• I “over” communicated & managed expectations.

• I volunteered to do things like meeting notes, and got stuck into “extra” – but not distracting – tasks that would benefit the team and showed I was carrying my part of the load.

• I shared full transparency with where I was on the status of main projects – and did a close-of-play round-up bulleted email for each day I was working.

• I also said “hello” every morning working remotely – just to check in and say hi.

What other things would you add to this list, if you freelance or contract for your work?

What have been some of your best experiences?