Consultant not getting paid

[RunningBum]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gretah I would point out to your husband that it is very unprofessional on his part to be treated like dirt. He is allowing this to happen. He is a professional. When he is not paid, he stops work.

meh, it was a special situation with the new owners taking over. He probably let it go too far, and the mysterious new process probably wasn't all that hard to find once he motivated them to actually try, but I wouldn't be too hard on him. A professional is also flexible, to a point.

[Teacher Terry]

Yes in my consulting work I don’t get paid until the counselor does which means I wait 2-3 months. I totally understand and it’s not a problem. I think RB has it right.

[SumDay]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Carol1862 I wanted to give a follow up. He got paid yesterday! Not sure what the hold up/problem actually was, but last week he told the contact person on his team that he was sending a letter of resignation at end of week (per his PSA requirements). Things started to escalate at that point. He is an integral part of the project and it would set it back considerably if he resigned. Plus, he’s liked and respected by the team. Unfortunately, no one knew exactly who to contact to make this happen. Now, let’s hope this doesn’t happen when his next payment is due! Thank you for your very helpful suggestions.

DH had consulting gigs like this for the past 10 years, and it seems there was a huge turnover in their accounting & HR departments. He wouldn't get paid for weeks, would raise holy h*ll and then he'd get a big fat huge check. My beef was I had to beg for 1099's at tax time and no one ever knew who to send me to for help. VERY frustrating.

Glad your DH finally got his $$$!

[ecowtent]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gretah I would point out to your husband that it is very unprofessional on his part to be treated like dirt. He is allowing this to happen. He is a professional. When he is not paid, he stops work. Like Eleanor Roosevelt said "No one can make you feel inferior without your consent." I knew an attorney who owned a small firm. He was known for allowing clients to pay him several months late and sometimes not at all. Who has confidence in an attorney who is a wuss? Who has confidence in a professional who allows his work to be treated as if it has no value?

Gretah-I truly don't understand why you would post this comment. It isn't helpful in any way. Think to yourself-Would you make this comment if you sat across from Carol in conversation?



I don't post often so that should say how much this comment took me aback.Wow-just wow.

[Sunset]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Carol1862 I wanted to give a follow up. He got paid yesterday! Not sure what the hold up/problem actually was, but last week he told the contact person on his team that he was sending a letter of resignation at end of week (per his PSA requirements). Things started to escalate at that point. He is an integral part of the project and it would set it back considerably if he resigned. Plus, he’s liked and respected by the team. Unfortunately, no one knew exactly who to contact to make this happen. Now, let’s hope this doesn’t happen when his next payment is due! Thank you for your very helpful suggestions.

Thank-You for the follow-up to let us know this good news !
Here is hoping that now someone knows who to send the payment to, that it continues smoothly.

[ivinsfan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gretah I would point out to your husband that it is very unprofessional on his part to be treated like dirt. He is allowing this to happen. He is a professional. When he is not paid, he stops work. Like Eleanor Roosevelt said "No one can make you feel inferior without your consent." I knew an attorney who owned a small firm. He was known for allowing clients to pay him several months late and sometimes not at all. Who has confidence in an attorney who is a wuss? Who has confidence in a professional who allows his work to be treated as if it has no value?

Did you read this whole thread or just the first post and then decide to post this zinger?

[target2019]

With regard to non-payment, it is essential to include something in your contract that addresses the situation. One thing that may help in the future is to add a discount for prompt payment. Most bean counters love a bargain.

If the situation is simply invoice being neglected due to poor management practices, you just have to increase your profile so folks know your contribution.

I do remember when years of prompt payment problems arose when the tall good-lucking manager rode into town, and he neatly piled all paper in one pile on his desk. Somewhere in that stack were my invoices!

[Sunset]

Quote:

Originally Posted by target2019 With regard to non-payment, it is essential to include something in your contract that addresses the situation. One thing that may help in the future is to add a discount for prompt payment. Most bean counters love a bargain. ...

I would prefer a late fee charge, because offering a discount basically means reducing your wage.
People will say to counter reducing your wage, just charge x% more, but that could mean you miss out on some contracts as you charge too much.

Better to keep the expected fee real, and charge for late payments.
The nice thing about a late fee, is it could get expensive, like credit cards do, 3% extra charge every 30 days on outstanding balance.

[target2019]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sunset I would prefer a late fee charge, because offering a discount basically means reducing your wage. People will say to counter reducing your wage, just charge x% more, but that could mean you miss out on some contracts as you charge too much. Better to keep the expected fee real, and charge for late payments. The nice thing about a late fee, is it could get expensive, like credit cards do, 3% extra charge every 30 days on outstanding balance.

I've had success with the discount. I also keep my hourly fee higher in order to keep bargain shoppers at a distance. With a higher fee I can also easily offer a discount, or negotiate a lower fee. If you start low, it usually means things go lower, in my experience. Whatever works is appropriate for the consultant.

[Z3Dreamer]

A look from the corporate side. I do not know the facts in OP's case. 2 main causes of complaints in my world. 1 ) Manager does not turn in the invoice so there is nothing to pay. Then saves face by turning it in a few days after it is due. 2) Contractor has "net30" on their invoices or no terms. No terms defaults to 30. Then they threaten stoppage unless they leave with a check.

It is amazing how many people put "net 30" but really expect "net 3".

And this idea of no one knowing how to get anything paid. It is a managers job to manage. Part of that is getting your people paid. Corporate made it as easy as possible and we educated new managers. In a merger did the new team forget to communicate new process? It is possible but..

Thank you for allowing me to vent for years of managers and vendors blaming me for their lack of attention.

[CoolRich59]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ivinsfan for those of you in the know about these things, is all the time he has to spend fighting for his payments billable on his time invoices?

In my experience, no. Normally, only project work is billable. I have seen travel time as billable, but that's pretty rare.

The assumption is that the hourly rate includes "administrative" stuff like time keeping and invoicing. (Of course, that is also based on the assumption that the invoices are being paid in a timely manner.)

I had one consulting firm send me a nice note telling me that, going forward, they'd be adding 5% to their invoices to cover their administrative costs. I told their client manager that we'd strike it from the invoice. I didn't hear any more about it.