The hidden value of generalist freelancers
As a freelancer, you usually sell your expertise but the value I can bring often comes from being a generalist.
I’ve been supporting H&F Giving with a strategy away day for the team, trustees and key stakeholders. The expertise they needed from me was as a facilitator. I wouldn’t have got the gig without being able to do that at an ‘expert’ level and having a good knowledge of place-based giving schemes (please support your local scheme if you don’t already!)
I have added extra value in an area I didn’t necessarily expect. Because the session was short we wanted to send a pack out to people in advance. H&F Giving have a comprehensive branding guide but there wasn’t a PowerPoint deck that went with this for us to populate. So I made one!
I’m not a design expert but I’ve used PowerPoint a lot (too much?) and was able to set up a template slide deck based on the branding guidelines. This wasn’t my main job but I could do it in a couple of hours and recognised that this was a good way to add value. It might not sound like a big thing but it has helped professionalise the organisation’s communications and that matters.
I’ve also agreed to do a short session with the team on some top PowerPoint tips. I’ve done this before, so it doesn’t need any prep and is another good use of a couple of hours. I didn’t need to do this but if I can make it work I like to help build people’s skills as part of the work I do.
Managing this sort of ‘scope creep’ can be challenging for freelancers and is a common term in consultancies big and small. I find that what is most helpful doesn’t always emerge until you’re working alongside people and organisations. Being able to flex and provide the most useful support is vital.
That’s where being able to draw on a range of experiences and skills is incredibly helpful. Clients appreciate it when you can say “Would you like me to help you with that?” and you can flex your time to what they need.
I have some availability in April and May, so give me a shout if you need some support. You might get more value than you expect.
As a P.S. The session with H&F Giving was near Wood Lane and I had a coffee by Television Centre. It made me feel very nostalgic.
