Delivering a project

[springydaffs]

I taught fashion to disadvantaged young people for a year in an arts project that was funded where we could get some funding here and there. Gov funding cut put paid to that and I've been on the lookout to do it somewhere else.

cue finding a probation org (not directly linked with prisons, independent). They were dead keen as the only courses they offered were to men and wanted to start offering course to female ex-offenders.

Lots of promises of pay etc (nothing written down) and now, just as the course is about to start (thurs), they have screwed me right down and after all the lavish pay promises have offered me a crap deal.

I admit I've been crap at the business/money side of things. Outlay hasn't been massive on my part, though I have certainly made some financial commitments to get this project up and running - not much though and generally in the normal run of things.

As well as crap pay deal and after saying eg they would hire my equipment they have now reneged on that (when the equipment is now in situ!). Basically, I'm feeling done over here. They deny they made the promises they did and are fudging. Negotiations were all quite informal. I only met them because I saw their org online and contacted them for vol opportunities, as I liked the look of their project.

Posting because no-one to talk it through with. I'm going to go ahead and deliver the course (6 weeks) but could end up with practically nothing as paid per capita.

I'm a good designer/teacher but seriously crap at business! (shouldn't be let out tbh)

I feel for you - I'm crap at negotiating too. If you've decided that you're going to go ahead, all you can do is look on it as a learning experience - you won't make the same mistake again. I presume you are going to evaluate the course at the end against some benchmarking from the start. If it has good outcomes for participants, the same org may want to run it again. If so, you can make it clear that you ran it at a loss and them charge more the next time.

Good luck.

thanks agent. I feel such a mug but really shouldn't tbh. very friendly and supportive relationship (read: informal GAH!) until yesterday then rug pulled out pretty brutally. I'm not sure I want to do business with them again if this is the sort of stunt they pull.

what a total idiot to have not got things written down, at least in emails.

You are not an idiot, you sound nice, they either sound deluded (to promised loads of money was coming if it wasn't) or mean. Either way not v professional of them.

Just learn from it.

I only got my act together and got t&cs when a customer mucked me about with pay. I felt like you, I had very little to back up the agreement for the work.

However, that client (or shall I say ex client in my head) has since unbelievably recommended me to a client of theirs, so even though I still feel silly, it has kinda worked out ok.

Just make the absolute most of it. Blog/take pictures (naturally you will need consent) package it up and sell it onto other orgs?

It isn't 6 weeks wasted time, it is 6 weeks experience of bringing your course to a new market - a launch of your new service if you like!

Thanks for support all

I spent an hour yesterday with a friend who is a small business consultant (gave me a session for free

Is it not worth trying to get more out of them? Or have you already tried that? I think they probably need you more than their behaviour suggests...what happens if you say "No, sorry, that wasn't what we agreed, sort out your own course...goodbye"? Who is going to do the sort of thing you do at short notice? They could be calling your bluff?

I would emphasis your commitment to their client group (which not everybody would be willing to work with, lets face it) and that you discussed it all with them in good faith. That as a sole trader/small org you are going to struggle to work on their changed terms. You don't want to let their clients (am guessing they refer to them as that) down, but hopefully they can understand that you cannot work for what is going to amount to very little blah blah.

I personally think it is worth trying to get them to see reason, with an email first and then in person?

flurry of emails to and fro - they got in first. we've bashed out terms but I think they clearly see it as ok practise to piss about at the last minute. and to act like the big boys.

they are very much putting me in the position that they're doing me a favour - when I'm offering a shit-hot course that they were gagging for (re a course for women) and has the potential to earn them a LOT of money. my business consultant friend suggested I go through this 'as is' (though I am seirously pissed off) and put it down to experience re if we work together again we will have to renegotiate terms. and how. consultant friend is on-hand for future negotiations if it comes to that.

I have made a financial outlay of approx £500 and I need that back pronto. It is not direct funding but getting equipment up together and my responsibility, not the funders. I have been unemployed for a while and don't have readies to fall back on. they know this (re dratted informal relationship GAH).

I also asked one of them to 'mentor/line manage' me and they took this as an indication that I couldn't cope! (ffs!). It just does make sense to get specialist support when negotiating a (challenging) client group for the first time! I've found someone to do it - someone who valued my motivation.

btw they have offered me an hourly rate if the numbers are too small so I'm not totally stuffed. ie I can choose hourly rate or rate pp, depending on who turns up on the first day.