You’ve landed the perfect role, but there’s a catch: It’s temporary. While this is still great news, it can leave you wondering what your future holds and if you’ll have to hit the application grind again in a few weeks or months.
The truth is, many temporary positions turn into full-time roles. At IDR, we see it every day. There aren’t any shortcuts, but there is a proven recipe for successfully transitioning from temporary to full-time employment. Before you accept a short-term contract, here are a few tips to flip the script and increase your chances of turning that provisional role into your permanent dream job.
As much as possible, this means you are always putting in 110% and being the new guy or gal they already know they can depend on. You’re on time, your energy is positive, and you deliver as advertised. BE the person you interviewed as. Make yourself undeniably useful. For example, if you highlighted your scripting skills in the interview, come in ready to automate a small, time-consuming task your team struggles with, like a script that cleans up log files or speeds up deployments. Show them you’re not just capable, but already adding value.
Meet as many people as you can and invest in meaningful conversations. Build relationships with authenticity and show your value as a human, not just as a team member. Seek out mentorship opportunities and invest in others around you. If you’re new to an IT department, take the initiative to grab coffee with a senior network engineer. Ask thoughtful questions about their career paths or current challenges. These authentic connections can build a network of advocates who can vouch for your skills and attitude when new opportunities come up.
They likely hired you for your expertise, but a team member worth investing in is always learning and growing. Be open to feedback and ask lots of questions. Take it upon yourself to understand the roles and responsibilities of the departments and teams around you. Invest in ongoing skill development and seek out additional training opportunities. Say, for example, you’re a newly hired systems administrator: don’t just focus on maintaining servers, ask the DevOps team how their CI/CD pipeline works, or shadow a help desk technician for a day to understand common user issues. When a vulnerability arises or a cross-team project kicks off, your broader knowledge base and initiative to keep learning will make you the go-to person, not just the person who was hired.
The last thing you want to do is jump into a temporary role only to discover, on closer inspection, it’s not a good fit. At IDR, we specialize in IT staffing roles and aligning top tech talent with desirable roles and companies that value their contributions. We look at more than just skills and perks, but at culture and values. That’s the only way to measure the success of a long-term commitment.
If you’re looking for your next role in IT, temporary or otherwise, we can help. Reach out to IDR today, and we’ll help you find and land the role for you.