What is the independent contractor rating and how does it work?

Work for Impact assigns every independent contractor a rating out of 100 based on several different factors. The rating serves as one of the tools clients can use to judge the quality, skill, and reliability of independent contractors on the platform.

What Factors are Used to Determine the Rating?

The independent contractor rating is based on three primary factors:

1. Reviews: Any time an independent contractor receives a review, it contributes to the independent contractor's overall rating. The more positive reviews an independent contractor receives, the higher their rating will be.
2. Value of Projects: While successfully completing any job will increase an independent contractor's rating, more weight is given to higher-value contracts.
3. Number of Completed Contracts: Activity is another factor that contributes to an independent contractor's rating. Each contract an independent contractor successfully completes will positively impact their rating, with preference given to independent contractors who have completed a higher number of projects.

How the Independent Contractor Rating is Determined

90% of the rating is based on the reviews given to the independent contractors by their clients. After a contract is completed, clients will give independent contractors a score out of five in six different performance areas (ethical, quality of work and skills, communication, availability, professionalism, would recommend). These scores are then tallied up and averaged out to create an overall score for the job.

While all of these scores count towards the independent contractor’s overall rating, not all scores are weighted equally. More weight is given to reviews from contracts that had a higher value. For example, a review for a $100 contract is given ten times more weight than a review for a $10 contract.

The last 10% of the rating is based on the number of contracts an independent contractor has completed. Independent contractors are ranked in order of the number of contracts they’ve completed and will receive a rating based on where they currently stand within those rankings. Only the most active independent contractors will receive a perfect score in this category. This prevents brand new independent contractors from receiving a perfect rating after only completing one job.

How Can Independent Contractors Increase Their Rating?

If you want to increase your independent contractor rating, you should focus on:

• Producing Quality Work Within Client Deadlines: The best way to increase your independent contractor rating is to meet, or better yet exceed, client expectations for every project you work on. This will ensure you consistently receive positive reviews, which will improve your rating.
• Staying Active and Taking on New Contracts: While quality is always more important than quantity, the more contracts you successfully complete, the more your rating will increase. So continue to take on new jobs when you have the capacity in order to grow your rating.

I'm New to the Platform, and My Independent Contractor Rating is Low. Can I Still Get Hired?

Absolutely.

When independent contractors are just starting out on Work for Impact, we have little or no data to base their rating on. Unfortunately, this means that newer independent contractors will generally have a lower rating than those who have been on the platform for some time.

However, this doesn't mean you can't get hired. A strong proposal and a good interview can go a long way towards landing a job, even if you're new to the platform.

We suggest targeting smaller budget jobs to start, as these clients are likely more willing to work with newer independent contractors. Once you've successfully completed a few smaller jobs and built up your rating, you'll be in a better position to get hired for larger projects.