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Matt Collingwood

Matt Collingwood is the Managing Director of VIQU Ltd. an IT recruitment and project-based consultancy company with offices in Birmingham and Southampton. Matt is also the co-founder of the Recruitment Canaries, a network of West Midlands based recruitment agencies who encourage collaboration, best practice and upholding the standards and ethics of the recruitment industry.

Author Content

How to cope and get hired in a yoyo-ing market, where ghosting, rejection, and no callbacks are taking a toll.

This stance as an agency boss on regulating umbrella companies will banish me from the Christmas card list of the big staffing bodies.

The number of techies set to start temp roles (like our projects pipeline), turned a corner in March 2024.

Four things candidates don’t want to hear, plus six secrets agencies really don’t want you to know.

26th February, 2024 | Guide To Agencies

What to tell an agent if you suspect you’re on the end of their fishing expedition.

20th February, 2024 | Guide To Agencies

What the IT contractor jobs market currently looks like, and why. 

The hard, soft, and still emerging skills required to succeed with Artificial Intelligence on a contract basis.

A new era of fraudulent interviews (now in progress) needs to be stamped out by the professional community.

Wading out into freelance waters is much more reassuring when you can see the following five over your shoulder.

31st October, 2023 | First Timers

A bit of crystal ball gazing to help ensure your priorities as a freelance software developer get sorted for next year.

Top 12 tried and tested tips for limited company techies on keeping both aged debt and bad debt at bay.

21st September, 2023 | Guide To Agencies

Whether you want to break into it, or move across from your current specialism, these variables and lines lead to software engineering.

14th September, 2023 | Successful Contracting

Top 10 ways contractors’ recruiters can separate the reputable from the rogue, when selecting a brolly partner.

July versus July might not look especially pretty, so apply these five factors to keep your career hot this summertime.

Like the judge who ripped a recruiter apart, a contractor on LinkedIn is part of the fightback against IR35 ignorance which is gaining ground.

Staffing bosses must accept a role they seem to be shirking, to stamp out arrangements that abuse both the exchequer and contractors.

Forget just being friends if you want truly professional relations which pay dividends.

20th June, 2023 | Successful Contracting

Networking is just knowing lots of people. Fortunately for techies, it’s actually more about pro-activity, consistency and processes.

6th June, 2023 | Successful Contracting

How to succeed as a first-time contractor with technology skills.

31st May, 2023 | First Timers

Pay premiums can be unlocked for IT contractors who realise the following actions are key.