Before an assignment

How do I lay a solid foundation for the collaboration?

A new assignment doesn't just start on your first working day. Before you start the assignment, you have the most influence, because there's no dependency relationship yet. This is therefore the moment to make important agreements.

Below you'll find practical tips, checklists, and sample agreements. Use them to ask your client the right questions, put agreements in writing, and start your assignment with a good feeling.

Want to read more about what transgressive behavior is first? Read more here,and learn more about laws and regulations.

Discuss social safety

Starting a conversation about social safety is a brave and often nerve-wracking step, especially when you depend on assignments as a freelancer. Still, you have more influence than you might think. Here are a few tips that can help you raise the topic before you start the assignment.

1. Frame the topic as professional, not personal:

You're not expressing distrust in the person, you're doing what any professional would do. Also mention your own responsibility as an entrepreneur.

2. Name the shared interest:

A safe collaboration benefits everyone, including the client. Point out the importance of social safety for how well teams perform.

3. Ask questions instead of making statements:

Questions invite dialogue, statements provoke resistance more quickly.

4. Normalize the topic:

Present it as a standard part of how you work, not as an exception.

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Check your client

Collaboration agreement checklist

Here you'll find sample questions to find out whether the organization has thought about social safety and how they put this into practice. See which questions matter to you, look up available information about your client beforehand, and/or discuss it with your client.

• Who is my manager, point of contact, and/or (if applicable) intimacy coordinator as a freelancer that I can turn to with questions?

• How is attention given to social safety within the organization?

• Does the organization have a code of conduct or standards of behavior in place that also applies to freelancers?

• Is a confidential advisor available, and can I as a freelancer turn to them too?

• Is the collaboration evaluated, and are standards of behavior part of that?

• Does the client endorse the Fair Practice Code, the Diversity & Inclusion Code, and sector-specific codes concerning social safety?

Is something unclear? Ask your client about it before you start.

Put agreements in writing

In the collaboration agreement you make with your client, you can also record agreements about social safety: this is called a behavioral clause. Both parties agree to this in advance. Don't usually have a collaboration agreement? Then include the clause in your general terms and conditions and send these along with your quote and/or invoice.

The clause arranges three things:

• that both parties know what acceptable behavior looks like;

• that you, as a freelancer, know where to turn if there's a problem;

• that you're covered if things go wrong, without financial risk for the resulting damages.

At a large organization, refer to their own code of conduct; at a smaller client without a policy, you can refer to existing documents such as the Governance Code Cultuur, the Fair Practice Code, and the Working Conditions Act (Arbowet).