Job size will now be factored into your JSS

lenaellis · ‎02-03-2020

UPDATE: The JSS Metric has been updated to reflect the changes that were announced below. As of today, March 1st, all Job Success Scores are now displaying the updated value.

We will soon update JSS metrics to reflect job value in the calculation. Today, a one-week $20 job typically carries the same weight as a one-week $1,000 job in JSS. Soon, JSS will be weighted by job earnings. For example, a one-week $1,000 job will be weighted more than a one-week $20 job. JSS will also exclude contracts with $0 earned and positive feedback. All other JSS policies will remain unchanged.

What does this mean?

We are making this change so a freelancer’s Job Success Score will display a more comprehensive representation of their freelancer work. We understand not all jobs are equal. We know higher budget contracts require more work and freelancers who complete these more complex contracts successfully should get credit for them. Just as longer-term contracts hold more weight in JSS calculations than shorter ones, we believe contract value should also hold significance in the calculation. By giving these jobs more weight, these jobs will have a greater influence on a JSS.

Many freelancers will see an increase in their scores if they’ve successfully completed higher budget contracts in the past. At the same time, a small percentage of freelancers may lose their JSS, see a drop in their scores, or lose their Top Rated badge. Today, we are emailing freelancers whose JSS will see a decline of 5% or more, to let them know they will be affected. Freelancers that see a drop in their score can improve their JSS by completing more jobs with positive feedback, as it works today. Larger budget contracts with positive feedback will result in a higher increase in JSS, however, all great feedback contributes to JSS and whether you work on large or small contracts you can still reach 100% JSS.

This change will take effect in March, at which time all Job Success Scores will be updated retroactively. We know many of you will have questions about this update. We won’t be able to discuss your individual score or outcomes of specific contracts. We have listed some anticipated questions below, let us know if you have any additional questions.

FAQS:

Can I know what my new JSS is now before this launches?

We will not be able to provide you with your updated score until the JSS calculation refreshes at launch, in March.

Does this mean if I don’t get big contracts I’ll never be able to get a JSS of 100%?

Receiving stellar feedback on smaller budget jobs can still get you to a JSS of 100%. We are only changing the impact of jobs based on earnings. This means that strong client feedback on a higher-budget job could boost your score more than a lower-budget job. All other aspects of JSS will remain the same.

How will I know if it affects me?

The majority of freelancers will be affected positively by this change and will see an increase in their scores. We are sending out emails to those who will likely see a drop in their score once the new JSS calculation goes into effect in March.

Can this affect me positively, will my JSS go up?

Yes! The vast majority of freelancers on the platform will see an increase or very little change in their scores. This is because you may have worked on one or more higher paying contracts in the past, and because you received great feedback that great feedback is being weighted more.

Can I lose my JSS?

A small percentage of freelancers may lose their JSS. This is because they had one or more jobs with no earnings. Positive feedback on contracts with no earnings will not be factored into JSS once we move to the new calculation. As a result, some freelancers won’t have enough outcomes to be eligible for a JSS until they successfully complete more jobs. Nearly all freelancers have scores after completing eight projects.

How does weighting work specifically?

To ensure fairness and avoid manipulation, we don’t share the specifics about how we calculate the Job Success Score. Thanks for your understanding.

So if I take a bigger job and get negative feedback that counts more than positive feedback on smaller jobs?
Yes. A job with higher earnings will always impact your Job Success Score (JSS) more than a smaller job. For example, feedback on a $1,000 job carries more weight on your JSS compared to a $20 job. However, receiving poor feedback on a job with more earnings can be balanced out by doing well on a job of the same size in the future or on a number of smaller jobs.

Can I lose my Top Rated badge?

Yes, a small percentage of freelancers who see a decline in their JSS may drop below 90% and lose their Top Rated badge. This is because they received less-than-positive public or private feedback on one or more of their higher-paying contracts. Feedback on contracts with higher earnings will affect JSS more after this new change.

petra_r · ‎07-13-2020

Andrew C wrote:

I too have three or four OPEN projects from May/June that the clients are not responding, not closing them off.
.

So?

Those contracts do no harm to your JSS at all. What is your point?

If the clients have vanished and you've been paid, just simply close one every once in a while, or leave them open a bit longer. They're not hurting if money has been paid at some point.

andrew_croft · ‎07-13-2020

Petra - have been told directly by Upwork numerous times and in numerous threads that open contracts without feedback will count negatively against your JSS score. Response?

researchediting · ‎07-13-2020

Aditi J wrote:
....There will be no need for JSS. Star rating feedback is enough.

Nope. As far back as oDesk, star ratings were rising logarithmically with five as a limit. That is why people will refer to them as window dressing and eye candy. While profiles that buck this trend suggest serious problems, high star ratings are worse than useless as indicators of quality.

petra_r · ‎07-13-2020

Andrew C wrote:
Petra - have been told directly by Upwork numerous times and in numerous threads that open contracts without feedback will count negatively against your JSS score. Response?

Only if you have a very high percentage of such contracts, which you do not. I have 12 or so, my JSS is 100%

If you don't like the idle contracts, simply close them one at a time. No, that does not affect your JSS either.

In general, two things hurt the JSS:

Contracts with poor feedback (mainly private feedback)
Contracts with nothing (ever, at any point in the past) paid

aditipie · ‎07-14-2020

Thanks Douglas. I respect your observations and feelings around it. But since Upwork has published no concrete data regarding the inefficiency of star ratings or the efficiency of JSS or the difference it made by implementing JSS, I honestly cannot debate one way or the other. We can agree to disagree on this one 🙂

I wish Upwork was more open, forthcoming and not constantly afraid that freelancers are only interested in "manipulating" their scores.

researchediting · ‎07-14-2020

Aditi J wrote:
Thanks Douglas. I respect your observations and feelings around it. But since Upwork has published no concrete data regarding the inefficiency of star ratings or the efficiency of JSS or the difference it made by implementing JSS, I honestly cannot debate one way or the other. We can agree to disagree on this one 🙂

I wish Upwork was more open, forthcoming and not constantly afraid that freelancers are only interested in "manipulating" their scores.

We can agree to disagree, but the data is public, or I wouldn't know about it. The study was done by oDesk before it acquired Elance (and rebranded itself twice). I only reported the data and its applicability to your suggestion. I do not claim it as an origin story for the JSS. I rarely have "feelings" about data. And I'm never here to "debate."

knock-samantha · ‎07-14-2020

I have an ongoing client who has been unresponsive about leaving me feedback, despite my continual communication and polite requests. He has been unprofessional in his communication style from the get-go. I overlooked this because I enjoyed the project otherwise. I re-opened the feedback last week, and he agreed to leave it for me last Friday, but hasn't communicated since then.

I have come to the realization that his lack of feedback has resulted in a 66% job success rating, and is the reason that I'm not getting any good clients or projects. I know this to be the reason for such a low rating, because my other projects and communications have had nothing but positive written feedback, and 5-star ratings from the two clients who left me UpWork contract feedback. Because I am new to UpWork, his no-feedback contracts make up about half of my total contracts. We had multiple contracts for an ongoing job due to a lack of fluency on the platform.

We have spoken about once a week since I started working with him. Last week and this week, he has not gotten back to me about timing for calls, or has responded too late for the call to be feasible for my schedule. I have to chase him down, which I don't mind doing, except that I haven't been billing him for these many communications because he has verbally set clear, very small limits on my weekly hours, which I exhaust on the work itself. I am wondering if there is any recourse in this situation that doesn't depend on his cooperation, since he is unreliable.

I haven't gotten good new jobs or offers since this began. In contrast, during my first couple of weeks using UpWork, I sent about 15-20 proposals, got between 5-10 invitations to interview, and was hired by at least 5 different clients, all of whom had short, successfully completed projects with reasonable budgets. Since then, I have submitted about 20 proposals. I have not received a single invitation to interview, or any responses at all to the vast majority of my proposals. I have received just one (really low) offer which I took anyway in my desperation. To the surprise of no one, this client has also been pretty bad-- I submitted work to him almost 2 weeks ago and he still hasn't gotten back to me about whether the work is to his satisfaction, despite multiple gentle and patient messages, which I also cannot bill for.

I am at my wit's end, and have begun to worry that I won't be able to use UpWork successfully anymore, at least not for quality clients or projects that would be worth my time and energy.

If anyone has any advice on how to navigate this situation I would greatly appreciate it!

PS- For what it's worth, this client did have a very low feedback rating before I left him 5 star feedback on all our old contracts. (He was great at first, I swear!) I have learned my lesson as far as that goes! I just want to know if there is something I can do to move forward on Upwork itself without relying on him finally leaving feedback, or me spending endless time, energy, and money applying to clients who won't hire me due to my low rating.

Thanks in advance for any and all advice and wisdom!!

robin_hyman · ‎07-14-2020

I'm sorry to hear about this experience. Unfortunately, there isn't much you can do. And I wouldn't harass the client for feedback (you'll hear that a lot here). It might result in negative public or private feedback.

You're still new to the platform and some clients don't care about JSS. Your positive reviews, a solid portfolio, and a well-written proposal should help you land future jobs. Put this one behind you...

knock-samantha · ‎07-14-2020

Thank you so much for your response!

I have to admit, after the job drought I'm experiencing, it has really felt like clients care a lot about JSS. But I could definitely stand to be more optimistic!

I have no plans to pester him; we have a call tomorrow (if he gets back to me) and I think that after that I will try to diplomatically exit the working relationship we have since it feels very untenable.

robin_hyman · ‎07-14-2020

That's probably a good idea. The more you work on this platform, the better you will be able to spot the good clients from the bad. I'm here for 2 years and I still find myself working with the bad ones from time to time. But now I am Top Rated and can use one of the perks - removing feedback from JSS and/or my profile. Once upon a time, I had a JSS of 80%...

Good luck to you!