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karoliscg
Community Member

Dropped from Rising talent program

I've broken no rules, missed no deadlines. 1 Client gave me 4,6 rating (which is 9,2/10 in other words) and I was dropped from the program. What is considered "it could be removed if you received less-than-good public or private feedback from a client" What is less than good? Less than straight 5 rating? It is impossible to get straight 5 ratings as some clients might be more picky than others and some might almost never give 5. This is especially fragile if you are new and just starting as apparently any rating has huge impact and you can get dropped without any warning...

16 REPLIES 16
gilbert-phyllis
Community Member

Every successful FL on the platform was new at one time. Some were designated Rising Talents by UW and some were not. Some managed to keep their RT badge until they completed enough contracts to get a JSS and others did not. The thing successful UW FLs have in common is seeing the feedback/rating programs for what they are: a fact of life on the platform, offering limited insight about one's own performance. None of us get straight 5's all the time, and once you build a track record, the occasional less-than-perfect review is easier to absorb. Starting out, the stakes are higher on every contract and the FL must not only deliver above and beyond clients' expectations but also take care that every contract accepted is a very good fit for one's skills and capabilities. It's hard to be picky when you're anxious to build momentum, but it pays off in the long run. When you get the inevitable less-than-good feedback, turn it to your advantage by learning what you can from it and avoiding the same mistakes or miscalculations. 

petra_r
Community Member


Karolis S wrote:

I've broken no rules, missed no deadlines. 1 Client gave me 4,6 rating (which is 9,2/10 in other words) and I was dropped from the program. What is considered "it could be removed if you received less-than-good public or private feedback from a client"


Chances are the private feedback that went along with that 4.6 was poor.

Public feedback is only a small part.

 

That is very unlikely considering the communication with the client was good, with 0 animosty  and final delivery.


Karolis S wrote:

That is very unlikely considering the communication with the client was good, with 0 animosty  and final delivery.


You posted here ostensibly seeking an answer or at least some insight into your situation. A FL with long experience and very detailed knowledge of the platform responded. Listen and learn, or don't.

Question was, what is less than good performance and if there are any actual objective reasons.Seems like there are none for this situation.

Don't treat me as if I started working 2 days ago. Had over 40 projects completed back on Elance (before odesk bought them) not even considering gap between that. Project managment and working with clients is not something new to me.

I've completed another bigger project, if I get 5 star rating will i get invited to RT program again?


Karolis S wrote:


I've completed another bigger project, if I get 5 star rating will i get invited to RT program again?


No.

Once it's gone, it's gone.

 

Next step: Job Success Score (after 4 or 5 completed contracts from at least 3 different clients.)

 


Karolis S wrote:


Don't treat me as if I started working 2 days ago.


Wow, attitude, much?

You asked, we answered. No need to have a hissing fit.

I guess I was looking for an answer from an actual more competent upwork staff. Chat support told me I can quality again for RT so... But did not provide actual answer why it was removed in the first place.


Karolis S wrote:

I guess I was looking for an answer from an actual more competent upwork staff. Chat support told me I can quality again for RT so... But did not provide actual answer why it was removed in the first place.


In general, the more experienced FLs know substantially more than the front-line CS staff. Petra's tips and insights, in particular, you can take to the bank. In any case, by the time you could recapture your RT badge, you'll qualify for a JSS which is real. IMO the RT badge is more of an encouragement for FLs who are not only new to UW but new to freelancing in general and don't yet have a weighty portfolio or base of experience.


Karolis S wrote:

Question was, what is less than good performance and if there are any actual objective reasons.Seems like there are none for this situation.

Don't treat me as if I started working 2 days ago. Had over 40 projects completed back on Elance (before odesk bought them) not even considering gap between that. Project managment and working with clients is not something new to me.

I've completed another bigger project, if I get 5 star rating will i get invited to RT program again?


I did not mean to imply that you lack experience in general. Your question pertains to the RT program and how UW administers it, and what might have qualified as "less than good" performance in that context. Petra noted that public fb below 5 typically indicates private fb at the same level or even lower, which could certainly trigger removal of your RT badge. I understood your subsequent comment to be rejecting that idea, even though you are new to the UW platform which, from all I can gather, has many differences from Elance.

 

Nobody knows exactly how UW defines "less than good". The calculations used in the RT program and the JSS system are, by design, a black box to prevent FLs from gaming the systems and pestering the dickens out of clients.

 

Based on my own experience and comments from others over the past couple of years, I don't think the RT badge is that big a deal when it comes to getting contracts here, especially for someone with your experience and expertise.

Probabally RT is not that huge of a deal, but as far as freelancing platforms work you have to have rating or nobody serious will bother hiring you.

So there's few ways to solve it 1) You keep bidding realistically based on your skill (with no rating or too small of a rating sample size lets say) and get virtually no hires, because client sees no work history of you and probabally thinks you are just another scam profile. And eventually (from what I've gathered) you can get your account suspended if you bidding too much without getting hired.


2) You get invited into RT program. And you get a kick start, client sees that you have potential (due to that badge) and as UW claims "RT members get payed 50% more". Until you can land that JSS.

3) Or just to gobble those few projects, you end up doing work (and I know that 98% + of freelancers in my field of work on this platform deliver worse product than I and that is not even boasting) which in terms of quality 10 times surpases the actual budget. So you end up pretty much doing charity work.

Edit: Client also told me he did not leave a lower private review compared to public one. So it seems like there is something off within the system.

Anonymous-User
Not applicable

Many clients present themselves falsely in public then whammy you privately.

I don't think one can be kicked out of the program. You moved into JSS and that's a different race to the top.

I wish I had that JSS, but I believe I still lack several projects (currently at 3 completed with 2 different customers).


Karolis S wrote:

I wish I had that JSS, but I believe I still lack several projects (currently at 3 completed with 2 different customers).


You probably only need one more with a different client to get a JSS.

 

That said, be careful what you wish for.

Whatever counted as unsuccessful enough to knock you out of the RT program will also affect your JSS, and no JSS is better than a poor one.

 

 

i wonder if i should hire myself and give 5.

/joking


Karolis S wrote:

i wonder if i should hire myself and give 5.

/joking


Yes, that will resolve all your Upwork problems because you'll be kicked off the platform.

 

/not joking

Yes, I already figured you can get banned for a lot of things here.

But it would be near impossible for UW to prove if somebody did that... so thats almost a non functional clause.

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