Upwork - Job Success Thread **title edited**

[jademilburn]

I want Community Forum Moderators to add to this thread, and really listen to what is going on.

I, like many others am sure have the same story.

I used to love Odesk, and got many job interviews each week. I had all 5 star feedback, and glowing written references from my clients. Then Odesk made alot of changes and introduced Job Success rate. I was shocked that mine was 67%. That was until I looked at other discussions and heard of other people who had five star feedback, lots of good references and yet had a very low job success rate.

This system is beyond unfair as

!)Upwork introduced new changes and a new feedback system. They should NOT include information that people believed was being entered anonymously, prior to the changes. The Job success rate includes information that clients did not think would be shown publicly. They left star feedback that would be shown publicly. You CANNOt use retroactive data for a new system.

2)Since the Job success rate has been started, I am now not getting invited to interview for ANY jobs, so how could I get my Job success rate, even if I tried?

You have made a very bad error with this.

Can every freelancer on this forum who wants to get rid of the job success rate feature, reply with 'Get rid', and lets see if they listen to us.

[e_tahassoni]

Can you please tell me, just this one: If the problem was with the long inactive job that I just closed, will it remove the ramifications it caused? Or will the ramifications linger forever even if the issue is addressed?

[VladimirG]

Hi Ebrahim,

While I can't comment on the impact your open contracts have on your score, I can share that closing an inactive contract which affected a freelancer's score negatively will prevent future negative effect but won't reverse the effect it previously had. That means the score won't improve based on actions taken solely on the inactive contracts but the freelancer can indeed improve the score by successfully completing and receiving feedback on their other contracts.

[addrian]

I can share that closing an inactive contract which affected a freelancer's score negatively will prevent future negative effect but won't reverse the effect it previously had. That means the score won't improve based on actions taken solely on the inactive contracts but the freelancer can indeed improve the score by successfully completing and receiving feedback on their other contracts

My client started the contract by mistake, he confused the Google DFP with DFA. He also checked the UpWork suggested skill, DFP. I'm a DFP certified expert, many years of experience, debugging and implementation. 

The contract started, the client realized the mistake and paused the contact. One month later, I see my JSS dropped. I tried to contact the client, sent 3 different messages in 3 weeks (didn't want to be too annoying). No response. 

I contacted UpWork support, they told me to let the client close the contract, or my JSS might be affected.

Found the client on LinkedIn, sent a new message. He agrees to pay a small amount for investigating his case and we left each other a (public) positive feedback.

So, because of the client confusion, paused contract, his unresponsiveness, and wrong information from UpWork support, my profile lost ~ 20% of its score? 

I still can't believe that the JSS system is so poorly designed. It is probably a failed attempt to copy the Google PageRank system, but with very poor results. Amazing. 🙂

[mthornton-cpc]

Adrian, have you had many jobs? If not, you can look at your score mathmatically and assume that one job out of 5 has a much higher impact on score than 1 job out of 20 or 50. Also, you can never be 100% sure that your client left you positive private feedback. That carries a lot of weight in the calculation. 

[e_tahassoni]

Melissa,

This is just not right. Very poor system indeed. You still can't possibly answer this question: How and why a person who gave me 5 stars come and give me a negative private feedback. This is not only wrong, this is hypocrisy. I have the exact same problem as Adrian. My client doesn't answer, doesn't close the contract, nothing... what is MY mistake? It is rediculous that I have nine 5 star ratings and nothing else and my JSS drops by 7%. Please do not try to explain a crooked system that's not logical.
Do you know how many nights I didn't sleep just to keep my JSS at 100%? 

[atria]

I had worked here in upwork for years and years. I am also a victim of this injustice. I didn't give up, but rather I went to seek Alternatives. Now, I have been working two straight years in a company with good salary, better than I have experienced here in upwork. **edited for Community Guidelines**

[melaniekhenson]

Wow! 145 pages. I guess a lot of us have a thing or two to say on the subject. 😉

It still isn't changing, though...I guess we can commisserate but not anticipate a change. Keep turning out the best work you can, folks. As with any other business, an awesome finished product plus basic business sense and communication skills are really the best you can do. 🙂

Beyond what we can possibly change/do better (we will usually figure out what this is over time) about our own skills/methods, any freelance work is going to have that occasional element of weirdness. There will always be the possibility of something totally illogical happening. That's just the nature of freelancing, and of working with people...'cause people are people. Hang in there and keep truckin'!

[jmccpa]

My JSS dropped from 93% to 91% in the last update and the only change was one job closed.

It was for 42 hours @$150 an hour, with a 5 star public rating.  Not at all likely due to private feedback as my work resulted in a successful judge's ruling to defeat an adverse Motion for Summary Judgment.

I have been silent on this recently but now I agree this system is clearly flawed.

[allergywriter]

maybe an old job fell off

[jmccpa]

Cheryl,

Not likely with 64 jobs and 284 hours worked that one or even  few jobs dropping off would cause a 2 point drop in one update.

[melaniekhenson]

---

undefined:

My JSS dropped from 93% to 91% in the last update and the only change was one job closed.

It was for 42 hours @$150 an hour, with a 5 star public rating.  Not at all likely due to private feedback as my work resulted in a successful judge's ruling to defeat an adverse Motion for Summary Judgment.

I have been silent on this recently but now I agree this system is clearly flawed.

---

Okay, but it could even be something as simple as the client thinking 4 private stars were still pretty darned good, but those 4 stars being in an impactful area. Clients don't always think of the FB the way the FLers do. They obviously have a hint that we want 5 stars, since they can and do leave different publc v. private FB, BUT I think many clients feel, "well, it wasn't super-duper perfection, but it was really good...4 stars!" or whatever. And logically that's very true. It's only for the purposes of UW that "not entirely perfect" could mean "pandemonium, JSS dropping, fell out of Top Rated weeks" or whatever. 😉

And OTOH it could have been as simple as a button incorrectly pushed.

You'll never know but only 2 points...well...honestly...you should just breathe and realize that's not so terrible. You may be worried that you are dangerously close to the 80s this way but HERE'S a weird fact: I got about 4X as much work the past three months of being in the high 80s (for some ridiculous reasons, some of those mine as a newb) than now that I'm up in the 90s, go figure.

Hang in there.

[dmaldini]

Get RID!!!

[drahony]

This needs fixed for sure. get rid or get it sorted Upwork.

There really isn't any excuse considering the immense amount talanted brains this platform has access to to sort this problem.

[yield9]

Yes, the way Upwork calculates job success scores is ridiculous.  I'm in the same situation as you.  Even though I've never had a bad review, my score continues to degrade simply because I haven't had many jobs lately. 

Give your head a shake, Upwork.

Clearly Upwork isn't listening to feedback, and I seriously doubt they even have anybody checking these forums.  They just host them to make themselves feel better for taking a whopping 20% of everything we ever make.  

As of this moment (July 14, 2020), it isn't even possible to get to the help page that explains how the (bogus) algorithm calculates success score, as the page is AGAIN broken.  

[yield9]

Get rid.

For all the good it will do.  Upwork doesn't listen to the people who make them money.  Time to find a better platform, or start sourcing work another way.  

[reichstephen]

 The JSS score is a cancer that shows its itself at random times. Never getting better and wont be cured anytime soon. I'm guessing Upwork cant fix it and chooses to ignore it. Every job you take gives Upwork 20% commission and your membership monthly charge. I can cry about it or just learn to live with it. My score has fluctuated from 100% to high 88% over 5 years. Currently I am at 95%. Dropped recently from 96% to 95%.  Who knows why? Thank you Upwork.

Some tips that may help you.

1. Beg clients to end contract and give feedback. I do it on every job.

2. Talk to client on zoom or cell before taking to job. 

3. Jobs drop off your JJS score after 2 years. They do not affect your score.

4. Call Upwork to remove jobs that have no feedback, clients who don't close jobs and clients who gave you a LOW rating. You can do this once every 3 months if you have a 90% or higher rating.  Upwork Help and support reps are really nice people. Give them a great feedback. They are trying to help you.

5. Contact any long term client who has no activity lately. Tell them to end contact and hire you again when new job is ready. No financial activity hurts JSS.

6. Be very aware of clients with no job history. This Pandemic has them asking for work from you with no idea how Upwork works. This is not their companies office were they can give bad job assets, no feedback or bad feedback and cant figure out how to end a contact. I have dealt with many in last months and have been burned. Live and learn.

7. Try not to get into a dispute with a client. Contact them to discuss and 99% people will understand and help you figure out a solution. 

Bottomline is the JSS score is just a number. If you have great work clients will hire you. 

[gaspardjack]

---

Stephen R wrote:

2. Talk to client on zoom or cell before taking to job. 

You can't do that anymore!

[magedmahfouz]

Get Rid

It's a stupid system where I get 5 and 4.5 stars in public then my job score is 29%

You are making freelancers a slaves for clients.

I faced multiple clients who permenantely change their minds then give us bad reviews in the private feedback while they couldnot do it in public because they are afraid that freelancer will complain and the chat of upwork will expose the bad treatment that happens to freelancer

Fair is the rule. Freelancers must be equivalent to clients we both pay your cut off