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.

andrew_croft · ‎03-29-2020

It is *like* this because not enough thought has been put into the platform, period.

This includes:

- allowing clients to post projects with little or no details and expecting us to provide our *best price*

- allowing clients to post *hey, I need someone to video me...* and yet there is no inidication of where this client is located

- allowing clients to post projects when they clearly haven't assembled anything of any value to start the work [so much hand-holding yet not expected to be paid for it]

- allowing clients to post projects and then just walk away

- allowing clients to post projects for *expert level designer* with an hourly rate of $5/hr - ya, that works on so many levels

Have sent numerous requests to fix things - all with the typical "thank you and we have forwarded your ideas to the development team" but need to know - why do I have to think of this for them?

Suggest we all simply start our Upwork profiles with a caution about putting too much thought into what the number means - even describe why yours may be low - to clarify this for potential clients, because they won't look much further past that number - especially if they don't like it - and they certainly aren't going to go hunting for Upwork's craptastic algorythym to figure it out.

Have fun!

marafx · ‎03-30-2020

Hi Andrew,
I hope you're well. I just saw your post here.
you say.
"

This includes:

- allowing clients to post projects with little or no details and expecting us to provide our *best price*

- allowing clients to post *hey, I need someone to video me...* and yet there is no inidication of where this client is located

- allowing clients to post projects when they clearly haven't assembled anything of any value to start the work [so much hand-holding yet not expected to be paid for it]

- allowing clients to post projects and then just walk away

- allowing clients to post projects for *expert level designer* with an hourly rate of $5/hr - ya, that works on so many levels"

IMHO such clients exists because freelancers working under such conditions exist.
In my niche I see "experts" that manage thousand products ecommerces for 2 penny... but let's be honest: they are paid 2 penny on Upwork while the big share of the pay they have it outside the circuit.
There is no need to be a genius to deduce that such combinations happen and they are a lot.

What Upwork can and should do is to proactively block such weird things because they can.

bfry1981 · ‎03-31-2020

"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."

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA really this is an insult. What a lousy company with lousy leaders and lousy policies that are incredibly biased towards clients (little accountability) against freelancers (an inability to actually learn from negative outcomes or effectively hold misleading clients accountable because of insane non-transparency). There should be a board that must approve policies composed of at least some freelancers and all votes must be made public so we know who is making the decisions and how. Enough the posts and verbiage: no matter what Upwork says, it simply does not respect or take into account the feedback of freelancers in any meaningful way and it is simply disgusting. Why don't clients also get a private rating and a JSS based on the same criteria, why can they constantly use fake names? If they knew they could be rated privately the same way we were, they might be more honest about their feedback and ratings, instead, they can just BS, do whatever they want, we we'll never really know for sure what's going on. Utter nonsense, just digusting. Eventually another platform will come that will treat freelancers better and you will see people desert this soulless company so fast they won't know what will hit them.

bfry1981 · ‎03-31-2020

Lucio Ricardo M wrote:
I have also such kind of "gem" clients. $50 milestones, you complete it then they disappear. He promised to catch up in Saturday. Today is monday and he has not reported. if before COVID-19 exceptional state he missed catch up dates, i don't know what to expect these times... and surely the day when he is able to come back online he will want more work for this milestone. Some clients think that we don't have bills and earning expectancies. But be for more money, harder to get and to retain clients. May upwork bias jobs into more-paying ones, instead of doing it only by the JSS scoring. Or, ¿¿isn't that feasible that higheer earnings jobs gets to us??

Don't ever do fixed-price. No real protections. Ever since they got rid of up-front payments from it, I have almost universally refused to do fixed-price. Aways go hourly, with the limits you can still set a clear budget.

abinadab-agbo · ‎04-08-2020

If a client hires me for a $1000 job, fully funded in Escrow, and

- I botch it, or

- the client proves to be a bad client who wants to get free work out of me and likes to have their cake and eat it;

doesn't matter which one, just depends on how you look at it. The point is, as a result, I get paid only $100 out of the Escrow and then the contract is closed with a negative review...

Will the JSS say that I botched a $1000 job or that I botched a $100 job?

Thanks.

kochubei_valeria · ‎04-08-2020

Hi Abinadab,

JSS calculation will take earnings on the job into the consideration. In other words, the amount that was actually paid to the freelancer, and not the amount that was funded in Escrow originally.

najam_codility · ‎04-12-2020

Can anyone guide me with this ?
My client removed 2nd milestone after that he created a new job and sent me new job offer for that milestone as he has his own billing commitments to his clients and wanted to covert job to hourly.
Due to this my profile success rate decreased from 97% to 61%, Please help me with this.

JoanneP · ‎04-12-2020

Hi Najam,

I checked your account, and see that our team has already replied to the ticket you have submitted. Please refer to their response to your ticket for more information. Thank you!

the-best-tech · ‎04-26-2020

Hi,
I’m continuously getting positive feedbacks from my clients, I’m being rehired... I’m meeting the client’s requirements.. I don’t know why my JSS has reduced to 79%... which is really unexpected for me, last time when JSS was updated then too my score had reduced to 80% from 86%...
Please tell me the issue.

martina_plaschka · ‎04-26-2020

Nida R wrote:
Hi,
I’m continuously getting positive feedbacks from my clients, I’m being rehired... I’m meeting the client’s requirements.. I don’t know why my JSS has reduced to 79%... which is really unexpected for me, last time when JSS was updated then too my score had reduced to 80% from 86%...
Please tell me the issue.

What is your clients that would recommend you percentage?