The dynamic tech environment may create an impression that developers are already overwhelmed with tasks and ongoing projects. However, numerous are the cases when professionals are working on multiple projects at once, sometimes even across different companies, without their employers knowing.

There are multiple reasons that stand behind such “code-crackers” behavior. In some situations, they manage multiple projects well, but in others, they come across challenges and risks for both the individuals involved and their employers.

This article sheds light on why IT specialists choose to take on parallel jobs, the risks they face, and the measures that companies can adapt to manage or prevent such situations.

Why IT Professionals Are Juggling Multiple Projects?

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are 5.1% of multiple jobholders in the civilian employment. While some combine part-time projects, others can work full-time and manage multiple projects on top.

There are several reasons for this, which range from career advancement and development in multiple directions/specializations to financial necessity, and other factors. Let's take a look at them in detail.

Financial Necessity

Regardless of competitive salaries and higher than average compensations in the field, some IT professionals go for managing multiple tasks and additional sources of income to cover their loans, high costs of living, and other obligations. This is especially applicable for those living in big cities with high living expenses. Their additional projects or jobs can be in the form of freelance work, consulting, or part-time projects.

In this situation, professionals may feel the need to hide from employers their second source of engagement. They don't want to show additional commitments to avoid negative repercussions.

Career Development

Many professionals view holding multiple jobs as a way to accelerate their career growth. By working on different projects or for various companies, they gain exposure to diverse technologies, work cultures, and industry challenges, enabling them to develop a wide set of skills and experiences in a condensed timeframe. This approach is especially appealing to those aiming to build expertise in specialized fields such as AI, cybersecurity, or cloud computing, where versatility is highly valued.

Managing multiple workstreams also helps professionals broaden their network, a crucial factor for career advancement. Collaborating with various teams and leaders allows IT specialists to build relationships across different sectors, opening doors to new opportunities for partnerships, mentorship, or even future job prospects.

Job Insecurity

From Cisco to Meta, from Apple to Microsoft, we have already heard about many layoffs in 2024 and 2023. According to Forbes, in 2024 alone, 384 tech companies laid off thousands of their employees, and the reasons vary, from inflation to recession fear, outsourcing strategies, and AI factor. This creates an unstable background for job security, even in such an evolving sector as tech.

Understanding this, some IT professionals decide working on multiple projects at once, in this way securing their financial and career prospects. Besides, having multiple projects from various clients gives them more autonomy and leverage in negotiations.

Flexible Work Arrangements

The growth of remote work and the freelance market has simplified the process for IT professionals to handle multiple jobs simultaneously. Often, they can operate from home, coordinating their schedules across various projects without the hassle of commuting or being tied to a physical office. For individuals who value independence, this level of flexibility offers significant benefits, allowing them to manage their time efficiently and avoid excessive overtime.

Additionally, this adaptability enables professionals to meet other personal obligations, such as family care or pursuing hobbies, making it an appealing choice for those looking to improve their work-life balance.

Avoidance of Overtime While Managing Multiple Projects

One of the less obvious reasons IT professionals might opt to spread their workload across multiple jobs is to avoid burnout. Many companies, especially startups or fast-growing tech firms, expect employees to put in long hours or work overtime. By splitting their workload across different clients, professionals can manage their time better and maintain control over their work-life balance. In such cases, deadline management in IT becomes crucial, as juggling competing priorities can lead to compromised results.

In these cases, professionals may find that balancing multiple jobs provides them with more control over their workload, as they can decline additional tasks from one job without sacrificing their income entirely.

Lack of Transparency in Company Policies

In some instances, companies lack explicit policies on juggling multiple projects. When guidelines are unclear or absent, professionals may feel justified in keeping their outside work hidden. In other cases, employees might fear repercussions if they reveal their additional roles, especially in workplaces where external work is discouraged. This creates an ethical gray area where professionals may feel compelled to hide their other commitments, even if these side jobs don’t interfere with their main responsibilities.

Risks and Consequences of Managing Multiple Priorities

From the first sight and looking at the tendency from a specialist's point of view, managing multiple priorities brings only benefits. So what bothers companies and employers, and what risks do specialists see for themselves?

Fear of Job Loss

How to handle multiple projects at once if there's possibility of the employer discovering and terminating the existing contract? This fear is heightened in organizations with vague or nonexistent moonlighting policies, where there’s a risk of negative effects. As a result, those managing multiple projects often operate in secrecy, taking extra precautions to prevent their employer from suspecting any outside commitments.

This hidden approach can strain employer-employee relationships, as professionals may feel compelled to obscure their work schedules or withhold their full availability. Over time, this lack of transparency can erode trust and create tension in the workplace.

How to Manage Multiple Projects at Once? Risk of Missed Deadlines or Delays

A major risk for professionals managing multiple projects is the likelihood of missed deadlines or a drop in performance due to conflicting priorities. Even highly organized individuals can become overwhelmed when unanticipated demands surface. If one project suddenly requires more attention, it can throw off their well-planned schedule, causing delays in other tasks.

As these deadlines accumulate, maintaining the expected quality of work becomes more challenging, potentially harming their reputation. This is where companies must pay close attention to how to detect fake candidates and ensure they have systems in place to identify when employees are struggling to meet expectations across multiple roles.

Real-Life Example: Working Secretly for Two Employers

Let's examine one of the examples with multiple job settings. One full-time developer managed to work simultaneously for multiple companies. For months, he skillfully balanced tasks between several employers, using automation to handle repetitive aspects of his work. His secret was only discovered when his performance began to decline, leading to delays in deliverables. After a routine audit, it became apparent that he was working multiple full-time jobs and had failed to disclose this to any of his employers.

What can be your response if you reveal that your employee works elsewhere at the same time?

• Introduce regular performance checks and audits. This can ensure that any discrepancies in work quality or patterns can be caught early.

• Set clear contractual terms. Implement agreements that would clarify whether employees can work for competing firms or take on external roles without prior approval.

• Improve reporting requirements. Introduce comprehensive progress reports, eliminating the cases with performance decline and missed deadlines.

And when the strategy becomes unclear and the task overwhelming, check out IT recruitment services or IT staff augmentation that can help you find suitable candidates committed to work only for one employer.

Strategies to Address the Situation

If you discover that your specialist figures out how to handle multiple projects at once, navigate the situation carefully and follow these steps:

• Make a thorough investigation. Collect solid proof of the employee's additional commitments. This process might include examining time logs, speaking with colleagues, and scrutinizing project documents for any discrepancies.

• Open conversation with the specialist. Address the employee directly and calmly with the gathered evidence. It’s crucial to give them an opportunity to explain their perspective and share the reasons behind taking on extra work.

• Evaluate the situation. Evaluate the seriousness of the situation. Are the external commitments affecting their work quality? Are there any obvious breaches of company policies?

• Pass to actions. Based on the circumstances, you can decide to terminate the contract or introduce stricter policies to prevent such issues from recurring in the future. If such a situation impacts the overall performance and productivity of an employee, introduce clearer and stricter policies to foster a culture of transparency. Finally, define specific guidelines to HR operations, so that they check this detail while interviewing a specialist.

Well-defined policies and stronger pre-employment checks can help establish a transparent environment and avoid similar issues in the future.

Balancing the Double Life

While managing multiple jobs can offer IT professionals short-term financial benefits and career development, it also introduces long-term challenges. Striking a balance is crucial, with both professionals and companies needing to uphold transparency and ethical standards. With clear communication and understandable policy, companies can save themselves from unwanted diminishing productivity, while helping specialists find a needed balance between growth, compensation, and professional fulfillment.

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by Ann Kuss
on September 19, 2024. Share on LinkedIn Post on Twitter

Ann Kuss is the CEO at Outstaff Your Team. After 11 years of expertise in building remote tech teams for startup unicorns and global tech brands, Ann decided to lead a new venture aiming to reinvent the way international tech teams scale. Throughout her career, Ann hired specialists for countless tech positions from more than 17 countries on all major continents. Ann graduated from Kyiv-Mohyla business school, is an MIM Kyiv alumna, and regularly takes part in mentorship programs for junior tech talents. Ann actively promotes knowledge sharing and curates Outstaff Your Team blog strategy, preferring topics that solve practical needs of IT leaders. She believes that structuring business flows (including hiring) is a well-planned journey with predictable and successful outcome.