I have been working in the same (highly specialized) area of software engineering for nearly 20 years, and am now considering the prospect of moving into consulting in this area. I will probably not make the move for the next year or two, as I would like to research the prospects, brush up on some related skills, and know what I am getting into.
I am wondering if there are others who have made a similar move, and what advice they have.
Is there any chance of being successful these days in a consulting company where you are the only employee?
Keep in mind that in all likelihood I will be working on one of a couple open source projects, or updating already constructed proprietary software - it's very unlikely that I would be asked to design and construct a new piece of software as it's tens of person-years of effort in this area. As a result, companies that hire me would not be completely screwed if I were to die a horribly tragic death, so being the only person in this consulting company wouldn't have the same drawbacks it might have in other instances.
Also - there tends to be a regular trickle of contract positions in this particular area - I just don't want to work for someone else if I can manage it (although I might be open to that if it's the only way to swing getting out of a full-time gig - take a couple six month contracts a year with a month or so break in between each).
My goals are to be able to work remotely, and take some time off occasionally (more than the 3-5 weeks/year I have gotten in my last couple positions - perhaps more like 6-10 weeks/year), and if possible do a little travel while working remotely (I know, probably pushing my luck on this one). I currently pull down approx $200k + a small amount of stock, and I don't necessarily need to clear that much, but if I am taking care of my own healthcare, etc., I do want to make sure that after all of that I am not too far below that (let's say $140k).
Your thoughts and feedback are appreciated.
First question: how many potential customers have you come in contact with? Presumably, after 20 years you know the niche: how many companies are there out there that would be interested in hiring your services?
Next question: Any way you can build any "name recognition" in the niche? This is where "personal branding" becomes a good idea-- I'd start blogging, if I were you, and participating in conferences, etc.
The hardest part about being a one-man consultancy is customer acquisition. If you can create a situation where the customers are coming to you, asking you to work for them, you're golden. So: start from there, and work backwards-- how can you make that happen, in two years?