Your Kickstart To Freelance DataOps, MLOps & GitOps Consultancy.
Machine Learning Engineering, MLOps, Data Engineering, Cloud Engineering,
Platform Engineering and Site Reliability Engineering.
Startup Accelerator is here to help you startup your freelance Software, Data & AI career, including a freelance
project of your choice. Many types of consulting projects are available to accelerate the next step in your career.
How Startup Accelerator is here for you
Since 2018, we’ve helped Software, Data & AI professionals find consultancy roles they love at companies like KLM, ING, Vattenfall, and Randstad Group. Startup Accelerator helps Machine Learning Engineers, Data Engineers, Platform Engineers and Cloud Engineers (SRE, Security, DevOps), become independent, freelance consultants.
In our vision, freelance consultancy is The Future of Work. That’s a difficult step to take, but we’ve found a solution. We act as a stepping stone to move away from traditional employment towards more flexibility, technically challenging projects, and higher earnings —
Startup Accelerator connects you with your first project at a company of your choice and take you through every step of establishing your own freelance consultancy company — all before ending your current employment contract.
Instead of a fixed salary, you earn 75% of the hourly rate, around €10,000 per month (plus many tax benefits), depending on your ideal work-life balance.
After one year, you are ready to fly on your own without Startup Accelerator. The Future of Work, it's up to you.
How it works
1. Introduction ->
2. Meet with companies ->
3. Sign contracts ->
4. End current job ->
5. Onboarding Growth Accelerator ->
6. Start as a freelance consultant.
Startup Accelerator has been established to help experienced DataOps, MLOps & GitOps startup their career as a freelance consultant. We believe consultancy firms are not The Future of Work. For several reasons.
Our promise to the companies that work with us is simple. The same quality of hire (QoH) for external employees, for a lower hourly rate compared to consultancy organizations. That with the possibility to hire each person directly after one year, if there’s a mutual fit. A winning solution for everyone.
We provide you with all the tools to document your administration and guide you throughout the process
In collaboration with The Compliance Factory, Startup Accelerator provides all contracts for compliance with the Dutch government to comply with all requirements.
We remove all the administrative and financial aspects of becoming a freelance consultant through our collaboration with The Compliance Factory, called Growth Accelerator Contracting. In this way, we offer you the possibility to focus on what you would probably like to do instead of the downside of starting up your own company.
Two ways of freelancing
Freelance consultancy by starting up your own company
Freelancing as a ‘ZZP’ consultant obliges you to register yourself at the Chamber of Commerce from the start, so you will be an official entrepreneur. You will earn 75% of the hourly rate we can charge for you, however, you are excluded from secondary benefits. The downside is you won’t have the same securities as a a non-ZZP’er - see below - however, you do have the benefits of several tax deductions as a registered company and entrepreneur; Self-employed & deducstart-up deduction and allowance and SME profit exemption.
The downside: new laws and requirements for freelancing:
The new Dutch law requires everybody to work for three different employers per year - and also to be eligible for the Dutch tax deductions as a ‘ZZP’ consultant, you must fulfil certain requirements such as:
Documenting activities (time records
Demonstrating the independence of your business
Having three or more clients
Working at least 1.225 hours per year in your business
Having specific labour relationships with three different clients and displaying an entrepreneurial risk, such as money and/or time investments.
However, through Startup Accelerator we help you during the first year through our collaboration with
The Compliance Factor. After that first year, you should be ready to fly on your own and make sure everything is compliant.
Freelancing without starting up your own company
Freelance consultancy without the need to register yourself as a company at the Chamber of Commerce. After the first year, you are ready to fly on your own without Startup Accelerator as a ‘ZZP consultant’, continue working from our staffing agency (Growth Accelerator Staffing), or join an organisation directly when there’s a mutual fit. You will earn around 5,500-8,000 euros per month on average, which includes employee insurances, sickness leave, paid holidays, and incapacity for work insurance, among other secondary benefits. Anyway, we’ll make sure it’s more than your current salary.
When you work as a freelance consultant through Startup Accelerator during the first year, you will even have your income guaranteed when you are not able to work, or even between projects. A phase-B contract from the start. You will a comparable net income as when you register as an entrepreneur, but everything is arranged beforehand. That’s what we call freelancing without the risks of starting up on your own.
What to choose:
Your net salary won't differ that much based on what you choose. Or maybe you want to be part of a company eventually, instead of freelancing. Our advice? It’s not required to make a decision beforehand. Let it depend on the company you will work for, and decide afterwards if it’s necessary to register at the chamber of commerce after the first year. Freelancing or becoming a registered ZZP consultant: It’s up to you. We're here to help you startup and grow.
In short: Why Startup Accelerator?
Independence
Imagine the freedom to startup your own company. After one year you’re free to fly on your own, without limits.
You’re in control.
Doing what you like
Startup Accelerator helps you become a freelance consultant, so you can do the projects you like to do.
Without the hustle.
Work-life balance
You’ll earn around €10,000 per month, or adjust your time for a better
work-life balance.
It’s your life.
Some example companies we work with
Is Freelancing the Next Step in Your Career?
Still not sure if you’re ready to take the freelance leap? Answer a few questions on the following form to find out if independent consultancy is a better fit for you than your current employed position. It only takes 2 minutes.
AI-for-Good
Small steps towards our planet's healthiest, full potential — one SDG at a time.
Why not do something else besides all the commercial stuff?
How can Data & AI advance the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for the well-being and prosperity of people and the planet? That's a question we care about! Although we are not a non-profit organization or NGO, we're committed to doing our part to help make the world a better place — now and into the future.
Our partnership with Fruitpunch AI and and the UN, we contribute through working on several use-cases, based on the SDG through AI. Moreover, 20% of the profit from AI-for-Good goes to the UN.
Hence, in two ways you or your organization can contribute as well with knowledge and implementations of AI for prosperity and well-being.
How and why can we contribute through
Startup Accelerator?
Choose a challenge from Fruitpunch AI, brainstorm together or submit your own challenge based on your company’s data and use-cases you never picked up.
Determine a business cases in line with the SDGs in four different ways, improving your employer branding as well at the same time for attraction and retention.
Solution: solve one of your company's challenges (business case)
Employer Branding: create a fun event for your (future) employees (attraction)
Personal Development: educate your current workforce (retention)
Recruitment: review technical skills of new employees (hiring assessment)