Recruitment agent sales tactics and annoyances

jopwo_87

Why would anyone have a hidden agenda? We are all trying to find jobs.
If we all stopped registering with you then you'd go out of business too so it swings in roundabouts!!
All i ask is some common courtesy. Dont tell me i can start my new job tomorrow then never ring me again. Dont say you'll call me back when you wont. Dont send me emails for jobs that you wont put me forward for.
Simple really innit lol

liney

jopwo_87 wrote: »

Why would anyone have a hidden agenda? We are all trying to find jobs.
If we all stopped registering with you then you'd go out of business too so it swings in roundabouts!!
All i ask is some common courtesy. Dont tell me i can start my new job tomorrow then never ring me again. Dont say you'll call me back when you wont. Dont send me emails for jobs that you wont put me forward for.
Simple really innit lol

You aren't reading threads very carefully are you? If we (no longer me, but it used to be) spent all day taking your calls asking if you had any work yet. or calling you back to tell you nothing has changed, then when exactly do "we" have time to generate leads, speak to clients, recieve Job Descriptions so that we actually have positions to put people forward to?

I am not (was not) employed to spend all day calling candidates on the database/jobboards who are not suitable for my current vacancies. I am (was) paid to speak to the ones who were suitable or marketable.

Lets pretend you are an Estate Agent; would you expect them to call everyone who wants to buy a 2 bedroom house daily to tell you there are only 3 beds for sale today?

As for starting a job and not ringing you back when we say we will... the amount of people who came through with a "You said you would call me on Monday" when i actually said "I will call you when i have something suitable" is amazing. Many candidates either simply don't listen, or hear what they want to hear.

Some companies do email flyers. I'm not fond of them myself because you just end up with unsuitable candidates complaing that they can do that job... Oh the CIPD qualified post when you don't have that qualification? I see, obviously you are ideal and i'm a witch for not putting you forward.:rolleyes:

Companies employ agencies to find them X. They don't want a Y that can be an X, they want a qualified X who can start on A date, not B date, but A date. They don't want someone who thinks they might be able to do Z, they want someone with proven ability to do Z. If the client company wanted to spend money on sifting through unsuitable C.V's they would not employ an agency.

jopwo_87

Your missing my point. I understand what your saying, but i do expect a certain degree of customer care. And i didnt mi-understand about the job, he offered me the job. It was confirmed, i was to start the next day, then suddenly it all went out the window with not so much as a phone call!
Im not getting at all recruitment agents, so dont be offended, i get your point and i appreciate it and now i will think twice about calling mine.

cue

jopwo_87 wrote: »

Your missing my point. I understand what your saying, but i do expect a certain degree of customer care. And i didnt mi-understand about the job, he offered me the job. It was confirmed, i was to start the next day, then suddenly it all went out the window with not so much as a phone call!
Im not getting at all recruitment agents, so dont be offended, i get your point and i appreciate it and now i will think twice about calling mine.

It's unusual for that to happen in a good consultancy - there is a difference between an agency and a consultancy. Agencies are about numbers, consultancies about service and quality.

What you've experienced doesn't surprise me, which is saying something i suppose, as there are good and bad consultants AND good and bad agencies/consultancies.

I've sacked consultants for doing this type of things. That's just a communication error - laziness. It wouldn't suprise me though if the client company either changed their mind or the consultant was trying to get you in to that company and misled you about confirming a start date/time... Are you sure they were asking IF you could start on that date?

liney

jopwo_87 wrote: »

Your missing my point. I understand what your saying, but i do expect a certain degree of customer care. And i didnt mi-understand about the job, he offered me the job. It was confirmed, i was to start the next day, then suddenly it all went out the window with not so much as a phone call!
Im not getting at all recruitment agents, so dont be offended, i get your point and i appreciate it and now i will think twice about calling mine.

If the Consultant didn't call you to cancel, assuming you had a mobile/were at home to be contacted, then i agree that is shoddy. I would not condone that behavior, and if someone if not required to attend an interview/start an assignment we would have done our best to contact the candidate and taken your number home to call in the evening if you didn't answer during the day.

Some agencies are unprofessional, but we did our best to look after our candidates because A) We would expect to be treated politely, Disgruntled candidates provide fee publicity that you really don't need, and C) If you treat someone well, then they are likely to recommend you!

As i have said, it's not my bag anymore, but reading various threads where "All agencies are crap" Consultants being called "Scum" are bang out of order so i had to pipe up. There are many sectors which i could consider immoral but i certainly don't go around calling people scum because of the job they do, lest a Sales Person who is selling a perfectly legitimate service.

Best of luck those who are job hunting, and don't rule out all agencies because you happen to come across some cowboys.

MikeyGMT

If I don't don't like the agent calling, I politely decline their assistance.

I have actually had real interviews from good agents, in the last month or so. My agent offered to meet me before the interview, for a chat and a coffee and to sort paperwork out. Then it snowed, and London had a day off! Shame, missed that one!

I guess it comes down to good old human relationships, if they don't like you they wont be able to sell you to employers as well as if the get along with you. Of course you dont need to choose crockery, marry and have grandchildren LOL.

Remember too that they often will be chasing to fill the same vacancies. So find an agent you like, if possible, take time to go meet them.

By the way, they are legally obliged to tell you who they have sent your cv to, for your Data Protection. A good agent will ask who you have been put forward for because employers get peeved if they get the same cv from different agents, it reflects badly on you, or so I am told.

I have never been asked for references, but if you use LinkedIn.com, then build your cv, you can ask ex-colleagues to 'recommend' you. So if they ask, they can look on there, without any need for contacting referees.

Hope that helps...

GrammarGirl

I registered with three agencies when I was job hunting. Two rang me while I was working and when I told them I was unable to speak to them, they assured me they'd ring back out of hours or send me an email instead. Neither did.

The third only ever rang me out of hours in the first place. She was happy to converse through email as she knew my current workplace didn't know I was jobhunting. She was friendly, helpful and made me feel like she really did care about getting me the right job. She was also very honest - she put me forward for one position but not before telling me it was a much longer commute and asking if I was ok with that. I was and in the end I took that job.

Rhys_Gethin

A question for the recruitment agents on this site - why don't you insist upon sole-supplier agreements with your clients? And more to the point, why doesn't the trade body insist upon it?

I too am jobseeking and I'm tired of the fishing calls from the agents I'm dealing with. I'm not going to agent-bash (I think I'm at the back of the queue anyway!), but I'm intrigued why this hasn't been put into place. Fishing would be pointless if you knew that all jobs available through agencies were locked into agreements, so you could spend your time more productively pursuing stable, long-term contracts.

The candidates would be happier to receive fewer annoying calls, and the clients would not receive calls from agents with the "ideal candidate on their books" (yawn!). Comments appreciated!!