Query on Recruitment Agencies

sandralovescats

Right, I have been doing some work!

I found two (for starters!) Recruitment Agencies that specialise in medical sales.

I have emailed both of them and have sent my cv, with a covering email. I have asked for their help and advice and a way forward with my plan of working in Sales.

Through another site I found a Company who do training days in Medical Sales.

So, all in all it has been time well spent!

Thank you to all of you for helping me find a way through!

peter999

sandralovescats wrote:

I am looking for a new career and I signed up for a couple of online agencies.

I found a job on the totaljobs.com website which was, as usual, listed with recruitment agency, so I applied for it. I heard nothing so I emailed the contact at that recruitment agency. I was told that they hadn't passed my application or cv onto the Company I had applied to work for since they didn't think I was qualified for the job!

Is this usual for them to do this?

Don't hold your breath.

If you're going to rely on agencies in this day & age, you'll be a long time waiting !!
Many are playing a game advertising jobs they don't have, trawling for CVs.
Agencies are a complete joke.

If you've got any chance of contacting a real employer, with a real person, doing a real job, do that.

peter999

liney

If you applied for a job at a 'real company' and didn't get it, would you phone up and give then attitude? No. You would accept their decision and move on. Agencies are simply matching candidates to the end employers specifications, and if you do not meet the criteria then they will not forward you. If they did, then the end employer would ask the agency why they cannot follow instructions.

Unfortunately average candidates are often difficult to place, because the client knows they will get these people apply through an advertisment in the job centre and they will not incurr fees.

Contry to popular belief, and agency only gets paid if you work for them, or you are placed by them in a permanent/contract position. They have no reason to play games with you as this doesn't make them any money.

peter999

liney wrote:

If you applied for a job at a 'real company' and didn't get it, would you phone up and give then attitude? No. You would accept their decision and move on.

It's called kicking them up the jacksy
-it seems to work, as in most areas of life !!

Agencies advertising the same job for months on end.
Agencies staff not reading CVs, don't understand jobs/industry they are recruiting for.

Agency staff recruiting on buzzwords.

Funny how if you phone an agency & remind them of your application/CV, they suddenly realise they can send your CV for the job.

They didn't realise that before your phone call or when they scanned (read) your CV when you first applied.

If companies/agencies dealt with applications better, they would not need "reminding".

peter999

liney

So you would call a company and moan that they have not selected you for a job?

Agencies advertising similar posts are often call centre type positions where there is an ongoing need for staff.

Buzwords, no. Requirements specified by the company, yes. It is the applicants job to sell themselves and provide a detailed C.V.

Tarring a whole industry with the same brush when you have had dealings with a very small sector is very narrow minded. I am sure there are many people here who have been placed on assignment by an employment agency and were happy in their posts. I would hate to see people put off taking this route for job applications as it is a wonderful way to obtain employment quickly and they have many vacancies you, yourself would not see advertised.

As a by the way, if recruiting by reading the words you have written on your CV to assess your suitability for a job is not acceptable, how exactly would you suggest it is done?

Pauper_Princess

I've heard loads of horror stories about recruitment agencies and only joined one very reluctantly when I heard I might be getting made redundant.

Rather than join one of the all-singin-all-dancing agencies with a branch in every town, I was recommended one by a former colleague, a local firm that's part of a wider network, and specialise in accountancy recruitment.

I had a chap assigned to me so I always had contact from the same person, I gave him a really detailed CV and he spent ages discussing what sort of position I was looking for.

Later that week he came back to me with 3 opportunities, but one was with the biggest and most well regarded firm around here, so I asked him to put me forward for that first rather than the other two. And I got the job!

So, one week and one day after registering with this agency, they found me what looks like being the best job of my career so far!!

You really can't tar them all with the same brush. I've known people who've joined the more mainstream agencies and been really disappointed... it's just about finding an agency that's interested in you and that you feel you can talk to and trust

peter999

Pauper_Princess wrote:

......it's just about finding an agency that's interested in you and ......

That is what it's ALL about.
Depends on a person in the agency taking an interest & the industry you're in.

You've struck it lucky.