I’ve been working for the same company for 12 years now and have finally had enough and feel the time is right to leave. I work in the oil industry and put my CV onto an oil related website. To my amazement i have had loads of phone calls and emails from 12 different recruitment agencies in total either wanting me to visit them or them sending through job specs that suit my experience.

I have never dealt with agencies before so can anybody tell me any do’s or dont’s before i start to visit them?

If you are that in demand do you really need an agency? You might be better off applying directly for a job, though you’d have to do the research yourself.

Estate agents of the job world IME

Only experience with legal agency types who are mostly chuffin useless tbh. Most just want to punt your cv out in the hope that something will bite and they get their fee. The better agencies dont have a link to a list of jobs and you may have to pay a fee to them for an honest appraisal of where you are caree wise. In the end you may be better off sorting matters yourself.

When they look at you all they think about is how much money they can make from you

last year sometime the law changed so an agency can only send you on a job for 13 weeks befor it coming perm. so maybe it would be a good route then you would be able to see if you like the job and if not move to the next one.

they are pimps, will just want £’s off your labour.

then there’s the composite comps’ for your ‘money’– more leeches, just a whole heap of exploiters, they add no value to the world, just feed off the workers toil

Agencies have contacts/contracts in the companies looking for staff – end of.

Advice?

Every time you shake the hand of a recruitment agent, check to see if your fingers are all still present afterwards.

Watsontony, incorrect, I’m assuming you’re talking about the agency workers regulations, if so your understanding is very much incorrect.

Some agencies are better than others, same as anything. A good one will be able to access some jobs that the general public can’t. There is no particular way of dealing with them, if they have an interesting job then talk to them, if not don’t , make sure you see a spec and know the company before you invest to much time and effort. Some will ask to submit you before they tell you who the company is, strictly speaking this is illegal so push for the name. Chase them if you need to, remember that yes, they are there to make money but most will only make it when they place you, and generally the better your salary the more money they make.

Theyre just posting your details out in the hope they will get a hook off an employer, and get paid.

Why dont you just cut out the middleman and send your details to various companies.

Parasites

That said, I’m having such a rough time finding something I want to do, I’m considering using their”services”. Either way, they’re definitely B-Ark material.

When they ring you, interview them to see how much they know about the industry and your skill set.

I’ve lost count of the number of times an industry ‘expert’ has rung me and been totally bloody clueless when asked a few questions.

I have used them, they can be suitable for certain situations, bottom line though its a parasitic relationship. they do a lot of fishing as project says.

Wilst I can sympathise with some of the anti agancy sentiment, there are some good ones. Most companies I deal with will not recrit directly, so like it or not, you have to go through an agency.

It’s easy to get taken for a ride when you are new to using agencys, but if you have a lot of interest, just take your time and let market forces direct you. Personally, I know a lot of people who delight in treating to agents like they are scum, but IMHO they are just stroking their egos. There are a lot of decent agents out there, and if you are polite and honest with them, they can help you.

If you not good at negotiating, an good agent can be worth their weight in gold, especially if you have been somewhere for a long time and your confidence is low about getting a decent salary somewhere else.

If you new to it, my advice would be take it steady, be polite and honest and look at what the different agents propose.

Only thing I’ve ever established where agencies are concerned is, as a client you are king, as one of their staff you are not!

I get sent the details of about ten unmissable engineers a day.

I delete every single one.

Scrounging leeches, the estate agents of the job world is a good description. They will drop you into any job just to get their sticky paws on the fee, same as estate agents will tell you any lie in the book to get you to buy.

After 12 years in the job you should know exactly where you want to go and what you want to do next. If you don’t, stay where you are.

If I was in the same room as Hitler, Osama bin Laden and a recruitment agent and only had 2 bullets I would shoot the recruitment agent twice.

They can be useful as a way into companies that don’t advertise direct. Treat them like any other supplier and you’ll be ok. They are not your friend!! Whatever you do, don’t disclose other companies / jobs that you are applying for, they’ll be after the commission on placing someone and that won’t be you!

If they seem overly keen to get proffessional references for you, it’s probably because they are more interested in placing someone else at your current employer to backfill you leaving. Particularly embarrassing if they manage to talk to your current boss about an upcoming vacancy before you’ve handed in your notice.
Sharks the lot of em!!

a lot of companies are using agencies to fill temporary staffing needs, which usually end up being permanent if it works out.

I work in the marine industry most company will not take you on unless you go through an agency. companies are using certain agencies so its the only way to get your foot through the door. Ive worked for 3 different agencies, they all did things differently. So make sure you know what you are signing yourself up for.

Most are looking at filling numbers so they get there commission. I have found they are usually good at finding jobs quickly (within a week.)

Thanks for the replies. In the oil industry just now there is a huge shortage of skilled workers so people are moving and making good money. The majority of the jobs i am seeing are from the major oil companies down to the supply chain companies, some of which are very well known. As mentioned before, a lot of these companies only use agencies so its hard to know exactly whats out there without their services.

I never contacted them though. CV on one website and the response from the agencies has been incredible. Now i know there are jobs out there i might just send my CV to some companies and see what happens.

Oh well, it seems that the recruitments agencies came good in the end. I have had 3 job interviews and got offered all 3 jobs within a week. Chose the one i thought would be best and have ended up with a 30% salary increase and much improved benefits. New bike on the way i think!!! My present company even tried to counter offer to keep me but i told them where to go.

I guess there is no harm in registering with them if you are looking to change your job. As long as you keep them in control then you can do things on your terms.

Having worked in recruitment for a few years this was good to see. A bad recruiter adds nothing that much is true but a good recruiter is worth their weight in gold. I’m glad they came up trumps for you.

Congrats on the new job!

In my experience a good agency can give you a mix of career guidance and finding the right position. They’re not all parasites, you just need to put some time into interviewing them and finding a good one.

I get a lot of contact from recruitment agents via LinkedIn. Luckily the industry I work in is so small that I can normally tell through a job description exactly who the employer is so it’s easy to shake off the vague phony ones.

On a positive note, I have been a client of a couple of great recruiters over the years.

Congrats on the new job OP. Glad it all worked out.

I have worked as a contractor for 12 years, and all bar my latest contract have been introduced through an agent. There are lots of agencies in my industry (chemical engineer), but I only deal with two of them on a regular basis.
Ask around, see who the contractors in your industry deal with, and approach the reputable ones to see what openings they are recruiting for. I tend to avoid the ones that cold call (If I don’t know them already).
Works for me, only been out of work for 7 weeks in those 12 years.

Are you in oil operations / engineering?

If I was in the same room as Hitler, Osama bin Laden and a recruitment agent and only had 2 bullets I would shoot the recruitment agent twice.

+1 and beat Hitler to death.

Agencies are common practice in transport.
Manufacturer X will use Transport Company Y’s trucks, who will use Recruitment Agency Z’s drivers.
Approaching Transport Company Y directly for a job will get you no where.

Oh well, it seems that the recruitments agencies came good in the end. I have had 3 job interviews and got offered all 3 jobs within a week. Chose the one i thought would be best and have ended up with a 30% salary increase and much improved benefits. New bike on the way i think!!! My present company even tried to counter offer to keep me but i told them where to go.

This is more of a reflection on you than them. I was a recruitment consultant and know the business. We worked hard for a good candidate as that was how we earned our commission. For also to say that there is a big difference between recruitment for temp and perm jobs. The temporary posts were where we shafted people.

A shameful period of my life.

Just remember they are prob more interested in filling the job you are leaving than finding you a new job. The references they may ask for are just a way of getting contact details of your boss who may well be looking to replace you.

also remember that it is the employers who pay the bills, so the agents will look after them more than you.

finally, remember recruitment agents are rats, even the nice one.

Nice troll and sweeping generalisation. I imagine you are a saint fella.

other things to remember about (some, not all) recruitment agents that they won’t want you to know are:

– if you are looking for a new job, don’t go back to the agent who found you the existing position or they’ll (in many cases) be straight on the phone to your current boss to tell them you are thinking of leaving.

– You may agree a rate with the agent, who may then lie to the employer that you are on a higher rate, pocketing the difference as well the commission.

Yes, i do work in the oil industry. I have an engineering/ inspection background but now work in QHSE. The oil industry for jobs just now is very buoyant so i guess i started looking at the right time. What it did highlight was how underpaid i was and what other companies were offering for similar roles. In the end (out of a total of 15 agencies that contacted me) i went with 2 agencies who seemed to be more professional and set up interviews much more quickly. They stated what the salary was and this was confirmed at interviews with potential companies so if they did negotiate a higher rate and pocket the difference, i was no worse off.

I’ve got two jobs through recruitment agencies and it worked very well both times. I think the key is to find an agency/agent your trust (go for smaller/independent ones if you can find them), are knowledgeable in your field of expertise and who know exactly what you are looking for (role, location, salary, etc.) and accept that they need to find a job that matches that, not just whatever they can trawl up. Nothing ventured, nothing gained really.

Please note, my above comments are based on using various RA for the past 10-15 years. I use them now and will continue to do so.

Def a good idea to use them over applying for advertised positions, just be aware of the game being played. No offense meant on my part. X

Well by coincidence I just had a call from one of these guys. Along with the other chat he wanted to know a) has my last job been filled yet ? and b) did I know anybody else looking for work in my field ?

I laughed out loud, and told him why that was funny, he was cool. Some self-awareness there I think.

As has been said, find a good agency who specialise in your field. Build a relationship with the consultant, set out the kind of places you do/don’t want to work, your salary expectations, benefits/package requirements etc.

99% of people don’t know how to sell themselves. How comfortable would you be hustling on the phone, cold calling loads of companies and trying to force your CV in and get them to see the benefit in interviewing you before their competition get the chance? This is where a good recruitment consultant comes in, they are the marketing agent for you as an individual. That’s how I viewed it while I worked in the industry – dependent on what sector you work in, I can probably recommend you some very good companies/individuals to speak to.

🙂

Swings and roundabouts on both sides. Both can be equally as bad.