How To Get The Most From An Employment Agency

Whether you are a seasoned job hunter or this is the first time in twenty or thirty years that you have needed to change your job, I have created some useful information about dealing with agencies drawing on my six years experience working in the recruitment industry in the United Kingdom.

-Agencies-

As an ex recruiter who worked for a well established local agency in the Midlands I have often heard first hand the horror stories of what happens when agencies get it wrong and make people’s lives a misery.

This section aims to clear up a few myths about agencies and also some hot tips and advice of how you as the job hunter should take control of them.

Remember that agencies can be your best friend or your worst enemy, so don’t be rude to them, a good agency will do all the running around for you, organise interviews and in some instances negotiate a higher salary or hourly rate.

-What does an agency do?-

The role of an agency is quite simple to find individuals with the right skills to meet the needs of the employers that they represent. In other words to match the Candidate (agency speak for you the job hunter) to the Client (the Employer)

I hear lots of people say, I work through an agency and they take loads of money of my hourly wage. I get paid 4.00 but the agency charges the employer 6.00 per hour.

It may feel that you are being ripped off but the answer to this is simple. All agencies have agreements with employers that allow for an additional percentage to be added on to the hourly wage. This percentage generally ranges from between 15 and 30% but can easily be higher.

This means that whatever rate the employer decides to pay to you as an employee; the agency can add its additional percentage on as a reward for finding suitable people to fill the position.

Most of the time it would be unlikely that you would be paid the amount the agency receives even if you applied directly to the firm because this is the agency’s fee for finding you. Having said this there are some agencies that will eat into the hourly rate they pay you in order to boost their profit margin, but it is not generally the case.

-What should I expect from my agency?-

A good agency should;

a) Offer you a face to face interview to find out your suitability for the types of positions they recruit for. I would strongly recommend that you make time to go to this as it allows you to leave a lasting impression on the recruiter and they are more likely to remember you amongst the thousands of CV’s they receive.

Hot Tip: Beware of agencies, who do not want to meet you, I would ask the question what have they got to hide? From my own personal experience I have found that such agencies add little value to the recruitment process and will simply send your CV to any and every employer that has registered with them in a mail shot approach, even your own employer due to their lack of care!

b) Help with your CV. A good agency will try and help you sort out your CV. They often have templates that you can use and will help you think about your experience and how best to present it.

Even if you have a stunning CV, the agency should have an intimate knowledge of the employer they are recruiting for and may be able to help you tailor your CV to the needs of the employer by focusing on those skills that are most relevant.

c) Feedback

Regardless of the outcome of your application you should always expect to receive feedback from a good agency, even if it is no more than a brief telephone call to inform you that you have been unsuccessful. Please be aware that employers don’t always provide feedback or are unwilling to disclose exactly way you have been unsuccessful and it is not always the agency that are holding information back.

-What is the process?-

It can differ from agency to agency but a good agency will generally follow the basic format outlined below.

1. You send your CV to the agency requesting that you are placed on their database and considered for available work.

2. The agency contacts you to arrange a 30 minute interview to discuss your CV and perhaps do a basic testing relating to the specific skills you have, i.e. typing, IT skills etc.

3. Following your interview with them the agency considers you for suitable jobs that are placed with them.

4. The agency contacts you to discuss any suitable positions and asks your permission to send your details or CV to the company.

5. The agency contacts you with 1-2 weeks with feedback

6. If you have been unsuccessful the agency continues to search for suitable vacancies.

7. If you are successful the agency arranges an interview for you with the employer and supplies you with details of the location and a map and directions.

8. After the interview you should expect feedback within 1-2 weeks.

-What is the cost to me?-

There is no cost to you. Agencies make their money by charging the employer for placing you in a suitable vacancy.

-Types of Position-

There are two main types of position Permanent and Temporary or Contract.

The word contract is used for skilled workers such as IT professionals, experienced builders etc. Temporary usually refers to unskilled workers such as packers etc. (No offence intended!)

Temporary/Contract workers are paid an hourly rate, which the agency adds a percentage on top as a fee for finding the employer a suitable person.

In relation to permanent placements an agency will have a fee that generally equates to between 15-30% of the first year annual salary of that person. For example if an agency finds a job for you that pays 20,000, the agency may charge the employer 20% which would equate to 4,000 for finding that person. This is an additional cost and in do way interferes with your salary.

-Hot Tips-

This process will vary slightly from agency to agency but there are some important things you should know, I am also pleased to say the activities below are ones that I have always refused to engage in, hence my decision to leave the rat race.

– When you are invited in for an initial interview (or if it is conducted on the phone) Recruitment consultants may try and glean information from you about other positions you have applied for. Let me explain their reasoning for this as it might make you think twice about what you tell them.

– This information is highly likely to be used as a lead for canvassing and obtaining other vacancies for the agency. Let me give you a real life example, as it is one thing that I refused to do. I spoke to a 63 year old IT expert “BOB” (an alias) who had been for an interview at an employer, a job which he had found through his own efforts. The employer had told him that he was the only candidate that they had considered and they were impressed with his CV. Subsequently he was contacted by an agency he had registered with and having been asked who else he had applied to innocently mentioned the name of the employer. One week later he was contacted by the employer to inform him that he had been unsuccessful in obtaining the job and that they had unexpectedly received a glut of CV’s. “Bob” checked this out and discovered that the agency he had mentioned the position to had rung the company and sent ten CV’s of other suitable people.

Never, never discuss the names of other positions you have applied for, the only person who will lose out is you!

A question to beware of;

Q: Just so that we don’t send your CV to one of the companies you have already applied directly to, can you let me know who else you have made application to. (If they accidentally send your CV to an employer you have applied directly to, don’t worry this can only serve to benefit you as the employer will receive it twice. What’s more if you have already applied directly the employer may fast track your CV so that the agency can’t earn a fee from it, so don’t worry!)

-Employers on your CV-

Beware of questions about your previous employers; usually recruiters also use this to obtain information from which to canvass from.

Questions to beware of;

1. Could you give me the name of your last boss for reference purposes.

Why do they need this information at this point in the process? Your answer should always be I will give you names of referees after I have been made an offer from an employer. Better still, when you go to Interview at the employer ask for the name and contact number of the person conducting the interview. If they make you an offer, you can then call them directly and pass on referee details, therefore bypassing the agency altogether.

The recruiter will hate you for not giving anything away, but you are just causing problems for yourself if you give them any details about your current boss or positions you have worked hard to find yourself. They also appreciate that you can earn them a lot of money if they find you the right position and it is very unlikely that they will make life hard for you, after all you are their most precious commodity!

-Which agency?-

My simple advice is not to register with too many agencies at once. Speak to your friends and ask them to refer and agency to you that they have had a pleasant experience of. Try one or at most two agencies first as very often they are chasing the same jobs and signing up with thirty different agencies means that you will be inundated with calls and emails about the same vacancies.

Also agencies like the fact that they be the sole agency with your CV, so negotiate with them, tell them that you will see how they perform over the next month and that you won’t register with anyone else until you see what they come up with. Sometimes this is a much better incentive to make an agency work harder on your behalf than if they know you have registered with every agency under the sun and it is not worth their while to compete with that.

I am no longer in the recruitment industry and have had a complete career change,I have tried to be as helpful in this article as possible so that you benefit! Please bear in mind however that the information in this review is purely based on my opinion and does not represent all agency practice. Indeed there are good agencies out there that get excellent results for their candidates and they are to be encouraged.

How To Get The Most From An Employment Agency