anyone ever been approached by an agency to work for the agency?

woolymammoth

..if that makes sense!

I applied some weeks ago for an IT job through a particular agency. Last week i received a (semi-generic) letter asking if I would be interested in working in recruitment! Has anyone else had any experience like this? I'm still debating with myself whether i should call them or not

Otis Driftwood

Unless you are out of work and/or desperate Id run a mile TBH.The recruitment industrys reputation is more or less shot to hell at this stage so starting in it now,as an inexperienced person is a massive,massive gamble.Unless you have a crap load of connections that you know will let you work their jobs Id stay well away.

woolymammoth

That's a fair point, and mostly the reason i haven't replied to them yet. But still, they obviously feel they have a need for someone, ergo, their business is doing well. no? See, i have a job, but it's temporary, with only a hint of something more permanent!

Otis Driftwood

If their IT recruitment side was doing well then why would they need to hire someone else?

Having worked in the industry alot of companies wanted to hire recruiters that had worked in the industry they were recruiting for,particularly for more technical roles like IT or say science and pharma.Its a help to have recruiters that know what they are talking about in terms of qualifications/skills etc.

The way the jobs industry is at the moment,every company that are hiring are going to be inundated with canvass calls every single day.Recruitment is easy when things are going well but with things as they are now,I wouldnt get back into it for love nor money.

If you are still interested then by all means go and have a chat with them about it but dont believe everything that they tell you,they are after all sales people.

mrgardener

nedtheshed wrote: »

If you are still interested then by all means go and have a chat with them about it but dont believe everything that they tell you,they are after all sales people.

Its no harm to talk to them, just try and see your way through the sales pitch, and find out what they are actually offering you. The industry is on its knees at the moment so you might be better off in your current role.

woolymammoth

surely if the industry was on it's knees, they wouldn't be hiring someone they needed to train, or am i just not getting how much they really need people to sell, sell sell!?!

Otis Driftwood

woolymammoth wrote: »

surely if the industry was on it's knees, they wouldn't be hiring someone they needed to train, or am i just not getting how much they really need people to sell, sell sell!?!

Decent recruiters that are making money arent going to leave jobs they are secure in so agencies are forced to look outside of existing recruiters and hire people with industry experience instead.Alot of recruitment is word of mouth and alot of companies have their PSL's -preferred supplier lists - that are next to impossible to get onto.Unless the agency that have approached you have alot of clients on their books then it would be very tough.

If they do have a big client base then why would they need to hire someone with no recruitment experience?

Surely they would want experienced people so as to service their clients as best as possible?

woolymammoth

Maybe they do have a lot of clients, but not enough staff to source and manage all the potential candidates?

Honestly, i have no idea how that industry works, but I'm genuinely interested now! In IT (et.al.), when you have clients that need supporting, and you don't have enough staff, you hire.

In sales, when you don't have enough clients, you hire sales people to find the clients. Does that mindset transfer to recruitment? does recruitment borrow from both a 'hire to support' and a hire to find' mentality? or is it a bit more clear cut and cut throat than that!

Otis Driftwood

woolymammoth wrote: »

Maybe they do have a lot of clients, but not enough staff to source and manage all the potential candidates?

Honestly, i have no idea how that industry works, but I'm genuinely interested now! In IT (et.al.), when you have clients that need supporting, and you don't have enough staff, you hire.

In sales, when you don't have enough clients, you hire sales people to find the clients. Does that mindset transfer to recruitment? does recruitment borrow from both a 'hire to support' and a hire to find' mentality? or is it a bit more clear cut and cut throat than that!

Recruitment is the hardest sell there is.Its relatively easy to sell something that people need/want.

Sales boils down to supply and demand.

Right now there is huge supply (potential candiates/employees and recruitment agencies) but little demand (jobs/companies that are hiring AND that are willing to use an agency) so common sense would dictate that taking a recruitment job is a very risky move.Thats not to say you couldnt make a go of it,who knows,but the fact is,a recruitment newbie,in todays environment,is going to find it extremely difficult to make a go of it.

Im not trying to poo poo your idea merely trying to point out both sides of the equation.

Good luck whatever you decide anyway.

woolymammoth

nedtheshed wrote: »

Im not trying to poo poo your idea merely trying to point out both sides of the equation.

Hey it wasn't my idea to ask me if i'd be interested in a career in recruitment! I was just trying to provoke some discussion to get some answers

appreciate the input!

Otis Driftwood

Like I said,go and have a chat with them but dont be afraid to ask them the difficult questions eg

Current client list (do they have one,are they on any/many preferred supplier lists)
What kind of targets will you have (financial,performance wise ie how many new jobs will be expected per week,how many interviews with clients etc)
What kind of lead in time will you have (ie,will you have a couple of months to get bedded in or will you be expected to start making money for the company within a month or two)
What kind of staff turnover does their IT sector have(why did the last person leave,is this a new position or are you replacing someone and if you are replacing someone,why did they leave?)

jnav

Applying for a job and being asked by the agency to join them is how I got into recruitment, and I'm still there 4 years later. IT is really picking up at the moment, and in good agencies, where they have a strong client book, many are hiring new, inexperienced recruiters to work alongside their more seasoned recruiters. As with any business, new blood is always important. I'd say have a chat with them and find out what they have in mind. Speak to a couple of people working in the industry if possible to get a feel for the sector and the job, and make sure it is suitable for you.
nedtheshed gave some good questions to ask the agency, no harm in asking them!