Agencies make their job, but how effective they are and to which one to turn to – that is the question. In common case employers and job searchers turn to employment agency (EA). But the principle of EA cooperation with both sides differs. There are two ways.
Employment agencies, that work at the expense of people who are searching for job
These agencies take money for their services from people who are searching for a job. This is a pay for a help in your job search. Limited term of job search (starting from 1-3 months) is common for all these agencies. Or the agency may help you to find a job till your full employment, on conditions that you give the stated percent from your first salary (15-50%) to the agency. Usually the last variant is preferable because of several reasons.
First, such agencies are interested in finding highly-paid vacancy, as soon as possible. The level of their profit depends on your salary, so they will try to find vacancies that are highly paid. But it depends on the agency policy. Qualitative selection due to the requirements of both sides is a slow and not always competitive way to prosperity.
Anyway, employment agencies that work at your expenses are interested in the number of people who turn to the agency. They attract by the majority of vacancies and doom employers to crowds of people. And people, searching for a job have to go through enormous number of firms. Other agencies collect people due to more qualitative job selection. How to distinguish them? It can be noticed in the course of time, when those agencies that were more professional heightened their rate in the labour-market.
You should turn to these agencies only if a job with average salary is convenient for you (these EA don’t usually offer highly paid jobs). Or if you just want to find temporal or part-time job. Only small firms that want to save money on staff recruitment usually turn to such agencies. Other vacancies are collected by their own agents. And they don’t get high paid vacancies.
Employment agencies that work at the expense of employers
Large companies prefer to pay employment agency for professional staff recruitment. Large firms can’t waste time on searching for an appropriate specialist themselves, that’s why they turn to proven agencies. In this case, only highly qualified specialists are sent to the employer.
Such employment agencies have other names – recruitment companies, head-hunters. Their work is purposeful, they are ethical. Only employer pays for the services, so the agency has its duties (terms of candidate search, free substitution etc). Agency services are free for those who search for a job.
Mainly top-staff turn to recruitment agencies (directors, managers, chief accountants, and building crews etc). Such companies have certain experience in staff recruitment. Recruiters are employees who have certain skills in the sphere of psychology and communication with people. They usually have corresponding education and of course they are familiar with the working field of the firm or organization to which the staff is selected. The also attend interviews for a job for reliable evaluation and staff recruitment in future.
That’s why it is effective to turn to recruitment companies in job search. It will be useful to learn such information about the firm: experience (advisable 2-3 years), in which sphere the staff is selected, for which firms they have already recruited the staff.
If the agency takes money from the company and from you – it doesn’t mean that your expenses will be divided fifty-fifty. In one case it’s the sign of the talent, in the other – fraud of employment agency (such companies are not appreciated in business). The firm that learned that the agency took money from them and from you, will have no respect to this EA. And of course, next time they will turn to other agency.
Following recommendations can be useful to make the right decision, to which agency to turn.
Professional employment agencies will ask for your CV. Certainly, you can yourself. If not, employment agency will offer their help in making it or will make some correctives in CV content and structure (it can be free or paid). It will help them to find more appropriate job for you. It is a plus if the agency sends your CV to the firm, before you go to the interview.
People rarely pay attention to these details, but they are very important in the hard process of job search. That’s why try to choose “right” employment agency.