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• As one who has been an IT contractor for over 20 years, I will verify the fact that external recruiters publish phony ads and never respond to resumes sent to them. These external recruiters(brokers) only respond to  about 10% of the resumes I've sent out, and I only send them a resume if I feel I'm 100% qualified for the job as they list it. In conversations with the ones who respond, they usually add more requirements than what is listed in their posting. On your own postings, I've seen the same ad run for several months, just update the date to make it appear as a new job. Some can be recognized by the same misspellings.

  Bill 13 Feb 2007

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• I have encountered gross incompetence from some recruiters -- including at least one whose ad I answered from eFinancialcareers.
  
  

  Within the past 3 months or so, one recruiter used the words, "Awesome" and "Bummer" during his initial phone call to me.  With some reluctance, I agreed to come meet with him (he'd also told me he had "lots of openings" that might fit my Wall Street analyst credentials, but said the advertised position I'd applied for was no longer open -- a pitch that's usually a dead giveaway the recruiter isn't legitimate).  But after checking his firm's web site and seeing their main business is placing temporary clerical and janitorial help, I called back to cancel the appointment.
  
  

  While running down my history for another recruiter whose ad I'd answered, he mentioned my latest employer, Cantor Fitzgerald, and asked, "What type of firm is that?" 
  
  

  "You don't know what Cantor Fitzgerald is?" I asked incredulously.  "No," he replied.  "Then I don't think we should be talking," I said, and hung up.
  
  

  Finally, the nationwide recruiting mill mentioned in your story, Robert Half, called me after I'd answered one of their listings.  Like his boiler-room counterpart I mentioned earlier, this Robert Half guy said he wasn't calling about the listed opening I'd applied for, but he had plenty of others that he'd be happy to discuss if I'd just come down and meet with him. 
  
  

  I wound up investing an entire morning at Robert Half's downtown Manhattan office, much of it spent filling out one lengthy form after another.  True to form, once we'd met and he'd achieved his objective -- getting all my information into Robert Half's database so their salespeople can pitch new customers/employers by saying "we have 3 million and 1 financial professionals in our candidate data base," instead of just plain old 3 million -- I heard nothing from him thereafter and he didn't respond to my emails. 
  
  

  He even talked me into also signing up for Robert Half's consulting division (which handles project and freelance work).  That meant filling out more forms and meeting with another handler.  Naturally, she didn't respond to my emails either -- let alone refer any work my way.
  
  

  A vast majority of the legitimate recruiters I've had contact with, also haven't referred me for any positions, and rarely if ever respond to my phone calls or emails.  The difference between them and the 3 chop shops I just cited is, the legitimate ones didn't approach me; I approached them.  A legitimate recruiter will never ask a candidate to meet with him/her unless they have a current opening they think the candidate seems perfect for; and usually not even then (they'll send the candidate's resume, and later the candidate himself, direct to the employer). 
  
  

  So when a legitimate recruiter won't give you the time of day, he or she is just doing their job -- the way it should be done.  You aren't their customer, the employers are, and if they don't have a current opening you'd be perfect for, they'd just be wasting their time and yours to meet with you or even talk with you -- and in all likelihood won't, unless you're an in-law or something. 
  
  

  And if a recruiter does beg you to come in and fill out forms when they have nothing concrete going on, it's a pretty good sign their objective is something other than placing you in a job.

  Jon 13 Feb 2007

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• I have seen many phony job ads and not legitimate recruiters. I have applied many of those jobs, never heard anything. Now I heardly respond to any ads because it is very difficult to distinguish between real and phony adds and their recruiters.

  Alor 14 Feb 2007

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• I've been through very similar experience. After sizable gap in my resume due to time off to raise my kids, recruiters treated me as a criminal even though I worked previously in the financial industry for about 10 years. I was looking for about a year and then had to compromise in a very big way -hiding almost all my credentials to lend myself in a entry level job which I would not have considered otherwise. This changed my current status to working and the recruiters attitude changed drastically.
  
  

  Nowadays all they see is the current experience and 90% of them will try to match you with simialr openings, if they have any. The feedback after a interview is also not there. It is like a war going on out there. It's total waste of time and energy trying to lend a good position today eventhough you're very hard worker and have incredible credentials.
  
  

  I have spent so much time and effort finding a job then doing it. It's like doing marketing course in real life, and if you fail, you starve.

  Derswap 14 Feb 2007

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• Every profession has its continuum of high and low end, experienced and new, etc.  That being said, most contingency recruiters do not want to admit they have a non exclusive and are often unaware that the job is being shopped on other websites.  I've also found that relatively few realize its a relationship business, and that even if I am not a fit for a specific role I probably know others who are.  The recruiting industry could use a "seal" of approval or trade association to promote best practices -- it would raise the overall level of compentence and take some noise out of the process.

  Brian 15 Feb 2007

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• I've spoken to many recruiters and feel that if you don't get the job on the 1 interview that they provide they drop you as a client.  I have spoken to at least 4 recruiters and if something doesn't work out they just drop you and never contact you again.  This is very unprofessional and discouraging.  I have been looking for atleast 8 months and feel I am nowhere closer to finding something than I was 8 months ago just starting.  I have heard the story we have lots of openings and of course we can help you.  Well, if they can't they should just say so and not get your hopes up that this is finally someone who is going to help you get a job.

  Maria 15 Feb 2007

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• The comment by investment bank/financial services HR & Recruiters that they can't find good candidates is bogus. I have met many very qualified people in my search including over 400 senior colleagues within my networking group. The problem is not the lack of qualified candidates but the myopic approach by HR to filling positions to very narrow set of specifications. Recruiters will only present candidates that meet those specifications. But who can blame them as contingency recruitment is a commission business and presenting candidates that do not meet the "specifications" will not be looked and worse the recruiter could the employer as a client.
  
  

  What is even more frustrating is that many hiring managers do not know themselves what they want and follow HR lead. So its no wonder that HR can't find "qualified candidates".
  
  

  As senior international marketing/sales/business development with extensive experience in prime/equity brokerage, middle/back office operations/client relations, and insurance find myself consulting on short term projects because they can't find qualified candidates.
  
  

  The question Hiring Managers/HR/ and Recruiters should tell and ask cadidates: This is what needs to be done. What do you do and how would you do it what needs to be done.  This is the value proposition. Candidate brings value and the Employer values what the candidate brings to the table.  This value is beyond rigid specifications. If there is no value then there is no match.
  
  

  I will continue to consult until I find an organization that values what I do. On a final note I met a number of recruiters who are very professional and continue to work with them.

  Ernesto 15 Feb 2007

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• Phony Ads are all over the place.. You find the same ones on this site, bloomberg, monster etc,..  the only way to stop it is for sites like these to charge per add instead of flat rates to post as many as you want. The only goal of these firms posting fake adds is to build databases of perspective employees so that when they do get a job they have databases of proposective people to fill them. After a while you get realgood at spotting these. The best recruiters are ones you never heard of and that you find out about through friends and senior industry people.
  
  And recruiters are notorious for not giving feedback or getting back to you if the one interview they get for you doesn't work out. They also tend to get back to you right way when they have a position (which you are usually too overqualified for) that they are trying to fill. If you say not interested, they just dump you.
  
  buyer beware

  BrF 04 Mar 2007

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• These comments are hilarious. I used to be a recruiter so let me explain some things to all of you.
  First off, you are not the "client" of a recruiter.  Quite the opposite--they are your potential employer.  The client is the end company you would work for, and the recruiter works for THEM to find them a GOOD candidate, not YOU.  If they don't contact you again its because your skill set does not match the open positions the sales people at the staffing firm have opened.  They bill their clients when someone is placed so it makes no sense for them to not contact you if you are truly marketable.
  As for phony ads--that is even more absurd.  It costs tons of money to place these ads so why the hell would recruiters pay to place an ad if there is no job!?  The reason why you see so many ads that stay on for a long time is because the hiring manager is either too picky, or something happened (like funding got cut/the manager halted interviewing for a while).
  As for the postings being limited then the recruiter telling you more about the job that is because they try to refine the job description (because the hiring manager's are often unrealistic).

  Former recruiter 16 May 2007

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• I currently am working with 5-6 recruiters - several of which use bogus ads to attract candidates.  I don't know when 'former recruiter' was in the recruiting business but I do know that I have seen ads placed by companies and within hours have received calls from the recruiters saying they just got a new job in and then saw those firms posting the same job just saying 'their client.'  Only 3 of these firms have called me about positions that were NOT already listed online.  The attitude that the client is the employer so to hell with candidates is short-sighted.  Extending professional courtesy is simple, not time consuming and builds relationships which potentially will grow your business.  I don't use recruiters when I'm the employer-client who were unprofessional when I was the candidate and that included a courtesy phone call when I didn't get jobs.

  currently looking 16 May 2007

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