I’m looking for a job.
This already stressful endeavor is made all that much harder in the Southern California region because of intense competition.
No, Not competition among job seekers. It’s from Competition among Job Placement agencies.
Yes, Job placement companies have muddied things so badly that in applying for a job in my field and then seeing another position and applying for it, can result in my being disqualified from both positions.
Why? Because what appeared as two distinct positions were in fact the same position.
The Placement agencies take on things is this; Since I applied through two different agencies I’m obviously trying to create a problem about who gets the placement fee.
This hasn’t happened just once, it’s happened a number of times.
It PISSES me off!
Let me be clear.
If I apply for a position through a damn headhunter I’m pretty sure that I am qualified for the position. I take the time to fill out the headhunters little survey, I answer all the questions, I play their little game. I’ll write a cover letter, and make sure that I submit my resume to the fucking headhunter in Word format so the lazy fuck doesn’t have to do anything except press the send button on their computer.
Then I’ll keep searching the want ads. If I see another position and that position is listed in a different city with a different job description, I’ll apply for the second position in the same way. Even if the position is listed by another agency.
I’m looking for a job. That means that I need to get my resume in front of as many hiring managers as I can.
I don’t need the added complication of having to pander to some fucked up placement agency who isn’t going to do SHIT to market me to ANYONE that I don’t point to and say, “I’m a match for this open requisition”.
After I’ve applied for several positions, a few days go by and then I get either a nasty phone call or I get a hostile email saying that I’m an evil fuckwad and my resume has been pulled from client consideration. When the screaming stops, I ask “why?”
It’s usually then that I discover that one or both of the fucking headhunters were inaccurate in listing the city that the job was in.
Often these MORONS will list the address of the job placement agency INSTEAD of the actual city that the hiring company is in. In Southern California this means that you might be looking at a commute that increases from 45 minutes to an HOUR and 45 minutes. Aside from the commuting issue this makes it impossible for someone looking for a job not to innocently apply for the same position. But the agency believes they’re doing you a favor and most choose to be assholes even in the face of facts.
Usually these so called “professionals” have changed the description the hiring company sent, into something almost, but not completely different. Often the description is re-worded through a filter of shitty 3rd world cesspool English which not only misrepresents the position but serves to obfuscate any similarity between two different headhunters ads.
BUT I’m the fucker! I’m the one that is trying to be dishonest and cause problems. Yeah well FUCK YOU!
I’ve decided not to apply to ANY position that is represented by a “Job Placement Agency” if I can help it.
After all why the hell should these bastards get 15% for doing absolutely nothing? I prefer to have that 15% as a negotiation tool.
Below is a funny example of the sloppiness and stupidity I’m experiencing. Here is an email solicitation from one of these jerks.
I’ve redacted most of the personally identifiable information just so I don’t find myself in legal hot water.
Obviously, my name isn’t “Pcl III”.
If he’d actually read the contents of my resume he would KNOW already that I have the mobile testing experience that he’s requesting and the embedded testing experience that he’s looking for.
He’d also know my visa status and that I’m willing to relocate.
He also had an email address I haven’t used for anything in almost 6 years.
I’m not picking on Rob or his company per se. But this is the third fucked up email that they’ve sent me and the SECOND email after I got them on the phone and sent them updated information.
So it begs the question, just how efficient or real are these agencies?
A resume contains some sensitive information. By putting that information in the hands of people who obviously aren’t thinking do I expose myself to identity theft?
There are a couple of things that I need to point out.
I’m a suspicious fuck. Some might even think that I’m paranoid, so when I receive unsolicited emails I do look at the header information. Alternatively, if the email is something of no interest I just delete the email without ever opening it.
In this case since the email was about a job, I did verify that the email originated from a domain that was associated with a real company.
Rob, sorta screwed himself because he identified the company and the city that this requisition is for. Which means that I can go to the company web site and apply for the position directly. “Thanks Rob”
Since he’s not using my correct email, and thinks my name is Pcl I could apply for this position and dear ‘ol Rob will never be the wiser.
In the last five sentences of the email he makes a couple of grammatical errors that make me think Rob isn’t who he says he is. He signs his email with a typically American First and Last name. However upon further examination of the return email address in the signature line, I find rakumar@XXX.com is the “REAL” person who that would be receiving my response.
How am I supposed to feel about this?
Robs company has approached me demonstrating that they are perhaps not all that reputable.
They haven’t corrected the incorrect information they have on file about me even though they’ve been given the corrections and assured me that they would update their database.
They obviously aren’t reading the emails that they’re sending out. Which leads me to wonder how they’re perceived by the companies they’re presenting me to.
They have been untruthful about WHO I’m actually going to be dealing with.
Since their first contact is dishonest, what basis do I have to begin to believe that Robs’ company will be above board? Answer is NONE! That being said, I’m not responding to Rob, and I’ve placed his company domain name in my SPAMMER folder.
There are those who might say I’m over-reacting and I might be. Before you judge me too harshly please consider the following;
In a 30 year career, Only ONE headhunter has actually placed me in a permanent position.
Most of the placement agencies seem to hire disreputable kinds of people. Used car salesmen types come to mind.
In every job search, and especially those during economic turmoil the headhunters and placement agencies have been more of a hinderance than a help.
I’ve been told to write a cover letter, edit my resume, and write a justification for why I should be PRESENTED for a particular position by a supposedly honorable agency. The placement agent in this case used what I wrote as a justification for ANOTHER candidate. I know because that other candidate was a friend of mine. He got the job!
There is one headhunter that commonly sent emails to me which said, “You’re not a fit for this position. But pass this job description around to your friends who are…” That’s another guy that goes directly to the SPAM folder. He’s interesting because in the late ’90s and early 2000s he had his name on a building in the heart of Irvine, after 2005 his name disappeared and he’s now working for another agency as a recruiter. Karma sometimes is a wonderful thing.
If i’m going to be doing all the work anyway, I don’t want to get into a position where I’m negotiating away 15% of my annual salary just because some headhunter got his or her finger into the pie.
If you want a really scary view of todays headhunters, cruise over to Cybercoders. When you get to their web site start browsing jobs and on the left hand side to the screen you’ll be treated to a picture or pictures of the representative working to fill the position. Some of these photos are of professionals. Sadly a larger portion of these photos depict the representative in less than professional situations. I’m looking for a job, not a facebook date, and that’s exactly how the Cybercoders web site comes across. They’re another one that I typically won’t deal with. The exception being if the job is just cherry and I’m in a mood to put up with Cybercoders B.S.
Perhaps I’m just out of date… But I’d rather control who, how, and when someone receives my information. I’d prefer to have my resume placed in front of a hiring manager instead of having to be written to get past someone whose English proficiency isn’t above the 7th grade.
I’m funny about that kind of thing.