State of the Market

[Old Greg]

I need to rant...

Contracts in the North West are just not a thing anymore it seems. Ive applied for a few remote London based ones but not getting much traction as they are no doubt getting hits from local contractors. So given everything I have started considering perm positions. To be honest im getting to the point in life where its time to start moving over to perm as its suits my life better going forward.

On that note the manager at a very well known online retailer contacted me a few weeks ago about a Perm opportunity. He interviewed me for contract role last year and felt this role would suit. (I never got feedback from that but I put that down to their internal recruitment team who contacted me for that one)

So I take time out of family holiday to hold an initial conversation with him - lasting about an hour. Then a call with him and another manager this week to go really deep into the role etc. All is well say they will get back to me. I really like the role and would love to land it. So I was sold and hopeful they was. Ready to take it on the chin if they felt differently - thats fair enough.

Three days of utter radio silence. Despite messaging them directly on linked in checking in and asking how long feedback will be etc / saying thanks for their time - the usual.

This isn't some recruitment agent who I would expect nothing of but directly with a client who contacted me directly. Am I wrong to expect a little bit more respect / engagement ?

I know we are all expected to be sheets of impenetrable armour who never get emotional about anything on here but given everything that is going on in the world right now (in our personal live and working lives) and peoples somewhat fragile states I think people need to a bit more respectful of each other. I have only been looking for a month and I can already feel the strain. God knows how I would feel if I have been looking for 3 months like some of guys.

I have 12 month warchest etc - but that's not the point - I get self worth and meaning from doing my job and really want to get back at it

Anyway - rant over...

It's OK to rant. Best of luck.

But manners are terrible at the moment.

Mrs OG applied for a part-time lecturing job that she is very well qualified for. Had an interview. They then asked her to do an online (it was during Covid) 30 minute lecture to their students. She spent days preparing it, delivered the lecture and got great in-lecture feedback. Then hasn't heard a thing, despite chasing up twice for feedback. No response. Zip.

[Old Greg]

I've said it before elsewhere, but while the contract market in Dublin is suffering, there's still plenty of work around, and there are some areas where UK experience is highly valued. And it's going to be almost all WFH for the next approx. 1 year I would guess. If anyone's interested, let me know and I'll post reasonable agency names up, and it's worth trying to make connections with agents - it's a bit m,ore 'human' here than in the UK. Or switch your LinkedIn job search to Dublin.

[SussexSeagull]

I think it has got to the point agents aren't chasing CVs when they send them in, which kind of begs the question what are agents adding to the process anymore?

[dx4100]

Yeah I know its "only 3 days"... but when your down and pissed off you just want an answer, 3 days feels like a very long time...

Im just ranting - back in my box :P

[SussexSeagull]

Yeah I know its "only 3 days"... but when your down and pissed off you just want an answer, 3 days feels like a very long time...

Im just ranting - back in my box :P

It's a situation that has got worse and wore through the years. I remember when you used to write with a speculative CV (pre Internet) and half the time got a, albeit, standard reply a lot of the time. If you went to the trouble of applying for a job you almost certainly got a thanks but no thanks letter in return. That has almost died off now.

Until fairly recently it would have been deemed the height of bad manners not to give someone a yes or no if they attended an interview and usually you were given a timeline when you would hear.

I suspect it is a combination of a crude attempt to be more efficient - which I would question because it would take about 30 second to send an e-mail as opposed to a couple of weeks of dodging phone calls and e-malls from a candidate -, the fact that people working in a HR related role don't want to give bad news anymore and an extension of ghosting and not saying yes or no to an invite in the wider world.

It's not a business problem, it is a societal one.

[simes]

I need to rant...

.....

Three days of utter radio silence. Despite messaging them directly on linked in checking in and asking how long feedback will be etc / saying thanks for their time - the usual.

.....

I have only been looking for a month and I can already feel the strain. God knows how I would feel if I have been looking for 3 months like some of guys.

Anyway - rant over...

I empathise, sort of.

But really, the durations you've experienced are not doing your story any favours... To sell the story and really surprise, they need to be longer. Just for the sake of the story of course.

[dx4100]

I empathise, sort of.

But really, the durations you've experienced are not doing your story any favours... To sell the story and really surprise, they need to be longer. Just for the sake of the story of course.

You make a very good point

[dsc]

Two months for perm roles is probably the fastest you can have it, typically a month for the ad to harvest CVs, then a month to interview and pick someone. In the current climate probably x2 / x3 those time frames, assuming you are lucky enough to even see a role make it to the end and they haven't found a perfect fit for half the expected money earlier on (and that you weren't unlucky to be binned because your CV hasn't got "synergy" listed as a key word).

[Eirikur]

Hi Everyone, I'm new to this forum and need some advice with the current market and jobs.

I have been a contractor(programmer) for over 12 years. but with covid no contract and started applying for perm roles.
Usually for contract roles been through on short telephone interview and an onsite interview with a technical assessment or just one interview ( i'm sure many of you had the same experience)
Now all the perm roles are asking to do "take home exercises" and some take good few days. Then to be told it's not what we expected...

Finally after passing 2 stages i am on to the third stage which is 2 hours and 45 mins interview. This is a fairly new company established in the last 5 years.

The role is not in my main programming language it's moving to a less popular language.

I need some advice here
1)is it worth switching carrier now?
2)say i got the offer and i don't like the new language i won't be able to leave as it's a perm role.

any advice would be greatly appreciated.
i know the market is pretty bad but i don't want to take the wrong decision.

First 3 to 6 months will be probation time in which you can give notice in typically 1 or 2 weeks, so just do it and give notice one day before your probation period finishes or whenever you find a suitable contract during that period.

[oliverson]

I'd pretty much given up hope yesterday but late on and this morning, a flurry of activity and I'm represented for 3 roles, all being outside IR35 and on good rates. Fortunately I know the agents involved, which I believe definitely makes a difference. Just a question of landing one now. Fingers crossed.