State of the Market

[SussexSeagull]

Can only speak for contracting but with a few noble exceptions the recruitment process has been broken for a long time. It has got to the point I don't even chase the result of an interview over and above talking to the agent after it if requested.

When I started my career in the mid 90s you sometimes got a letter back from a speculative CV. It's gone from that to no response if you give up your time to do a couple of interviews.

[Mephisto]

Just to echo what many have said. When interviews come along they tend to be for perm roles and the cynic in me feels there is a fishing exercise going on for expertise. Obviously not always.

Had some good conversations with agents I have known a while and they have been very honest about the bleakness, especially around contracts. One mentioend specifically FS (which is not my usual sector but I have worked for banks before now) that there is a 'freeze' on and existing headcount is being asked to pick up the slack.

All a bit tulipe / meh

[CoolCat]

Can only speak for contracting but with a few noble exceptions the recruitment process has been broken for a long time. It has got to the point I don't even chase the result of an interview over and above talking to the agent after it if requested.

When I started my career in the mid 90s you sometimes got a letter back from a speculative CV. It's gone from that to no response if you give up your time to do a couple of interviews.

I was actually offered a role a while ago, but nothing happened, agent rang me a week later to tell me it had all changed and the role was off...

[Fraidycat]

that there is a 'freeze' on and existing headcount is being asked to pick up the slack.

The light at the end of tunnel is when the freeze is lifted there is going to be a deluge of roles flooding on to the market

We just need Jerome Powel to signal he is going to start cutting interest rates and firing up his magic money printer, the BOE will follow, and then we will be off to the races again.

[eek]

Just to echo what many have said. When interviews come along they tend to be for perm roles and the cynic in me feels there is a fishing exercise going on for expertise. Obviously not always.

Had some good conversations with agents I have known a while and they have been very honest about the bleakness, especially around contracts. One mentioend specifically FS (which is not my usual sector but I have worked for banks before now) that there is a 'freeze' on and existing headcount is being asked to pick up the slack.

All a bit tulipe / meh

Could be worse - current clientco is shifting whole areas still to India

And that's going as well as everyone on here would expect - unqualified, inexperienced people doing things stupidly badly taking weeks to do things that takes me minutes.

[CoolCat]

Could be worse - current clientco is shifting whole areas still to India

And that's going as well as everyone on here would expect - unqualified, inexperienced people doing things stupidly badly taking weeks to do things that takes me minutes.

still Rishi and friends making money out of it, looks good on a spreadsheet

[hobnob]

I get a lot of emails through from agencies, and some of them look like good roles (e.g. a higher daily rate than I'm on now). However, I also get other emails for entry level roles which are barely above minimum wage. So, I think that a lot of these are auto-generated, and I shouldn't be too optimistic about the first group.

I've had a few phone calls from recruitment agents, but then they've asked me whether my current client has any other roles available! So, that suggests that they're struggling.

[eek]

still Rishi and friends making money out of it, looks good on a spreadsheet

It's not outsourced to India, Clientco has whole teams and departments there...

[jamesbrown]

I should have enjoyed the break to become healthy, fitter etc.

Easier to say with hindsight, though. It's one thing to take a break intentionally, but it's pretty stressful when enforced and you're looking at mounting bills - easy to feel like doing very little.

[FIERCE TANK BATTLE]

Think I'm going perm after this month, I need the cashflow because I don't want to sit here with no spending until something shows up. Started contracting 9 years ago, been on the bench since July. Really I just want to work for 1-2 more years and then semi-retire and do something outside of IT.

The market has been really dead, roles I get called about seem to never materialise. I was put forward for something promising 3 weeks ago, and every week the recruiter has updated me to say things are stalled, roles are on hold, they're trying to fill them with permies first, etc.

Feels like the agencies are just advertising roles that don't exist in the hopes that if they materialise they'll get in first.