agents fighting over a candidate

[billybiro]

That's right. It takes effort that some clients don't want to spend, not because they are lazy, but because they have better things to do with their time.

Better than ensuring they're getting quality professionals to perform a quality job? No wonder British industry is going to hell. Hiring the right people (whether they be permies or contractors) is crucial to companies who wish to truly succeed. This whole, we've-got-better-things-to-do-than-make-the-effort-to-hire-the-right-people is short-sightedness and a refusal to stop and sharpen the saw.

There's no moral or fiscal imperative for clients to become experts at finding the best contractors.

No fiscal imperative? Have you seen how much these agencies charge for their "services"? Seems what you're saying is that clients simply don't have the time to expend the effort to hire good people directly, but they'll happily pay a small fortune for a third-party to do the job badly.

Also, there's definitely a quality imperative. Assuming, as a client, you give a sh!t about the quality of the work performed on your behalf.

They just want someone to come in and do a competent job.

And therein lies the rub. Again, I'll ask. Do you honestly think the average recruitment agent is capable of effectively filtering truly high quality people, or even just competent people (again, be they permies or contractors) for highly specialised, disciplined IT roles?

[MarillionFan]

Unfortunately I've also been in more or less the same situation and i got turned down by the client in the car park before the interview because the agents were giving him grief. I'm sure I got unlucky and more often than not it can be worked out as you say.

I'm just wary now and avoidance of the situation is the best defense.

WHS

It's happened a few times over the years. Agents are like dogs fighting over a bone, or NLUK & Old Greg fighting to get the first barbed comment into a thread. Nobody comes out a winner.

[MattZani]

Updates: nobody got in touch with me. Not the client nor the agent. Client most likely dropped me.

Oh well, live and learn, I suppose.

[Old Greg]

Unfortunately I've also been in more or less the same situation and i got turned down by the client in the car park before the interview because the agents were giving him grief. I'm sure I got unlucky and more often than not it can be worked out as you say.

I'm just wary now and avoidance of the situation is the best defense.

Had you already paid for parking, or was the parking free?

[northernladuk]

Had you already paid for parking, or was the parking free?

I hadn't pushed the envelope with the money in far enough through the letter box so I was able to retrieve it.. So kinda both.