I just need to get two references ...

[bassy]

It is amusing though when you get the latest emails from the IT Job Board and one role has the words in its description:

Candidates with evidence of their successes in development, in terms of testimonials or references, will be considered ahead of others

In other words either
a ) This job doesnt exist and I am blatantly fishing for leads or
b ) This job does exist and I am still blatantly fishing for leads - if you dont give me a lead I wont put you forward.

The words "bargepole, stick" came to my mind as I dump the mail in the wastebin. Oh and it was an agency that comes up on here very often (<coughs>regressive<coughs>), who I wont touch with a stick or bargepole anyhow.

[DaveB]

Another blatant fishing call from a pimp working for a well known subsidury of the Ajilon Group.

"I have a high paying gig with a major media company in London. Wont bore you with the details of the spec but it all matches your CV. Can't tell you who the client is but they told me they want someone in the top 5% of their field. They want proof that you are up to the job and in demand so if you could give me some references of clients you have been approached by recently....."

Or words to that effect!

Wouldnt tell him who I have prospective gigs with there and then so he then asked if I could supply any references of people I have worked with in the past.

All terribly urgent since he is apparently seeing the client tommorow morning and needs to show them the references!

[Another Dodgy Agent]

That is (with respect fellow dodgy ) complete boll**ks. New Cvs with fresh references are much easier to exploit than trawling through databases looking for names. Putting the words "test manager" does not give you a list of line managers who have actively recruited in the last year. Such a search gives you people with "test" and "manager" on their CVs which is entirely different. The consultant then, having run the search has to sort out the line managers from those that once "managed to pull a bird" or "managed to get out of bed on time". Once that task has been completed it is then highly likely that the CVs are 2-200 years out of date and the "manager" is elsewhere.

Agents will always go for for the path of least resistance, and the chances of picking up a requirement from a line manager who is about to lose someone, who's name and telephone number are readily available are far greater than digging out names from an out of date database.

Fishing for references and sales leads is a key part of many sales agents KPIs.

Greetings fellow dodgy!

Our DB is inhouse written so searches tend to be more on point. LinkedIn is also another excellent hiring manager name provider.

Granted the practice may still go on (reference manager name gathering) but my point was that their are better (ethical) alternative's.

Happily after a decade of IT recruitment I can rely upon my trusty network so I have to admit to being a bit out of touch with current practice.

[BrilloPad]

Greetings fellow dodgy!

Our DB is inhouse written so searches tend to be more on point. LinkedIn is also another excellent hiring manager name provider.

Granted the practice may still go on (reference manager name gathering) but my point was that their are better (ethical) alternative's.

Happily after a decade of IT recruitment I can rely upon my trusty network so I have to admit to being a bit out of touch with current practice.

underhandedness

[Another Dodgy Agent]

underhandedness

That as well!

[DodgyAgent]

Greetings fellow dodgy!

Our DB is inhouse written so searches tend to be more on point. LinkedIn is also another excellent hiring manager name provider.

Granted the practice may still go on (reference manager name gathering) but my point was that their are better (ethical) alternative's.

Happily after a decade of IT recruitment I can rely upon my trusty network so I have to admit to being a bit out of touch with current practice.

Linkedin .. everyone is using it, which now means that anyone of any value to recruiters who is being inundated with calls is steering well clear of it.

The practice of using references is the best and most up to date way of gaining sales leads. In house databases are at best 1% up to date with information.

You may have your own portfolio of clients and contacts but the use (sorry abuse) of references is the quickest way to find leads for most especially new recruiters. The majority of the most successful managers now integrate the exploiting of references into the KPIs of your average recruitment consultant.

[TykeMerc]

I refuse Linkedin invites from people I don't know and all of the invites from agencies.

[Another Dodgy Agent]

I refuse Linkedin invites from people I don't know and all of the invites from agencies.

Happily I was invited and 'linkedin' to my contractor friends.

[AlfredJPruffock]

Fiver

Been in thie IT game since 84 - so I have heaps of leads - sorry references.

Mind you - it will cost you a fiver - a pop.

Just PM me for the dirt.

[minestrone]

Another blatant fishing call from a pimp working for a well known subsidury of the Ajilon Group.

I'm working for a well know subsiduary of Ajilon just now and they have been hassling me for ages to provide 2 years worth of references, I told them to contact my previous agencies, they are still hassling me even though my contract is being extended and the client could not give a toss about references. I wonder why they want them, hmm.