Agents and contractors: mutual need, or Hole In The Head?

[Julius Caesar]

Agents keep saying that contractors need them. On the face of it, that's true. Clients have work needing done, contractors do the work, and agents match the two.

But is that a good description of the situation?

Suppose that someone had a copy of an embarrassing but not illegal photograph, and was asking for money to give it back to you, or delete copies. Well, the blackmailer needs you, that's for sure. Would he say that you need him? That "need" that you have for the blackmailer was created by him solely in order to skim off money from you. The "need" is artificial - once he has got himself in the way, you are stuck with dealing with him, but you didn't really need him.

Does that sound like agents? You need them because they have the contracts. But they put a lot of work into getting into that position. An agent's job is to get in the way, so that he has to be paid off.

[cojak]

For those who have the balls to do their own cold-calling, networking and other bare-faced things that agents do to get in front of clients, no, you don't need agents.

But for the rest of us, a good agent is worth keeping a hold of.

It's a 2-way street, without good contractors who can fill the client's requirements, the agents don't get their commission, pay for their fancy offices, keep up the payments on their fancy cars, buy champers for their fancy women, etc...

[Not So Wise]

• Agents cannot survive without contractors, period
• Contractors can survive without agents (if they are willing to do their own marketing/sales/networking)
• Neither can survive with the clients

But that said, unless you are highly specialised in a small sector, agents are very useful

Though there are too many of them in the market (seeing some people with 2 to 3 agents in the chain these days, that tells me first agent was not doing their job) and most of the big one's are not only crap but bad value for everyone concerned

[Julius Caesar]

For those who have the balls to do their own cold-calling, networking and other bare-faced things that agents do to get in front of clients, no, you don't need agents.

But for the rest of us, a good agent is worth keeping a hold of.

It's a 2-way street, without good contractors who can fill the client's requirements, the agents don't get their commission, pay for their fancy offices, keep up the payments on their fancy cars, buy champers for their fancy women, etc...

We do need them, but only because they put themselves in the way.

I do not believe that cold-calling generates contracts, it just gets the contract assigned to the successful cold-caller rather than to someone else.

ISTM that most of agents' work is competition against other agents. They don't create the jobs, clients do that. And they don't facilitate matching contracts and contractors as much as they sabotage the process if attempted without them.

No, I can't get all my contracts without them, but that's because they are better at being an agent than I am. I can't do it without them, but that's only because they are there in the first place. That's not helping me, it's holding me to ransom. It's like paying protection money: once someone starts the racket, you need one of them. But you wouldn't need any, if the thieving parasites didn't stick their oar in in the first place.

[Hawkeye]

I have tried cold calling. It isn't fun and I did end up banging my head against a brick wall. Majority of responses were "please speak to our preferred suppliers" and then I would be given a list of agencies to cold call and try and get my CV across to them.

Yes it would be ideal if we could all work directly for the companies. To be honest I have found so far that there is a comfort factor when recruiting through an agent that is hard to shake. They sort out all the contracts, they get you the CV's you want, they arrange candidates for interviews as the times you want (majority of the time as there are some really useless crooks out there). It is a lot of fluffy stuff that makes the process easier for companies to take on contractors.

[cojak]

No, I can't get all my contracts without them, but that's because they are better at being an agent than I am. I can't do it without them, but that's only because they are there in the first place. T

I'm not sure that makes sense, they are better at being an agent than you, but only because they're there??

If you can call strangers, prevent them from putting the phone down on you in the 1st 3 seconds and get requirements out of them, why don't you do it? Then you could 'be there'...

[The Agents View]

I do not believe that cold-calling generates contracts, it just gets the contract assigned to the successful cold-caller rather than to someone else.

You've either been really badly stiffed by an agent, are a very inexperienced contractor, or have your eyes completely closed to the reality of the situation.

What we do often is plant seeds.

If you were the Director of a business unit that needed to save money, and I called up to say "I've had someone who I know really well, come available, that can save you £x million, and has done it previously for a similar business" are you telling me you wouldn't be interested in it because the call was out of the blue? Rubbish - you'd want to know more, and then if the mix of personality, delivery, culture, and skills is exactly right, then you'd find a way to create a contract position.

Despite what you think, it's not just about finding the already planned contracts and filling them, alot of what I do is advise when a contractor is appropriate, when they're better off taking a permy, developing the skills requirement alongside the client, building in knowledge transfer plans, working out where and when the interim might exit, then moulding it, either to someone I know, or someone I think I can find. If you have 50 hours a week to bash the phones for the reward on average of 1-2 contracts per week, then a) you're not concentrating on doing the job you're being paid to do, and b) you should become an agent - you'd clearly be better at it than us.

[BolshieBastard]

I have tried cold calling. It isn't fun and I did end up banging my head against a brick wall. Majority of responses were "please speak to our preferred suppliers" and then I would be given a list of agencies to cold call and try and get my CV across to them.

Yes it would be ideal if we could all work directly for the companies. To be honest I have found so far that there is a comfort factor when recruiting through an agent that is hard to shake. They sort out all the contracts, they get you the CV's you want, they arrange candidates for interviews as the times you want (majority of the time as there are some really useless crooks out there). It is a lot of fluffy stuff that makes the process easier for companies to take on contractors.

Totally agree. Cold calling is not nice. Its also not very productive. The 'cold calling' industry reckon if you get 2 positive leads for every 100 calls, you are exceeding the average industry success rate!

I seen posts on here from people who claim they have got 7 or 8 jobs via cold calling. However, I dont think that is cold calling. Its calling client contacts they have previously worked with so its not 'cold.'

Real cold calling is getting on the phone and calling an organisation you have no connection with at all.

In my utopian world(!) I'd like agents to stop pissing about and give me a 'firm' rate range clients will accept rather than trying to get me in as low as possible so they can make an obscene profit.

Oh well I can wish.

[Julius Caesar]

I have tried cold calling. It isn't fun and I did end up banging my head against a brick wall. Majority of responses were "please speak to our preferred suppliers" and then I would be given a list of agencies to cold call and try and get my CV across to them.

That's exactly what I mean. You get told to call the agencies because they have interposed themselves between you and the clients. Not in order to help you or the clients, but in order to help themselves from the wealth that you and the client generate from your work.

[Julius Caesar]

You've either been really badly stiffed by an agent, are a very inexperienced contractor, or have your eyes completely closed to the reality of the situation.

I'm a very experienced contractor, and I do know the reality of the situation and I don't like it. And I haven't been stiffed by an agent, I regard what agents do as stiffing.