Sensible answers only.
I'm in a bit of a pickle and wonder if anyone can advise.
A few weeks ago (in March) I went for an interview for a role and the recruiter came back to me a few hours later and said that the client wanted to take up references himself in a couple of days. I went ahead and set up two referees for the client to contact directly.
Neither of these references were taken up. Apparently the client had gone abroad and couldn't fit them in.
About a week later I heard back from the recruiter who said that there had a new development and that the client company had not followed due process and was obliged to interview two internal staff for the same role. The recruiter told me that the client did not expect either candidate to be suitable. The following week the recruiter got back to me and said that both had been interviewed and weren't any good, as predicted. He then scheduled a time for a second interview over the phone from a senior bod at the client site who made it clear that she expected me to start 'yesterday.' After that, the recruiter phoned me and told me to set up the references again for the original client to contract as the second interviewer was more than happy with how the interview went.
I did this - scheduled a time and date - again just before Easter, the recruiter told me that neither were taken up due to the client going abroad unexpectedly. I was asked to reschedule them for last Friday. However, one referee had already dropped out (after being let down twice perhaps?) another went away on holiday for Easter not to be back until the 2nd and the third made himself available for an interview as did a fourth. In the meantime the recruiter sent me the contract terms with 'subject to references being taken up' on it.
I then set up two new referees to be contacted last Friday afternoon between 2-4pm to replace the two that had dropped out. In the morning the recruiter told me that the client had come back from the States and definitely would be taking them up between these times.
At the end of the day I learnt that only one had been taken up but not the other. The recruiter told me that the client wanted to speak to the referee who wouldn't be back until the 2nd May - the day I was supposed to start. He hadn't wanted the second one I'd scheduled that afternoon even though this was not made clear from his morning e-mail to the recruiter after I had pre-warned both that the client had actually agreed to speak to both of them. If that was the case, why hadn't he said so earlier? The recruiter then even mentioned that the client might try and contact her on holiday in Thailand. I refused point blank to let that happen.
I then had to ring the other one and apologise for waiting by the phone (the second time) and asked if it could be rescheduled for sometime this week. I went back to the recruiter and told him that he must take up this reference himself this time because I wanted closure on this matter. I made it clear all along that because the client was always being called away unexpectedly the recruiter should take up these references himself but he refused because he said the client wanted to. All this has done is wasted a lot of time and led to two delays in the start date (originally just after Easter and now the 2nd May). If the client didn't want to take up the second reference offered last Friday, why didn't he say so in his early morning e-mail?
Anyway, on Monday the recruiter was left to handle the last referee (but this time without a scheduled time as I refused to risk having him let down a third time). Yesterday, the reference was taken up. Therefore, the two referees the client wanted done for a formal offer to be made have been completed.
However, the recruiter has now faltered in giving me a formal offer for the role and just e-mailed me with vague assurance that he thought it was safe to go ahead now. On the strength of that he expects me to get the papers looked over by Qdos and my limited company set up (normally I use a brolly). I have refused to do this because the recruiter has not sent me a definitive statement that specifically states that the role is now being offered to me no longer subject to references. If I go ahead and get the papers checked and a ltd set up then it will cost me over £300.
I have had row after row with the recruiter about his handling of this whole affair. It is supposed to be a top flight employment business only dealing with top level interim management. Yet, in my experience, he's one of the most unprofessional recruiters I've ever had to deal with. On three occasions when I've tried to pin him down to specifics he's simply put the phone down on me leaving me to stew overnight.
In the meantime I have some ad hoc work for another client that is pending and which I am enjoying, having done some workshops with him a couple of weeks ago. Not so lucrative but very satisfying. I've had great feedback from this new client already.
Do you think I should hang on longer and see if this job happens (its 4 month contract for good money) or should I just knock this role on the head. I can't help feeling that if the client can be so indecisive about everything so far he probably won't be any different once I start. I'm also concerned that if the recruiter is that indecisive and unprofessional about his handling of this matter so far he may not be that reliable about paying me either. The recruiter simply won't comply with any of my requests for written confirmation about anything and just sends through woolly statements that avoid the points I've asked him to answer and nothing he writes ever amounts to closure. He has fought me tooth and nail about everything I've asked for and simply won't give a straight answer to a straight question about anything.
This whole matter is making me very angry and physically exhausted. I can do without it.
So, what I'm asking you for is a second opinion. Should I hang on for this assignment (that may or may not be in the bag) or should I just drop it and take whatever work I will otherwise have to turn down over the coming weeks (if it happens at all) from my private client who I have enjoyed so far with more in the bag potentially when I see him later this week? This could be a very important client to work with now and in the future, and I'm actually quite reluctant to cut off any work flow coming from him at this point.
Sorry to be such a wuss, but my head is so screwed up with all of this now, I can't think straight anymore which is not like me at all. This whole matter (like this post) had dragged on for weeks now and my life has been kept on hold in what I consider to be an unreasonable way.
I'm in a bit of a pickle and wonder if anyone can advise.
A few weeks ago (in March) I went for an interview for a role and the recruiter came back to me a few hours later and said that the client wanted to take up references himself in a couple of days. I went ahead and set up two referees for the client to contact directly.
Neither of these references were taken up. Apparently the client had gone abroad and couldn't fit them in.
About a week later I heard back from the recruiter who said that there had a new development and that the client company had not followed due process and was obliged to interview two internal staff for the same role. The recruiter told me that the client did not expect either candidate to be suitable. The following week the recruiter got back to me and said that both had been interviewed and weren't any good, as predicted. He then scheduled a time for a second interview over the phone from a senior bod at the client site who made it clear that she expected me to start 'yesterday.' After that, the recruiter phoned me and told me to set up the references again for the original client to contract as the second interviewer was more than happy with how the interview went.
I did this - scheduled a time and date - again just before Easter, the recruiter told me that neither were taken up due to the client going abroad unexpectedly. I was asked to reschedule them for last Friday. However, one referee had already dropped out (after being let down twice perhaps?) another went away on holiday for Easter not to be back until the 2nd and the third made himself available for an interview as did a fourth. In the meantime the recruiter sent me the contract terms with 'subject to references being taken up' on it.
I then set up two new referees to be contacted last Friday afternoon between 2-4pm to replace the two that had dropped out. In the morning the recruiter told me that the client had come back from the States and definitely would be taking them up between these times.
At the end of the day I learnt that only one had been taken up but not the other. The recruiter told me that the client wanted to speak to the referee who wouldn't be back until the 2nd May - the day I was supposed to start. He hadn't wanted the second one I'd scheduled that afternoon even though this was not made clear from his morning e-mail to the recruiter after I had pre-warned both that the client had actually agreed to speak to both of them. If that was the case, why hadn't he said so earlier? The recruiter then even mentioned that the client might try and contact her on holiday in Thailand. I refused point blank to let that happen.
I then had to ring the other one and apologise for waiting by the phone (the second time) and asked if it could be rescheduled for sometime this week. I went back to the recruiter and told him that he must take up this reference himself this time because I wanted closure on this matter. I made it clear all along that because the client was always being called away unexpectedly the recruiter should take up these references himself but he refused because he said the client wanted to. All this has done is wasted a lot of time and led to two delays in the start date (originally just after Easter and now the 2nd May). If the client didn't want to take up the second reference offered last Friday, why didn't he say so in his early morning e-mail?
Anyway, on Monday the recruiter was left to handle the last referee (but this time without a scheduled time as I refused to risk having him let down a third time). Yesterday, the reference was taken up. Therefore, the two referees the client wanted done for a formal offer to be made have been completed.
However, the recruiter has now faltered in giving me a formal offer for the role and just e-mailed me with vague assurance that he thought it was safe to go ahead now. On the strength of that he expects me to get the papers looked over by Qdos and my limited company set up (normally I use a brolly). I have refused to do this because the recruiter has not sent me a definitive statement that specifically states that the role is now being offered to me no longer subject to references. If I go ahead and get the papers checked and a ltd set up then it will cost me over £300.
I have had row after row with the recruiter about his handling of this whole affair. It is supposed to be a top flight employment business only dealing with top level interim management. Yet, in my experience, he's one of the most unprofessional recruiters I've ever had to deal with. On three occasions when I've tried to pin him down to specifics he's simply put the phone down on me leaving me to stew overnight.
In the meantime I have some ad hoc work for another client that is pending and which I am enjoying, having done some workshops with him a couple of weeks ago. Not so lucrative but very satisfying. I've had great feedback from this new client already.
Do you think I should hang on longer and see if this job happens (its 4 month contract for good money) or should I just knock this role on the head. I can't help feeling that if the client can be so indecisive about everything so far he probably won't be any different once I start. I'm also concerned that if the recruiter is that indecisive and unprofessional about his handling of this matter so far he may not be that reliable about paying me either. The recruiter simply won't comply with any of my requests for written confirmation about anything and just sends through woolly statements that avoid the points I've asked him to answer and nothing he writes ever amounts to closure. He has fought me tooth and nail about everything I've asked for and simply won't give a straight answer to a straight question about anything.
This whole matter is making me very angry and physically exhausted. I can do without it.
So, what I'm asking you for is a second opinion. Should I hang on for this assignment (that may or may not be in the bag) or should I just drop it and take whatever work I will otherwise have to turn down over the coming weeks (if it happens at all) from my private client who I have enjoyed so far with more in the bag potentially when I see him later this week? This could be a very important client to work with now and in the future, and I'm actually quite reluctant to cut off any work flow coming from him at this point.
Sorry to be such a wuss, but my head is so screwed up with all of this now, I can't think straight anymore which is not like me at all. This whole matter (like this post) had dragged on for weeks now and my life has been kept on hold in what I consider to be an unreasonable way.
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