Agencies to avoid....

[kaiser78]

everyone in Tek? Or just one agent?
Experience tells me that all agencies have some idiots and some good 'uns.

Maybe. Unfortunately past experience has taught me that any dialogue with Rocsearch, Opus and Computer Futures is likely to be a complete waste of time and energy to the point that I actually just tell anyone ringing me from one of those 3 that I do not deal with them.

Bloody minded? Maybe, but I don't have time to waste. I get all my work from known individuals at agencies through whom I have contracted before. That and LinkedIn / networking.

It can sometimes be a cultural thing within an agency.

[Big Blue Plymouth]

everyone in Tek? Or just one agent?
Experience tells me that all agencies have some idiots and some good 'uns.

Maybe. Unfortunately past experience has taught me that any dialogue with Rocsearch, Opus and Computer Futures is likely to be a complete waste of time and energy to the point that I actually just tell anyone ringing me from one of those 3 that I do not deal with them.

Bloody minded? Maybe, but I don't have time to waste. I get all my work from known individuals at agencies through whom I have contracted before. That and LinkedIn / networking.

[Lance]

Add Tek Systems to that list.

Can't communicate with you
can't communicate with the client
can't tie them both together
rediculously long, error prone, inflexible, unlawful due diligence process (no, you can't force a contractor to opt into regulations - thats THEIR choice, no you can't force them to dissolve their limited company because their spouse is a director, etc)
Unable to follow up on agency references and lie about it
Cause delays to contract start

In the end its all about them and their risk - they don't care about yours at all.

Best to avoid.

everyone in Tek? Or just one agent?
Experience tells me that all agencies have some idiots and some good 'uns.

[kaiser78]

Add Tek Systems to that list.

Can't communicate with you
can't communicate with the client
can't tie them both together
rediculously long, error prone, inflexible, unlawful due diligence process (no, you can't force a contractor to opt into regulations - thats THEIR choice, no you can't force them to dissolve their limited company because their spouse is a director, etc)
Unable to follow up on agency references and lie about it
Cause delays to contract start

In the end its all about them and their risk - they don't care about yours at all.

Best to avoid.

Have you had a bad experience of them or something ?

[Bee]

Add Tek Systems to that list.

Can't communicate with you
can't communicate with the client
can't tie them both together
rediculously long, error prone, inflexible, unlawful due diligence process (no, you can't force a contractor to opt into regulations - thats THEIR choice, no you can't force them to dissolve their limited company because their spouse is a director, etc)
Unable to follow up on agency references and lie about it
Cause delays to contract start

In the end its all about them and their risk - they don't care about yours at all.

Best to avoid.

Are they Indians? The ones that we barely understand what they are talking about.

[javadude]

Add Tek Systems to that list.

Can't communicate with you
can't communicate with the client
can't tie them both together
rediculously long, error prone, inflexible, unlawful due diligence process (no, you can't force a contractor to opt into regulations - thats THEIR choice, no you can't force them to dissolve their limited company because their spouse is a director, etc)
Unable to follow up on agency references and lie about it
Cause delays to contract start

In the end its all about them and their risk - they don't care about yours at all.

Best to avoid.

I'd agree with most of the above. I'm with Tek Systems at the moment. Worst agent I've been with. The gig is good so I've renewed a few times but I'll never go with them again.

The compliance stuff is way beyond what is legally required and is a complete pain. (eg "how often do you take dividends?") I turned around the stuff in a day and then waited a week and a half for a contract, by which point I needed to pay extra for a priority review of my contract. Then silence: On the Friday before I was meant to start (on the Monday) the agent was suddenly impossible to get hold of. Turns out the client hadn't got the PO approved. Monday and Tuesday kept chasing the agent before I finally got to start on the Wednesday. To be fair to Tek Systems the client is pretty rubbish too.

I started with a 5 month contract, only to find out after two months that the "work order" contract between the agent and the end client was only 2 months. They managed another month contract with the end client but I had all kinds of problems with the PO not being approved etc so I couldn't fill in an online timesheet on the agent's system, so couldn't get paid for several weeks (it was weekly billing). Then the next month long work order was late being set up so I had a contract with the agent but I knew that there was no work order in place between the agent and client by which I'd be paid. And yet I'd be in breach of contract if I left without giving notice. Messy and awkward situation for me and the client. Anyway I walked out without giving notice and started looking for another contract. They suddenly got interested and it all got sorted quickly so I returned but there have been plenty of similar problems.

There's been various problems with contract paperwork too. They usually issue a new appendix with revised dates for a renewal but one time changed the 24 page contract and sent it to me on the Thursday so yet again paid extra for a priority review of it.

Then the compliance stuff hit again. They wanted to see the certificate of my renewed professional indemnity insurance. I emailed it heard nothing more for a couple of weeks, then a different person asked for it, then nothing for a couple of months then another person asked for it etc. I think I sent it 5 or 6 times before they finally recieved it or stopped loosing it.

Like I say the gig is good for various reasons plus Tek Systems have improved a bit over time so I'm still here, just.

[NorthWestPerm2Contr]

Add Tek Systems to that list.

Can't communicate with you
can't communicate with the client
can't tie them both together
rediculously long, error prone, inflexible, unlawful due diligence process (no, you can't force a contractor to opt into regulations - thats THEIR choice, no you can't force them to dissolve their limited company because their spouse is a director, etc)
Unable to follow up on agency references and lie about it
Cause delays to contract start

In the end its all about them and their risk - they don't care about yours at all.

Best to avoid.

With Tek Systems it's got to the point that whenever I get a call from them i'm certain it's a waste of time and won't result in an interview.

[LondonManc]

Add Tek Systems to that list.

Can't communicate with you
can't communicate with the client
can't tie them both together
rediculously long, error prone, inflexible, unlawful due diligence process (no, you can't force a contractor to opt into regulations - thats THEIR choice, no you can't force them to dissolve their limited company because their spouse is a director, etc)
Unable to follow up on agency references and lie about it
Cause delays to contract start

In the end its all about them and their risk - they don't care about yours at all.

Best to avoid.

Depends which part of TEK - the ex Aston Carter mob are generally decent.

[AussieDigger]

Add Tek Systems to that list.

Can't communicate with you
can't communicate with the client
can't tie them both together
rediculously long, error prone, inflexible, unlawful due diligence process (no, you can't force a contractor to opt into regulations - thats THEIR choice, no you can't force them to dissolve their limited company because their spouse is a director, etc)
Unable to follow up on agency references and lie about it
Cause delays to contract start

In the end its all about them and their risk - they don't care about yours at all.

Best to avoid.

[DesDixon]

A couple of peers and I have had the following in the recent past:

Michael Blake Associates (Mike Freeman)

<removed due to legal threat, investigating now - admin>

Both were advertising roles which do not exist, only to try to get you to go to their buddies at a CV company to write a 'professional' CV for you as the one provided is never up to scratch.