How to deal with pimp games..???

[Darren_Test]

Guys,

I am totally fed up with "agency games" which I think cost me a second role now...!!

First Case:
After 2 levels of interviews client was interested in myself and another guy. After final stage agency tried to push my rate lower than agreed earlier, but I resisted. They were trying push down to half of my last rate..!! Finally client selected the other guy & looks like that guy is going to be working as a salaried employee of the agency..! Essentially agency paid say £300*21 & new employee paid say (£40k/12-Tax). Since I totally rejected idea of perm employee of agency I am sure even if I halved my rate I may not have provided as much profit to agency compared to "agency permie". But I am still not understanding will a client will permit this, as end client is not benefiting any way by the "agent's salaried contractor"..!

Agency may be hiding this arrangement from client..??
Will any client will allow an agency to exploit a sitn like this way, when the client is not at all benefiting by this arrangement..??
Will any client ask what kind of margin or agreement they have with the new "salaried contractor"..??

Second Case
Agreed a rate with agency & had excellent interview with client. Surely will be on top of the list based on interview. Now here too agency want to lower agreed rate after the interview apparently " due to mkt conditions" suddenly..! And want to reduce rate..!! Surely this is agency game & trying to milk maximum out of the contract.

So how to deal with this situation..??
If client selects more than one candidate and gives "order of preference", looks like finally agency decides to select based to maximum margin to him..!! This is a terrible sitn..never been exposed to this level.

How to handle this..??

Since candidates do not have direct contact with client, agency can very well say client's preference "Number ONE" is not more available just to make maximum profit by getting maximum margin from client's preference number TWO or Three..!!

This may not be a new phenomenon but this is exposed to an un tolerable level now I think. So basically if client have more than one candidate selected and given their order of preference the guy providing maximum margin to the agency will be selected...!! This will be biggest danger when dealing with exclusive agents acting as preferred suppliers.

I am not 100% sure how contractor recruitment process goes now a days. Will any client say "my first preference is Mr. X & second is Mr. Y"...? Even they will understand the fact that this will only lead to selection of maximum margin guy by the agency..

Or am I just Panicky & thinking wrongly after loosing 2 chances..?
Agents are real Gentle men trying to serve equally/professionally/ethically both client & candidate by taking only a fair margin for their invaluable balanced service to both parties..????

thoughts please..

[Sockpuppet]

If the client is in "financial difficulty" I wouldn't contract for them at all.

[cojak]

What Sockpuppet said.

It depends how desperate you are to take the job.

But the client will have known about your rate before you went to the interview.

My guess it's the agent - I'd refuse to take the drop unless there are other circumstances (you've been on the bench for 6 months; it's close to home, etc).

But only you will really know whether you should accept or not...

[Fred Bloggs]

I've never accepted a cut after interview. I've never lost a job by refusing the cut.

[Darren_Test]

Agreed...

But will any client give multiple candidate choices to agent so that agent can decide on highest margin guy for the role..??

[Darren_Test]

I've never accepted a cut after interview. I've never lost a job by refusing the cut.

Even recent times..?? where some one else could undercut you..??

[Not So Wise]

From what I am hearing agencies are really playing hardball at the moment, trying to maximize margins above and beyond

My rule of thumb, avoid all discussion of rates until position is offered* as before that point you are negotiating from a position of weakness

*Only exception is if advertised role did not even hint at rate and agency does not give a ball park during initial call, then I just ask for rough ballpark quote to make sure we are not wasting each others time. If agency push's to know my rate I always say "it will depend on what the role entails"

[Not So Wise]

Even recent times..?? where some one else could undercut you..??

Someone could ALWAYS undercut you, good times or bad

[HeadOfTesting]

It's very unlikely that the client will care. For many (most?) clients the whole point of using an agency to find contract staff is to insulate them from such concerns. Most clients will consider it their right to consider the commercials on the contractor side as a black box. That said, if the hiring manager has been burned before by, say, having a critical person walk once an excessive margin has been revealed then they may probe further.

If the hiring manager has ranked their preferences instead of just saying "make this one person an offer and we'll take it from there" then they've been stupid. However you are the agent's sub-contractor and there's nothing wrong (commercially) with the agent trying to get the cheapest one - providing the client's needs are satisfied to a degree that doesn't jeopardise the engagement. That's just how business is. Some hiring managers wouldn't care about being on the receiving end of this if they were presented with evidence of it having happened as many will take the view that they just want an adequate bum in a seat.

This is not new. I'm afraid that dealing with agents is like playing poker with someone who can see all the cards. As some other posters have indicated, it comes down to a game of bluff in many cases.

Of course the long term solution is to develop a network that yields opportunities so the only conversation you're having with an agent is "how much do you charge to factor the invoices".

I do think the market conditions magnify the anger over this sort of thing and it's important to keep these things in perspective.

Good luck.

[Not So Wise]

Agreed...

But will any client give multiple candidate choices to agent so that agent can decide on highest margin guy for the role..??

Never done this myself and never heard of anyone else doing it

Normal SOP is, "we want this guy", agency comes back and says he accepts/refuses. If he refuses we tell him our next pick or to re-advertise

Now sometimes clients might say something like it was a toss up between X and Y but we picked X, this can give agent opportunity to play games behind the scenes to maximize margin but if they get caught client will be pissed