Let’s say you’ve just spotted an online advert for your ideal job – it’s being advertised by a recruitment agency, and the description sounds like exactly what you want. But then you see the same job being advertised by a different agency. Should you just apply for both? If two people see your CV then there’s double the chance it will get in front of the hiring manager, right?
Unfortunately not. You may end up shooting yourself in the foot, especially if your CV does land itself in front of the client. You could find things turning sour for you in a number of ways.
You risk looking desperate. If a CV lands in front of client many times over, it can end up making the candidate look a little desperate – if you’ll indiscriminately apply for multiple jobs with multiple recruitment agencies, who is to say you’re not just applying for any old job as well. The ideal person to work at any company will always be someone who is dedicated to the job they’ve applied for, not just someone who has chanced upon it after a scattergun approach to job seeking. Even if you really are desperate for work, focusing your search to what you really want will have much better results.
You’ll make an enemy of at least one recruitment agency. If luck does have it and you get offered an interview by the client, you’ll have to decide between the two agencies. The client pays us a fee when they hire someone we’ve put forward; if two agencies put the same person forward, it’s up to the candidate to decide which one takes them through the interview process. The company which doesn’t get that honour will now kick into action and do whatever they can to find someone else to get the job over you – they don’t want to have wasted their time finding the person to get the job, but not see any reward.
You could also put off the other agency too. If you’re actively working with two agencies that they know of, how many others are going to come crawling out of the woodwork? If you aren’t for successful for the first job they may become reluctant to put you forward for any future positions too, meaning you miss out on the best thing that a recruitment agency can provide for you.
We would give our candidates exactly the same advice as our clients – you’re always much better off working with one agency. We’re all fishing in the same pond when it comes to the jobs that are out there.
And how would you pick one? Take a look at their websites, their social media profiles, and online reviews or ask for recommendations from friends to find the one that will be best for you. Or give us a call in Stockport – we can probably come up with some suggestions!
