Monster.co.uk and other recruitment sites

[explodingvinyl]

I need a job, does anyone have good/bad experiences with Monster.co.uk? Or any other agency recommendations?

[alan nagsworth]

Agencies will bum you dry and get rid of you like the disposable worker you are, you're better off walking through a factory/warehouse estate and handing out CVs. Dunno about Monster.co.uk and the lark though.

[duckorange]

Monster are currently having problems with monster, as somebody's stolen their entire CV database.

My only problem is getting LOADS of job alerts for jobs I have absolutely no interest.

[Eight Taiwanese Teenagers]

I'm trying to recruit someone in London at the moment, but have to go through Office Angels as they have offered us a special deal. Even if I knew someone I definitely wanted to recruit, I would have to get them to register with Office Angels and then hire them through them. It's fucking silly.

[alan nagsworth]

Monster are currently having problems with monster

When I read this I got this image of the website staff having problems with an actual monster which deals with all the CVs.

"This is Team Monster requesting back-up! The monster has acquired a mind of its own and it eating all the CVs in order to raise its chances of getting a better job elsewhere! I told you we shoulda treated him better!"

Hmm, that isn't all that funny really. Just the random conjurings of my brain.

[TotalMink]

Ive got my last couple of jobs via jobserve.com - although this usually has an agency behind it, i got a move to holland out of them. 

[aaaaaaaaaargh!]

What field of work are you looking for?  I hadn't heard of monster until I clicked on this thread, they seem fairly general.  If you can find a niche agency for the type of work you're looking for you'll probably get a better service (that's what I experienced anywy)

[CaledonianGonzo]

Ive got my last couple of jobs via jobserve.com - although this usually has an agency behind it, i got a move to holland out of them. 

Monster are, in my experience, pretty useless.  I use Jobserve as well and it seems to be the 'go to' place for most types of work, but it really depends what sort of sector you're in.

Best thing would be just get a few names/addresses of your local agencies from the Yellow Pages (e.g. Hudson, Recruitment Zone,  Hays, Change, Span, etc. etc., though it'll obviously depend on whether they deal with the kind of job you're after) and send 'em a CV with a covering letter stating what kind of work you're looking for.

Then prepare to recieve about 14 phone calls a day, Monday-Friday, asking if you're available to work for a bank in County Cork, starting next week, salary negotiable.  Repeatedly.  Until you cark it or until you throw your phone in the river (whichever happens first).

[Little Hoover]

I generally found agencies pretty useless, they aren't going to do much searching for you, or they'll just e mail you job alerts for a load of jobs that don't really interest you. Mind you if you're more expreinced and you keep phoning them uo to ask them maybe they'll search harder.

Reed aren't bad though, they also list jobs held by other agencies, although in some cases this means you have to go and register with another agency. Which can be quite annoying, if you don't have your own transport - having to make some long train journey to croydon when you've applied for a job in surbiton.

[Baltimora]

The online job boards are really just an advertising medium for other agencies. As someone above said, if you're looking in a particular industry sector it's best to go to a specialist who'll know a bit more about the market and how you fit into it.

[Blue Jam]

Recruitment agencies seem alright if you've got at least a years' experience in your field, otherwise they don't want to know. I've found a few good specialist agencies through Monster- well, hopefully, just registered with a couple who seem good so far, maybe they'll find me something.

The only problem I've had with Monster, Reed and Jobserve was with my CV being visible to recruiters back when I first registered, as a default. My CV features one marketing job with a load of PR jobs, and ABSOLUTELY NO SALES JOBS. My experience of commission-based sales work amounts to zero, and yet I'd still get several phonecalls per day from recruitment consultants asking me all about my comms work and then saying "...and have you ever thought about using these skills in SALES?" This happened every day until I was forced to log in a few days later and click the "hide my CV from recruiters" option. And then Jobserve kept sending me emails reminding me to unhide my CV...

I did manage to get a job through Reed once but it's the one I got unfairly dismissed from. Managed to get a job from Guardian Jobs once and people usually tell me I'm the only person they know who's managed that. I actually know one other person who did it, but just the one mind.

[buntyman]

I'm trying to recruit someone in London at the moment, but have to go through Office Angels as they have offered us a special deal. Even if I knew someone I definitely wanted to recruit, I would have to get them to register with Office Angels and then hire them through them. It's fucking silly.

I'm looking to move down to London and am registered with Office Angels. What sort of work are we talking? I'll give you 110%

[Godzilla Bankrolls]

The various jobsites are useful, but make sure your CV is detailed and specific. State the sort of work you're good at, what you think your strengths are, what you like to do etc. And potential employers do check CVs for 'evidence' of "target meeting", "self-management", "communication skills" and such cobblers.

Make sure you put your email on; especially if you are some kind of programmer. If you've got a driving licence, mention it; you'll automatically be considered for a lot of jobs for that alone.

DON'T put your golf par or picture on there, or you will be ridiculed in circular emails.