[aeberbach]

I am not 100% sure why recruiters are still tolerated in technology positions. It's time for the model to change - maybe engineers should have agents? If an engineer chooses to use an agent they could build a personal relationship with that person, who knows their skills and what they like to do, and avoid wasting time with positions they don't want to know about and are not suited for. Or not - handle job search in the normal way without recruiters.

We seem to always hear about the terrible shortage of engineers and related fields, so how is it that recruiters add any value?

I have never taken a position where a recruiter contacted me first. I've never even done an interview in that situation because they always see to be shotgunning jobs at everyone they possibly can - email costs nothing so why wouldn't they? I have always found a job rather than been found by the recruiter.

Monster.com and LinkedIn seem to be wretched hives of scum and villainy. The best advice I can give is to never use any "service" that makes it possible for everyone, without qualification or your explicit permission, to contact you. Build your personal networks. Apply for the jobs you want. You won't be losing anything. I never had a Monster.com presence but I did have LinkedIn - since removing it I have lost nothing but unsolicited contacts from recruiters who want me to look at jobs I don't want, and then for me to give up the contact details of anyone else I might know...

There are a few recruiters I like and trust, but the ones spamming like this need to be spoken to very sternly indeed.

[al_gore]

I don't know if agents would work - they work in movies because you shoot one, then wrap and move on to the next one. An agent can be constantly looking out for new films to work in. Unless you're exclusively seeking short-term contract positions, will you actually communicate with the agent frequently enough to build a relationship? If an agent keeps placing you in companies that either implode or make you want to leave, it doesn't seem appealing to work with them again. If they do place you in a job that you stay at for multiple years, will they be available when you want to move on?

[aeberbach]

I could see it working with the best recruiters, like the few I mentioned. They call every six months or so, ask how things are going and chat about technology, that's fine with me. Sometimes they have something really good to discuss, and if I'm happy where I am then I am always willing to recommend someone I know. Those recruiters are acting like an agent already. They rarely collect a fee but when they do I feel they deserve it, unlike the chancers who harvest phone numbers from web sites and work the percentages.

There doesn't have to be an agent relationship. I guess what I am really saying is that the only recruiters worth talking to are the ones that do the work to find the best fit for both parties. The rest add nothing.