Your Guide to Staffing Agencies

Register with at least one agency. Choose one of the most popular staffing agencies that cater to your occupation. If you're up for it, register with many. Some companies use one staffing agency exclusively as a sort of "outsourcing" of HR functions; then there are other companies that "shop around" with several agencies to see the candidate pool. Tip: if there's a particular company you want to work for, find out if they use any staffing agencies and register with that agency.

Regardless of how many agencies you're registered with, make sure to regularly check-in with them. The agency will probably recommend checking-in once a week; my suggestion is to check-in twice a week via phone and email. You don't want to be aggressive or pushy; you're simply doing your due diligence. When you do check-in, make sure you are connecting directly with a staffing manager and not a receptionist. If your staffing manager isn't available when you call, leave a message and follow-up with an email. This may sound basic, however I know some temps don't follow-up with their staffing manager after leaving a message with a receptionist and wonder why they aren't contacted when a position becomes available.

Have a meeting with your staffing manager and ask them to review your resume and skill set. Ask them for their opinion on what you can do to greatly increase your chances of their clients choosing you out of all the other choices available. Some staffing managers will automatically initiate this conversation, and others won't. Take the initiative and discover what the agency's clients are looking for. The benefits of having this conversation are simple: the better candidate you are, the more money the staffing agency makes off you. Remember, the staffing agency's #1 priority is to make the client company happy. Quality, marketable candidates = more money in their pocket.

If you are registered with a staffing agency that posts all their open assignments on their website, be sure to daily check that site. I can't stress this enough! If you see a job posting that you know you can perform, yet your staffing manager hasn't called you yet, don't be shy about picking up that phone and asking them why not? Some websites also allow you to submit your resume directly after viewing a particular job posting: don't skip this step simply because "you've already registered with the agency".

The staffing agency isn't a charity organization revolving around making the temps happy... Their mission is to make their client companies happy. Make this work for you, and not against you, by developing a solid working relationship w/ your agency.

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