when a recruiter misleads you and wastes your time

A reader writes:

I've been fully self-employed as a freelancer for about three and a half years. Over the last year, however, my income has dropped by a good bit (thanks to moving and to the economy). I'm doing fine with what I'm making, but it feels like that could change any time. In a perfect world, my freelance business would be predictable enough that I'd never consider another salary, but it's a far from perfect world so I do think about returning to the salaried world some times.

When we moved to our new city, I signed up with a couple of creative placement agencies. I've never used that kind of agency before because they mostly place people in full-time and on-site temporary jobs and I'm usually able to fill my calendar with higher paying projects that I can do from my home office. I signed up when work was slow and I would have been able to do something on-site and full-time. They call me with various projects from time to time, but I've usually passed on the their opportunities because I'm busy enough not to have to take them. They also charge pretty high commissions, so the pay to me ends up being lower than I'm used to even when the client is paying my usual rates.

A few months ago, they called with an opportunity to do some freelance work for a big local company. I could do the work from my home office and it was a dream client that I'd love to work for and had no other access to. I agreed to the interview and was very excited. When I got there, it seemed clear that a) the client wanted someone with a much more extensive science background that I had and b) the "freelance" opportunity was really just an audition project for a full-time position. It was a waste of my time and theirs for me to go there. And, even worse, it made it impossible for me to approach that client about any other business because the placement agency would want a huge chunk of any fees I'd ever earn from them.

I haven't agreed to meet anyone they've wanted to introduce me to since, but they called me yesterday to ask if I'd be willing to talk about something full-time. I said yes, if it was the right fit. They told me about a position that sounded like a good (but not great) match for my skills with a "medium-sized company." I specifically asked about the client and they said "medium-sized." They asked for a specific kind of writing sample, which I provided. They schedule a phone interview for me this morning, which I did. The phone interview went well, but it turned out that the "medium-sized company" was actually another recruiter who is trying to find someone to hire for a HUGE local company (Fortune 500 public corporation). The recruiter didn't even have my resume when we talked, but she did have my writing sample. We talked for about 30 minutes and she asked if I could come meet with her boss for an interview TODAY. I tried to put her off but she pushed hard and I agreed to meet this afternoon.

Then, I thought about the HUGE company, the hour it would take me to get there and back, the client deadlines I need to meet this week, the fact that she didn't even have my resume, and I started to have big doubts. I think if I put in the time to get over there today, there's a good chance that a) she'll be wasting my time because she doesn't really know enough about me to know if I'm a good candidate and b) this isn't really the job for me even if she's right that I'm who they might want--the HUGE company isn't where I'd been thinking my next move would be.

I called the placement agency and explained what was happening. They pressured me and pressured me, they told me what "great opportunity" this would be (even while saying they didn't know it was for HUGE company when they told me about it, so I doubt that they have any idea if this is a good opportunity or not). I told them that I'd be willing to meet with this other recruiter tomorrow but that I cannot make the appointment today.

I'm feeling guilty for backing out after I agreed, but I'm also getting really frustrated with these recruiters. I think they're all pressuring me to spend hours on this interview without having any idea if I'm the right fit for this position. They just want to be able to say they found a candidate, any candidate, and they don't care if they're wasting my time or not. And I don't want to potentially sour a relationship with a huge local company by showing up to interview for something I'm not the right fit for because the recruiters aren't paying enough attention to me or what I'm telling them.

What responsibility should recruiters have to respecting the time of the candidates they send for interviews? Is this kind of lackadaisical "just do the interview" attitude the best I can expect from these kinds of placement agencies?

Well, like most industries, it depends on who you're working with. There are terrible, lazy, incompetent recruiters out there. And there are fantastic ones. It sounds like you've hooked yourself up with a bad one, and I'd recommend unhooking yourself.

Do keep in mind that recruiters ultimately don't work for you. They work for the employer, because that's who pays them. So their goal isn't so much to work to find you a great fit at a job you'll love as it is to find the employer someone they'll love. Now, there's a lot of overlap between those things -- a good recruiter will be open and honest with you about the jobs they talk to you about, because doing that is part of doing a good job for the employer. But when you encounter an incompetent recruiter, they don't get that. Instead, they see their business as presenting the employer with any reasonably qualified candidate they can find, and if that means fudging the details a bit, they may.

You've had enough experience with this agency know to know that you can't trust them. They're not competent or ethical. End your relationship with them. If you want to work with a recruiter, ask around to people you know about who they recommend for your field. Get online and see what recruiters are writing good stuff on blogs and Twitter. Ask them for recommendations. There are great recruiters out there, if you look -- but you don't want to work with just anyone. Good luck!