DS,The one small thing you shouldn't do? NEVER share any names or contact details with contract recruitment agencies. If you do then the agent will stop working to try and find you a position and will instead start cold-calling your ex-contacts to try and sell them OTHER contractors. They will offer them people with similar skills to you, but cheaper. They will use the project descriptions you gave them to "guess" what skills the client might value. They may even say to your contacts that YOU told them to call. They will NOT offer YOU to your ex-contacts because agents get no commission from introducing people to people they already know. In extreme cases agents will even LIE to you that they have opportunities elsewhere for you, just to stop you re-contacting your own ex-clients, so they have time to sell them alternative cheaper people. At a minimum your contacts will begin to get pi$$ed off. At worst they may hire cheaper alternatives to you.Your network is valuable. Always say to an agent, "I am very happy to help agents with introductions to my network, but I only work with the agents that have FIRST PLACED ME in a role. In the current climate CANDIDATES have limited value, HIRING CONTACTS are massively valuable - it's supply and demandLook at the contractors forum on www contractorsuk.com - its very tech contractor focused but has an excellent and very long "sticky" on "just two references" - one of the oldest scams in the books of nefarious recruitment agencies....Good luck and dont look back...Mr Cool

Very true indeed.I sometimes think the only reason agencies ask a candidate to give a reference is so they can try and get an instruction from the referee (filling the newly-created job opening, etc).

I completely agree. Contract recruitment is mercenary at best and completely lacking in scruples at worst. Unfortunately this is rarely the fault of the individual recruiter - contract firms place immense pressure on contract recruiters often forcing them into such behaviour (or enshrining it in the training of new recruits). One of the best defences is to ensure you are talking with your contract community to hear of firms/individuals doing this. Name and shame them in your own networks and remember that if one contract recruiter is behaving like that from any given firm, it is likely they are ALL under orders to do behave that way. Avoid the entire firm.

Well live and learn I guess.Thanks for the wisdom.Will let you know whether any of the agencies I have contacted before acts in a dodgy way. Again, I don't think it might be the catastrophe it could have been since it's the contacts of my former managers (not client people).Again, thanks.

To be fair, it does always amuse me when contractors decry the mercenary antics of agencies. Its a bit like a friendly tart complaining about the commercial zeal of her pimp.

Eheheheh :D

DiamondSea,I am so pleased it finally got into your head ;-) Now you know what I meant with following:*********************************- So you have 12 shining reference/projects which you will put it on a deck and send across to agencies/contractors with your references contact details!! Why the heck you want to bother your references with enormous calls from those agencies and contractors which they will solely use for their own purpose!! That cut down your chances to be hired by any of them by at least 90%************************************Gud luck ……I am hiring 25 PMs and BAs at all the levels for my 20 million programme so if your CV is lucky enough to reach me we shall take it from there ;-)Mr Cool:I think you really underestimated the wisdom available in this forum when you said following:*****I'll lay a bet that no one on this forum can work out what that component is? ********Honestly it took me less time to resolve your puzzle than it would have taken you to write that post but never mind....I still like you and your contribution to the forum!!

My dearest UK contractorI never denied the risks of proposing credentials (which I hadn' fully realised), I was just trying to correct your view on the fact that1 - most of my former clients could not get me back as a contractor, not by myself for sure (so not having coontacted them was not something I had overlooked, it just wasn't a possibility)2 - the contacts I had put were those of my former managers on my former employers' side, so that would not give away who the client was anyway3 - there ARE clients who onboard contractors without having to go through the security checks of a top IB4 - quitting my job without having a sure contract is not the suicidal thing you think it is, for all you know I might be travelling at the moment (which you yourself did!) or focusing on other things :)I did value your and other people's answers, I was just skeptical of your language and then things got heated up ;)Let me know what e-mail I can send my CV tooor write me to the_diamond_sea@yahoo.se ;)

Hej! Svensk? :)

Inte helt, men jag kan språket. ;)Själv?