Agency margin - what % is acceptable?

[The SMG]

I'm not entirely sure what type of reaction I’ll get with this one but here goes anyway! I've worked with a shed load of agents over the years and often wondered what margin they were making. After a bit of digging, I found out some but not all (most ranged between 15 - 30%).

My question is this - what margin is acceptable?

The S M General

[Azeey]

Does it matter? If you're happy with your end rate then you're happy.

If they took 99% but I never knew about it and still had a cushty amount for myself I would still be happy!

[The SMG]

Originally Posted by Azeey

Does it matter? If you're happy with your end rate then you're happy.

If they took 99% but I never knew about it and still had a cushty amount for myself I would still be happy!

Rubbish. Remember you're the one getting up at 6.00am, eating half a piece of toast and knocking back a cup of coffee before sitting in traffic for an hour and then taking sh:t from your 'boss' all day. I draw the line at 40% - anyone making more is frankly taking the p1ss....

G

[dodgy_Dave]

If you were happy with the rate before you found out what margin I make, what difference does it make?

My new Ferrari won't buy itself you know

[The SMG]

Originally Posted by dodgy_Dave

If you were happy with the rate before you found out what margin I make, what difference does it make?

My new Ferrari won't buy itself you know

It makes a BIG difference. Turning 40% over 6 months for 3 hours 'work' is an absolute disgrace. I don’t like being used as leverage to buy a new sports car every year and neither does anyone else. Recruiters are there to provide a professional service. This can easily be achieved on margins of 15-20%. Anything more is just greedy.

S M GGGG

[CrazyMoose]

Originally Posted by The SMG

It makes a BIG difference. Turning 40% over 6 months for 3 hours 'work' is an absolute disgrace. I don’t like being used as leverage to buy a new sports car every year and neither does anyone else. Recruiters are there to provide a professional service. This can easily be achieved on margins of 15-20%. Anything more is just greedy.

S M GGGG

I think a lot depends on the type of business the recruiters are running and ultimately what their focus is. Some (REED, Manpower, Hays et al) focus on high volume, low margin business whereas others focus almost exclusively on low volume, high (30% +) margin deals. If I were a recruiter I think I’d be more in favour of the latter but then again I certainly wouldn't want to fall foul of contractors like SMG.

[zoso]

Originally Posted by The SMG

It makes a BIG difference. Turning 40% over 6 months for 3 hours 'work' is an absolute disgrace. I don’t like being used as leverage to buy a new sports car every year and neither does anyone else. Recruiters are there to provide a professional service. This can easily be achieved on margins of 15-20%. Anything more is just greedy.

S M GGGG

If it wasn't for the agent then a lot of contractors would struggle to find work by themselves - at the end of the day the agent is introducing the contractor to THEIR CLIENT therefore if they are happy to pay the agent 40%+ margins then so be it!!

TBH - there aren't many clients that will pay 40%+ margins anyway!!