I had lunch today with Vince Pizzoni, and a thought struck me during the meeting about the role of recruitment agents.  We're regularly reminded that talented individuals are in short supply and that in our knowledge economy such individuals are more important than ever before.

So it kinda got me thinking.  The traditional view of a recruitment consultant is a company/individual that comes into play when companies need to fill a vacancy.  Of all the consultancies I've dealt with, none of wanted to keep in touch with me and build that relationship by taking a longer term view of my career.

Compare that to industries where demand for talent is very high.  Sport or entertainment are two such industries, and in both individuals are represented by agents that have a much more holistic interest in their career and wellbeing.

Now imagine your talent agent gets you a job.  They then work with you on building your personal brand, helping you with any training you might need, improving your online networking, and so on.  They keep an eye out for positions that you'd be ideal for and keep your name in the frame for those positions.

At the moment I suspect such services are very rarely offered, but in an age when employees are increasingly regarded almost like freelancers that will hop around from job to job it seems inevitable that this kind of service will become the norm, doesn't it?