Pros
First off, I don't think it's as much Prestige Staffing as it is the recruiting industry in general... but whatever it is, it attracts a very specific type of person. That person is hungry for money and is willing to look very stupid for the first few months while receiving coaching from people who don't actually understand the necessary intricacies of IT (seriously, I'm not being facetious). But don't worry, if you decide you want to get into this thing, the co-workers you're looking stupid in front of will look just as stupid as you when talking to high-end developers who know you're all struggling to translate your smooth-talk into tech-savvy lingo. It literally is like a different language when you get started. But if you can get past that hump, you'll have a fighting chance for success. Other than all of that, here are some benefits I gathered: - Good fit for those who are entering the professional realm - Provides a great opportunity to build interpersonal skills and learn how to read people - Decent starting salary and commission structure - Teaches you a lot about the way software companies are structured
Cons
The thing about Prestige is (in my personal experience), they care more about you doing things their way than the way that works for you, all while claiming to promote individuality. Each recruiter in my office was made to sit through these monthly "goal meetings" where the lead recruiter in Dallas (we were in Austin, by the way) would steam-roll us with what we could have done better. And in doing so, she would never really get to the root of any professional inefficiencies we might have had -- or allow us to defend ourselves -- and when I say "defend ourselves" I don't mean with excuses, but with reasonable explanations for whatever her perceived problem with our performance was. Taking accusatory criticism from someone who visited once every other month wasn't helpful. In fact, it made me count down the days until I would find something better. As I said in the "Pros" section, you'd better be a very specific type of person to go through the stresses of becoming successful at recruiting -- because they are constant and aggressive. Last thing -- you get into it because you want to make money while helping people find jobs. But if you stick with it long enough, you run the risk of eventually looking at those people as numbers. And the warmer side you had when you started (the one that told you that you were going to help people) turns cold when those people are just steps on a ladder to more money you could have had. I know that sounds a bit dramatic. But consider it a well-thought-out warning.