This should be your last resource, at worse For start, the company is presented as part of the La Fosses Associates, a recruitment agency - founded on 2008, and having an great deal of outstanding charges (9 to be precise) some even since 2010 (as per the GOV.UK site); although, it seems to be doing pretty good - a quite decent rating on Glassdoor of 4.6 out of 5, not so good on Google 3.3 out of 5, some awards namely “Best Candidate Service, Specialist Recruitment Company of the Year” award in 2019, and about 500 employees - and still growing. Yet, there seems to be no records of futureproof being a registered company. Thus, I guess that futureproof is a trading name. In other words, futureproof is likely to be a separate unit of the La fosses associates in order to run as a unique business, or as I see it another business’s effort of making more money - which can be bad or not, it depends. Moving on, if you ever giving it a go read your contract and ask questions. Among the first session that we had was about the process, and I was surprised to see some of the persons in the group asking about fees because the terms and conditions for the payment are stated in the contract (but I guess most of us were quite excited about the opportunity and might have looked some things). Though, they might replaying very slow, short and vague to your answers make sure that you feel safe about proceeding. Next, keep in mind this is a STEM training including API, React, Python, Bootstrap, Node.js, Model-View-Controller and some other bits related such as Object orientated and asynchronous functions. In other words, there will be a lot to cover within a short time and might become challenging for anyone, regardless of your background, especially because of the environment. Expanding more on the last idea, I found the environment quite toxic in that some trainers lack skills, the assessments are rigid in that there is one answer for a problem (this for me makes absolutely no sense when talking about coding, even more when this is an impediment for self learning), the manner in which the material is presented definitely needs improvement so at least “no worries” won’t be said each 5 to 10 minutes. Additionally, I had the impression that the trainees are terribly seen at the hearing of “Now you’ll need to think of something that entertains me”. And lastly, I think there is a lack of professionalism that adds to this. To tell you more, I once pointed out that the group lacks interaction, especially during lessons, due to a colleague that was really fast at getting the answers and that I’ll like to avoid working with him. And next morning, the trainers were talking about this and mentioned something on the lines of “She’s too dramatic.”. So, I did what others were doing - kept silent. After a while, they started making some changes. I guess they realised they did their lessons with just one person. Also, another similar thing that happened is that I encountered some equipment troubles and they ended up borrowing me a company machine. Even though I was grateful, it was even more challenging in regards to social image, and dealing with technical issues. Ironically, other colleagues were struggling too, with their own machines (a common reason of that is the material that is meant for iOS rather than Windows, and the trainers’ lack of expertise). In summary, learn about this industry of STEM training before anything else. I think you’ll be surprised to find some information such as Sparta Global scandals. Then, make sure you feel safe and secure with whatever you decide and have all the resources - I’m referring to the Apple machine, and funding since nothing is paid before getting employed - and I think it’ll be along way for securing a job even after finishing the training (have a look at the past trainees and their journeys).
Excellent experience as a candidate! Consultant, Amy McCabe, must have done her research thoroughly to find me for a very niche assignment. This suggests to me a level of diligence that I would hope for as a client. This meant as an applicant I’d be among strong peers and competition, but Amy took her time to support me throughout the application process. Onboarding is again well supported, with a dedicated team to aid this process (especially helpful if the role is outside IR35), as well as in this case Amy regularly checking in. I would recommend this team to any professionals looking for interesting roles.
Awful Company, would leave zero stars if I could. For roles that I am absolutely perfect fit for either get a dear John clearly not having read my CV at all or if they do put me forward for the role then I never hear anything back again from them ever. Quite frankly how on earth these people manage to get roles exclusively is beyond me. They don't give feedback to you regarding the recruitment process. If by some miracle you get an interview via them they then don't bother telling you when or where the interview is taking place. Won't ever use them to find staff for my team nor would I ever apply for one of their advertised roles again. Avoid at all costs. Regarding the response below - Your consultant claimed I didn't have any retail experience - guess they must have neglected to notice that both Kurt Geiger and Superdrug are major retailers then? Your consultant made it very clear they had no intention of listening to reason more trying to find ways to justify their dear John bs. Therefore why would I waste my time listening to them trying to justify their mistakes?
I have personally blacklisted this agency. They have somehow got hold of a number of roles in London area, yet their incompetent agents send standard emails, can't read, have no clue about the area or role they recruit for and hence only mediocre talent is shortlisted. I feel sorry for the companies that are left with 2nd grade talent based on incompetent filtering, then have to keep changing and fixing the mess created. Some of them eventually end up in position of hiring managers too and continue to burn company money with little outcome selecting incompetent candidates. So I have simply banned this agency for good from my inbox and profile.
