Syndicatebleu Creative Talent

I have experienced with few recruiter agencies in the city. It is definitely the most helpless agency in creative industry. So if you are looking for any designer position. try other agencies, don’t waste your time here!
Ironically, the interview with Syndicatebleu was going well and professional compare to other agencies, went though my portfolio and asked some specific skill questions. I was expecting to find a temp or perm job here. everything was looking good when I interviewed with them. After the interview, NEVER hear back from them at all.(in my experience with other agencies, I got their job alert email everyday or at least something) So I followed up with them, I never hear from any recruiter said «we don’t have anything at the moment». There are hundreds of design agencies and studios in the city, are you serious? After that, never hear from them again.
Two months later, I decided to follow up again. And this time, they didn’t even reply.

My experiences with Syndicatebleu have been largely hit and miss, but mostly miss. On one hand, I had a situation with a bad client (that they later admitted they had never worked with before) where they pulled a typical bad client move and didn’t approve on my timesheet, and Syndicatebleu handled it well by deciding to pay me for the time I worked anyway. On another, it took them a month to do so (They insist on using the paper method whereas every other agency does digital timesheets. Then again, maybe if they switched to digital, their clients wouldn’t stiff them…). I also couldn’t shake the feeling that they blamed me for the whole ordeal. I finally got my checks, though.
I signed up with Syndicatebleu about a year ago after someone at another agency recommended them to me. So far, I’ve done a better job finding roles on my own or through other agencies than through them. They can be helpful at times and like Creative Circle, they’ve recently started doing email blasts. These emails show up once in a blue moon, though. Also like Creative Circle, your mileage may vary on whether you get a response or not.
The recruiters can be great at sweet talking, but almost immediately, as soon as the client doesn’t express interest or doesn’t give them the feedback that they want, do they start to show their true colors. They’re not necessarily the greatest at prepping candidates either: I’ve asked before for more information on a gig I was starting, only to be criticized for needing «too much guidance». A big part of the problem may be that they’re not knowledgable about the field they’re staffing in, and/​or that they also don’t have faith in the candidates they bring in. Like most recruiters/​agencies, they’re all about the commission and the money you generate for them as a temp worker. Their loyalty is to the client and don’t even let them tell you otherwise, even though they will. They’ll just move onto the next person once they’re done with you. This sort of disposable method makes it hard to forge long lasting relationships with clients, even when they do go well. The last client I’ve worked with admitted they had gone through several freelancers and were tired of constantly having to train them over and over again.
Maybe calling Syndicatebleu a «bait and switch» agency would be kind of harsh… because at times, their hearts do seem to be in the right place. But the fact that they can’t be honest with anyone rubs me the wrong way. And trying to cover up for mistakes, such as misleading candidates about how long an assignment is, is always a bad move. In general, I just wish they listened to people and learned from the candidates: after all, we’re the ones going out there and working with these clients, not you. It’s no surprise when clients want to pretend they’re saving their company so much money that temp workers are the first ones to go. It usually doesn’t mean the recruiter or the candidate hasn’t done their job correctly.
In this regard, I feel like other agencies are more professional. Like others have pointed out, they don’t over promise gigs and are honest when they’re short term, but mean it when they say it’s long term. But more importantly, they don’t act like you’re at their mercy when submitting you to roles and they don’t constantly call into question your capabilities. It’s the nature of business, specifically the temp and freelancing business… nothing personal.
With that said, they do strive to present you to the best clients possible, so for that, I give them an extra star. But I would stick with any of the bigger creative agencies in town and only use Syndicatebleu when I’m really desperate.

This agency was very helpful and sympathetic towards my needs. I’d highly recommend them to anyone looking for good service… and Caroline is awesome!

Creative talent — graphic designers in particular — should be very weary before using this agency and Gail Zeldin in particular. I have worked with this agency both as a job seeker myself and then as an employer looking to hire designers (because the company I work for uses this agency).
JOB SEEKERS BEWARE:
The agency will flat out lie to you during salary negotiations.
When I received a job offer (salary/​benefits pckg) through Syndicatebleu, I was not allowed to speak with the employer — only Gail. I asked about job relocation and was told the employer would absolutely not consider it. After accepting the position, I later found out from the HR office at my employer that Syndicatebleu never actually inquired about this for me and that, «Of course they would have provided relocation money!»
EMPLOYERS BEWARE:
There is a complete lack of screening/​filtering going on at Syndicatebleu. When I arrived at the agency for my «interview,» I never even was asked to open my physical portfolio. I showed a few slides from my iPAD presentation and that was it. Twenty minutes tops. What I can gather is that they are simply giving «talent» the once over to make they look acceptable to farm out.
This means that tons and tons of designers with terrible portfolios are being sent around from this agency. I know this because my employer still uses Syndicatebleu (I don’t know why) and I have interviewed 6 designers that came in as referrals from the agency. The work I reviewed was extremely unprofessional and weak and the interviews were a total waste of time both for me as well as the candidates themselves.

This agency is a nightmare. They promise jobs that they can’t deliver. But, as a freelancer, you don’t find that out until you show up and the client tells you to go home.

Great agency. The staff is friendly and professional and can answer all my questions. They’ve given me a good amount of work over the past year. I don’t know why this place flies under the radar, they are first-​rate.