If you looking for increased responsibilites the big national agencies tend to place narrowly focused and already employed people in the advertised jobs. So applying to a national agency is a lateral move at best.

In my experience they are a total waste of time.

When my DH was looking for a new position 7 years ago he submitted his resume several time to these search firms for jobs that were actually posted on their websites as being "open". Not one call, ever. Now that he's an executive with his current organization he gets about a call a month from recruiters.

Generally speaking these organizations want candidates who are gainfully employed and successful in their current job. People who submit their resumes to these types of "executive search firms" are generally thought of as being unhappy, and/or unemployed and thus not as desirable. I said "generally", not always.

I have had the same experience. Looking for about six months. Have responded to about 20 ads. Not a single call. For some my experience seemed to be a very good fit. I now think the ads are just a waste of my time.

Has anyone lucked out with actually landing a solid job with a big placement agency such as Adecco, Robert Half, Kelly, and other similar big agencies? I've applied to loads of jobs with such places and never get a single call. Any suggestions? Am I wasting my time?