Oh, do not misinterpret my discussion here. I am in no way interested in starting an agency. In fact, quite the opposite. I would like to find one ;)
I get contacted by recruiters all of the time and that is the problem! Which should I listen to? Which should I make a relationship with moving forward to find more business? Which are going to negotiate well for me?
The other issue is that we are paying them for their services, whether we like that idea or not. We may not be having to handle the tax implications and whatnot, but ultimately they negotiate a rate for me of say, $100 an hour. They negotiate a rate with the client of say, $150 an hour. To the client I cost $150 an hour (in fact most recruiters put it that way to them, that is my "bill rate"). I am paying them 50% anyway, in this scenario.
I've been an account manager (and non-technical project manager) for an agency for 9+ years. I have been quite successful at it. I've gained and retained many large clients and made plenty of money for my employer in the process! That in turn has kept my paycheck coming in consistently, so I'm pretty happy overall. But I do sometimes have dreams of doing my own thing.
I have often wondered if I could offer my account management services independently to a handful of freelance engineers and make enough money to sustain myself. It doesn't sound too incredibly different from what you are talking about. I could also see myself being very good at weeding out the recruiters that don't fit my clients needs.
Edit: I should clarify that the agency I work for is full service and we handle web projects all the way from design through development. So I have a fairly in depth understanding of tech, just not a hacker per se.
I get contacted by recruiters all of the time and that is the problem! Which should I listen to? Which should I make a relationship with moving forward to find more business? Which are going to negotiate well for me?
The other issue is that we are paying them for their services, whether we like that idea or not. We may not be having to handle the tax implications and whatnot, but ultimately they negotiate a rate for me of say, $100 an hour. They negotiate a rate with the client of say, $150 an hour. To the client I cost $150 an hour (in fact most recruiters put it that way to them, that is my "bill rate"). I am paying them 50% anyway, in this scenario.