This is a good article and addresses some good points. I think there needs to be clarification around the difference between staffing agencies and search firms and why the two need to be vetted differently. Though both are classified as being in the staffing industry, they are actually very different entities and should be viewed as such.
A staffing agency is primarily a temporary firm. If you ask a staffing agency where the bulk of their revenue comes from, it is from temporary employees. The vetting process for a contract employee is very different than the vetting process for a full time staff hire and the recruiting is also very different. Most staffing agencies get the bulk of their employees from job postings as they are primarily attracting active job seekers. This is also reflective of their recruiting process for direct hire, unless they have a specific division that does true search.
Search firms are primarily targeting the passive job seeker which is a key differentiator. If you are looking for a solid recruiting process for passive job seekers, you may not want to be asking temporary staffing firms their methodology for search. Staffing agencies are great places to find contractors but you may want to specifically target search firms for your direct hire requirements. This alone may help relieve “what drives you nuts about staffing agencies”.
Source:
http://www.ere.net/2011/09/21/what-drives-me-nuts-about-staffing-agencies-and-how-they-can-work-as-a-better-partner/