The Recruitment Consultancy Thread

Hi all,

I've just started a graduate trainee recruitment consultant post and as I'm the only trainee I'm feeling a bit isolated. I also notice that even though more and more graduates are going into recruitment there isn't really a specific section suited to us!

Hopefully this thread can be a place for trainees to share how it's going, existing recruitment consultants to share their wisdom, and would-be future recruitment consultants to ask questions.

To put in my two pennies worth... I'm really enjoying the environment and everything I'm learning, it's just everybody around me seems so good at what they do and I feel like I will never measure up! I'm training in the IT sector btw :smile:

Reply 1

Duck and Cover

I spent a few months working at Michael Page during the summer after graduating, not working as a recruitment consultant as such but more of an admin position (had a couple of friends working there and had a few free months before starting new job in Autumn) and I have to say the people were fantastic - it takes certain kind of person to work in recruitment so it was great to be in an environment where everyone was so motivated!

I was dealing mainly with candidate CV's, posting new jobs onto the system and things like that, and it was great insight into seeing 'behind the scenes' of recruitment. I also sat in on training sessions and had access to all the training material so even though I definitely didn't want to stay (I was offered a place on their grad scheme), I ended up leaving there incredibly clued up on the ins-and-outs and the tricks of the trade of recruitment!

It's definitely a good sign if you see that everyone else there is so good at what they do - you'll ace it in no time!

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 2

moutonfou

Ahh cool so are you still on the grad scheme? How has that worked out? I'm still on the more admin/CV based side of it but hopefully going to be progressing to the sales side eventually. It's stressing me out a bit having to seem 'ambitious' and sales like whilst doing admin so nobody thinks I am not cut out for sales, even though it's hard to tackle admin in a sales like way!
It's cool that you had some friends working there; I'm sure I'll get more friendly with the people there eventually but at the moment I'm just desperately missing the laughs that I had in some other workplaces :frown:

the in-jokes etc.... I'm sure they'll come with time.

Reply 3

RobinK

When did you start your position? I remember feeling exactly the same in my first few days/week - the learning curve in recruitment is incredibly steep and as you say, you're sitting around lots of people who know what they're doing inside out which can be a bit unnerving. After a few weeks on the job you'll find yourself feeling much more comfortable and whilst there's always things to learn, a lot of recruitment (at least when you start out) is about getting the basics right and getting yourself into a routine; it really is a routine-based job.

Reply 4

Duck and Cover

Original post by moutonfou

the in-jokes etc.... I'm sure they'll come with time.

No I left the job after 4ish months - it was only planned as a temporary thing as I had a role already lined up for the Autumn (which I'm now nearly 2 years into and loving it :biggrin:

! Nothing to do with recruitment). Funnily enough one of the main things I noticed when I joined my new company was how different the people were - everyone here is nice and we all get along very well, but in the recruitment office it was a VERY 'bubbly' environment, a lot more extroverted, and it felt so strange going into a quiet office! I'm surprised the environment you're working in isn't more like this - like you say though, there will be a lot of in-jokes so it always takes some time to blend in.

You should definitely make the most of this time to observe what you're colleagues are doing, the things they say, their methods etc. as they will be useful for when you come to do it. Also, doing the CV's will give you a good opportunity to get to know the candidates/types of candidates you're dealing with. I don't know what field your in, but I was working in the Finance recruitment dept and by the end of it you really got an eye for what set a great Finance Manager apart from a rubbish one who we'd never want to put forward for a role!

Reply 5

Bright_blonde

I have just come out of Recruitment, having gone from being in a grad position to mentoring grads in under a year, I would say you need to prove all the Recruitment buzz words. Tenacity, resilience etc etc. don't be afraid to ask your manager if you can start BD next week, say your ready for it. I used to love this, I argued with my directors at week 1 so I could do this. They loved it, and similarly I loved being argued with by newbies.
i was always taught to ignore office banter. Whilst at work, are you there to have fun, or are you there to make money? Obviously you need to have a breather every so often, but that blind determination will set you out from the rest. Recruitment might be a team sport, but when it comes down to it, you are there for you to make as much money as possible, so bear that in mind.

the best word to describe my stint in recruitment was Ruthless. But don't loose who you are ;-)
not sure any of that rambling helped!!

good luck!

Reply 6

moutonfou

Original post by Bright_blonde

The best word to describe my stint in recruitment was Ruthless. But don't loose who you are ;-)

Haha that does seem like a lot of the recruitment pros I've seen!

So what are you in now? I'm enjoying it more now (obviously I'm still in the early days) but I would like to know some of the 'doors' that recruitment opens so I can bear them in mind as I get more experience!

Reply 7

Bright_blonde

Well I went into recruitment as I had no qualifications and is one of the quickest ways to make money.

i have recruitment friends that work internal for Investment Banks, Digital Agncies, google, amazon etc.
also for other sales roles like Medical etc, you are attractive because you generally come out motivated depending which rec company you come from??

Right now I am about to start education again with the view of becoming a Clinical Psychologist. For me Recruitment ruined me. I believe in karma you see so lying for 12 hours a day made feel awful. Sounds ridiculous. You need to decide if you want to be a career recruiter and go up the ranks or snatch and run (money) if its the latter then start networking straight away. A strong linked in is the key!!