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Recruitment Industry

The Recruitment Industry is dynamic, vibrant and extremely competitive. It’s fundamental to the UK economy, with a multi-billion £ turnover. This industry can affect every aspect of working life and there are thousands of recruitment consultancies and agencies dealing with every type of job imaginable. Some of the companies are global players, quoted on stock markets; many are specialist firms, of varying size, focusing on specific niche sectors.

So what makes a Recruitment company worth working for? Click here

In surveys the main 5 points to attract and retain the best people were:

5.

Money – the whole package, especially the basic

4.

Environment & Infrastructure – modern, spacious offices, with ample tools for the job, such as good advertising, branding & marketing, effective I.T. systems, experienced & sufficient Sales Support personnel

3.

Management style – Ideally a style that provides clear direction & guidance, including reasonable performance targets, with plenty of positive encouragement eg neither completely ‘left to your own initiative’ (often perceived as a lazy or incompetent style), and certainly not too prescribed and not only managed by the numbers (key performance indicators)

2.

Training & Career – everyone wants the chance to learn something new and everyone wants the chance to gain more responsibility, appreciation and recognition

1.

The Working Atmosphere – Recruitment is obviously a people business, so there has to be an equal balance of ‘people’ vs. ‘business’. The most successful companies have an atmosphere that balances the importance of results, with the importance of actually enjoying the job. Professional, but not stuffy; fun, but not juvenile.

The mechanics of a Recruiter’s role seem to be fairly straightforward; matching the right person to the right company. But the variety is endless; the intricacies, idiosyncrasies and complexities of every different person and every different company and different business markets are limitless. So finding a really good Recruiter is absolutely priceless.

There are numerous job titles within the Recruitment Industry several particular to the sector or size of company, however many are variations of the following:

Trainee or Junior Consultants

Often Graduates, or people with good Sales or Customer Service experience. Sometimes the early months of a Trainee are spent in either Research or Resourcing roles; either canvassing clients to gather information and vacancy leads, or contacting potential Candidates for current vacancies. Gradually, through training and mentoring a Trainee begins to learn the craft and deal with all aspects of the process

Consultants & Senior Consultants

Someone with at least 12 months exp can begin to call themselves a Consultant, and realistically 2-3 years to become a Senior Consultant. In most agencies this is a full 360 role – dealing with all aspects of the recruitment process. In many companies, as a new Consultant, this means dedicating 60-70% of your time on winning new business and 30-40% on account management / candidate generation. Over time, depending on the quality of your clients and your relationships, this ratio should change to 60-70% account management and the remainder on business development.

Team Leaders, Managing Consultants or Division Managers

Usually the first step towards management, but possibly the toughest post in the business. Generally these will be hands-on billing roles. Taking responsibility for a team of maybe 3-6 Consultants, giving them day-to-day guidance and accountable for the team’s performance, whilst trying to ensure you also achieve your personal sales targets. Opinions vary, but generally you need at least 3-4 years solid experience and obvious leadership potential.

Branch / Sales Managers or Directors

Similar roles, but may vary within different recruitment sectors, eg usually Branch Managers work in the High Street-type agencies and Sales Managers in specialist firms. However, the basic duties are often comparable – responsible for the Profit & Loss of a cost centre; devising and implementing effective sales strategies; mentoring, motivating and, if necessary, cajoling, your people to exceed their targets. The most highly sought after Managers and Directors are those who can also carry some billing and personal targets. Directors often bear extra responsibilities of marketing, forward planning and financial management, as well as everything above.