How did you get started in your Career?
Like a lot of people I know in my industry, I “fell” into recruitment.?I was never one of the kids at school who had a fixed idea about what they wanted to do when they grew up.?Even as a graduate, armed with a degree in Philosophy (I didn’t even know what course to study!), I still didn’t have a clue.?It wasn’t until I returned from an extended trip around the world with my girlfriend (now wife) that everything started to fall into place.?
At the tender age of 24, I discovered that I was to become a father for the first time.?This came as a bit of a shock!?But it did me a power of good in terms of helping me focus and grow up very quickly.?I was skint, had nowhere to live and suddenly the massive pressure of impending responsibility bore?heavily upon my shoulders (my eldest son now works for me – which is pretty cool).?
A chance meeting with a recruitment agency in Maidenhead bizarrely led me to my first recruitment role in Brighton.?It was a small business run by the two founders and I was the first consultant they hired into a business.?It’s fair to say that we took a bit of a punt on each other.?I had a proven (if limited) background in sales, but had no real concept of what I was getting myself into.?
As it turned out, I wasn’t too bad at it.?And I was immediately struck with the similarities between recruiting and my previous sales role.?The difference was the delivery aspect.?It’s once the contract is signed that the real work starts in recruitment.?
And it was a different game 25 years ago.?My weapon of choice was the telephone.?I was on it constantly, developing new business.?I became incredibly adept at cold-calling.?I got a massive buzz out of it and genuinely enjoyed it.?There was no LinkedIN, no social media.?Email was new, fangled technology and most of my client contacts were kept in a rolodex for easy access.?CV’s were faxed into the office.?I had ring-binders with lists of prospective candidates and their phone numbers.?Information that was gleaned by hard graft on the telephone.?Nothing was available online.?
Nowadays, most people have some sort of accessible social media profile somewhere, so the “research” aspect of a recruitment project is that much easier.?The problem is that ANYONE can access the same information.?25 years ago, when I approached a candidate (which was always by phone and NEVER by email), I was typically the only headhunter to do so.?We’d always end up having a conversation.?Nowadays, I’m one of 20.?This leads to what we refer to internally as “headhunter fatigue”.?The engagement aspect – actually having a conversation - becomes problematic.?For everyone.?There’s too much “noise” in the market – too many people chasing the same candidate pool.?
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So where do we still add value??It’s cheesy, but it’s very simple.?Network.?Over time, you build up a huge network of contacts.?Yes, there are genuinely people out there who don’t have a profile online!?We offer access to the candidates who you won’t readily find on social media.?I still speak to people I placed 20 plus years ago.?A lot of them are now clients.?Some I have placed a handful of times.?Curating and cultivating your network is probably one of the most important aspect of any sales-orientated role and it certainly is with recruitment.?And doing your best by the people in your network, helping them as best you can whether you place them or not, is absolutely key.?
When I started Initial Talent over 6 years ago, it was that network that got the business off the ground and it’s that self-same network that remains the lifeblood of our business today.?
The way we go to market may now be different.?I’m no longer hammering the phone and making cold-calls day in, day out.?It’s much more subtle than that nowadays.?But the heart of what we do remains the same.?We work with people and we try our hardest to help them out.?
I still get that same buzz today as I did 25 years ago every time we help a candidate into a new role.?Once upon a time it was all about the money.?Nowadays, it’s the satisfaction that comes from genuinely changing someone’s career and prospects.?
Maybe I’m just getting old and sentimental, but it’s that feeling of doing something valuable and good that gets me up in the morning these days!
?? Headhunter ??Connecting Technology companies with high performers 【?? Ｄａｔａ ??ＡＩ ??ＥＳＧ】
1 年I happened to "fall" not only into recruitment but also into your team! Although I don't miss the days of you breathing down my neck whilst I cold-called through switchboards..... it did provide me with a useful tool to have in my tool belt. This coupled with the ability to build personal relationships, create a personal brand and not get put off by the hard knocks along the way (inevitably there will be some) are what, in my opinion, make a good recruiter. Networking is important, having knowledge and passion for your market is key and being genuine is the most important of all! Nicely written post Piers and long may people 'fall' into Recruitment!