Spencer Harrington

At Spencer Harrington we understand that deciding on your chosen career path can be a little confusing. We have therefore put together a quick guide to careers in recruitment to help you decide if it is right for you.

A career in recruitment – is it for you?
Recruitment consultancy is fast becoming a first-choice career option for graduates. The UK recruitment industry is the largest in Europe and is currently worth £24billion. Recent forecasts suggest that the industry is about to go through a period of considerable growth. Successful consultants can enjoy attractive salaries and benefits that compare favourably with most other careers. We have put together answers to some of the most commonly asked questions to give you an overview of the industry:

How does the recruitment industry work?
The industry consists of around 13,000 agencies, from sole traders through to large multinational companies who structure themselves in a wide variety of ways. Some are generalists who recruit for all positions within an organisation and some specialise in a particular discipline e.g. IT, Finance, Legal, Marketing, etc. Specialist consultancies tend to be industry specific and often work only senior level roles. In addition to this there is a wide spectrum of recruitment practices within the industry. The service could vary from simply forwarding CVs that are deemed appropriate for a role to the client, to a more consultative service which would include meeting and building relationships with both the candidate and client and giving detailed feedback and advice as an expert in the industry. All agencies/consultancies charge a fee for their service based on a signed agreement between the agency/consultancy and the client. The client normally pays these fees once the candidate has accepted a position and has commenced employment – this is how the consultant ultimately earns commission. A consultant’s remuneration will normally increase on the basis that they are filling more vacancies and therefore generating more money for their organisation.

What does a recruitment consultant do?
A large percentage of the day is spent on the telephone initiating and developing relationships with both candidates and clients. Once a role has been secured a consultant will have to accurately match candidates to the vacancy. To do this they will need a thorough understanding of the client, their values and culture and the range of experience that they look for. Some recruitment companies insist on meeting with all clients and candidates face to face whereas others manage the entire process on the telephone. Activity levels are key and most companies will monitor performance by setting a variety of targets e.g. number of calls made to clients and candidates, number of client visits secured, number of candidates registered, etc. To achieve these activity levels the day is often broken down into blocks of time where a consultant is either on the telephone making contact with clients or candidates, in face to face meetings, or managing their administration which could include writing advertisements, completing paperwork once a job has been filled, taking references and updating their recruitment database, etc.

What type of culture is it?
It’s a hard working, commercially driven and high-pressured sales environment and typically consists of hungry individuals who like to work hard and play hard. Long working hours are not uncommon, not least because interviewing candidates out of office hours may be necessary. Most recruitment environments are team-oriented and encourage camaraderie and a level of friendly competitiveness. It is important to remember that it is a sales environment so it is target driven and results focused which can make for some high pressure situations and some euphoric successes both individually and as a team.

What sort of qualities will I need?
A successful recruitment consultant will be bright, energetic, persuasive, driven, tenacious, financially motivated, ambitious and dynamic. You will need to be self-motivated and committed to following things through from start to finish. You should demonstrate a level of self-belief and determination and a desire to succeed. The first six months are often the hardest and these competencies will be put to the test. Within most recruitment environments, you will initially be expected to “grow your desk” and develop your own business. As a result you will be faced with a number of objections from prospective candidates or clients e.g. they may already be using an existing recruitment company; they may be too busy to talk or they may have had a negative experience with your company before. The test is often how persistent and skilled you are in overcoming these objections. Consultants who do not succeed are often not well versed in such techniques and tend to give up too easily. In addition, the ability to listen and understand is a pre-requisite. Previous sales experience is not necessary although some recruitment companies do look upon this more favourably. Time management and organisational skills are critical due to busy nature of this role and being able to prioritise can be a key factor to the success of a consultant.

What sort of training will I receive?
Training varies from company to company and it is important that you ascertain exactly what is on offer and what will work best for you. Some companies require people to learn by observation and pick things up practically as they go along. Others offer comprehensive sales and recruitment training to get you started in addition to ongoing training both on and off the desk. Often a long term training process is put in place for new starters with external and classroom training as well as an assigned mentor and close one on one training from management.

What is the typical career path?
Graduates will typically join the industry as trainee consultants or resourcers/researchers. Trainee consultants will often “shadow” or be mentored by a more experienced consultant; this may include formal training or a more “on the desk” type of approach. They will learn the full cycle of recruitment i.e. dealing with candidates and clients from sourcing to placement. Resourcers tend to be candidate focussed for a set timescale or dependent on performance levels and achievement. This could mean that there will be less of a focus on winning business and generating new clients and more emphasis on filling existing roles by sourcing suitable candidates. Recruitment is a meritocratic industry – as a result promotions are more often than not based on over-achieving against set targets and demonstrating that you have developed strong relationships with both candidates and clients. Career paths differ from company to company; traditionally consultants typically move into a people/staff-management position after 2 or 3 years of consistent billings. Career paths have today become far more diverse. Opportunities exist to mentor and coach new recruits at senior consultant level, to manage key accounts, to focus on business development solely and ultimately to be responsible for profit and loss of your own division or branch.

How much money can I make?
Starting salaries can vary considerably from between £16 – £22K + commission or bonus depending on experience. Commission schemes also vary and can be based on individual sales performance or that of your team. Commissions may be paid monthly, quarterly or annually or can in fact be discretionary dependent on your choice of company. Rewards in the industry can be substantial and top-billing consultants could be earning in excess of £100k+. On target earnings (basic salary + commission) at the end of your first year should, conservatively, be around £30k+; this should accelerate rapidly from year one to year two and so on. A top billing consultant in a buoyant market should expect to earn over £100K p/a by their third year of recruitment.

And finally… A career in recruitment won’t suit everybody. The hours can be long and unsociable, there is a lot of pressure, it’s very target driven and you will need to be totally committed. However it can give you early responsibility, high earnings potential and a level of status and reward that would be difficult to match in any other industry.