Case studies : Recruitment manager: Helen

Helen graduated with a degree in theatre design.

I didn’t go straight into recruitment when I finished university - I worked for a charity, but after six months I was made redundant, so I went to register at a recruitment agency to find a new job. During the registration process I was told about a career in recruitment and the vacancies at the agency and was asked whether I’d consider working for them. I researched the company and the industry and decided to give it a go.

I work for a high street recruitment agency and I’m based at their central London office. The agency has a number of branches across London and the UK and they place local candidates in office roles, both permanent and temporary, within their client companies. I joined as a consultant on the permanent team. I really enjoyed the role and the environment, and whilst my degree isn’t relevant on paper, it definitely helped with my interpersonal skills, developing my people skills, being able to talk to people at different levels and being adaptable to different situations. I have to be professional at all times, as I’m representing the company, meeting with both candidates and clients.

Within the first year I was the top biller in the company, hitting all the sales targets I’d been set for the year. Six months later I was promoted to branch manager; and this role is a lot different from being a consultant; it’s more challenging with a lot more responsibility. As well as having my own sales target to meet, I now work across perm and temp recruitment and I also manage a team of three, overseeing their targets and dealing with any HR issues, and ensuring the branch runs successfully. I love the fact that that every day is different. There’s always a different challenge to sort out – ranging from managing the team, overseeing targets and business development to customer service and of course interviewing candidates. I can honestly say the only thing I don’t like about my job is the fact that there aren’t enough hours in the day to get everything done.

Where do I see myself progressing? I’m keen to stay in management, ideally where I am now. I’ve looked into career progression at the company to give me a better understanding of the opportunities the company has to offer.

If you’re currently considering starting a career in recruitment, I’d recommend you fully research the company you’re thinking about working for and also the industry as a whole, including their competitors, maybe even going as far as interviewing with the competitors in order to give you the best understanding of what the working environments are like and what benefits they have to offer - this would make for a great comparison.