An Introduction to the Permanent Business

 

The permanent business is arranged into separate divisions; Banking, Practice, Commerce & Industry, Management Consultancy, Audit, Tax, Treasury & Banking Operations, and within each division the business is broken down into individual specialist teams . It is this well defined structure that is central to our sales strategy and approach to market, and creates a platform for everyone in our business to take ownership.

 

A robust structure such as ours, provides many unique advantages. Every member of the team has complete clarity on who our existing clients are whilst being able to identify new clients within the sector. As a consultant, this structure gives you the opportunity to unlock and build relationships with a specific candidate community and create a unique network. Being successful within this business creates a number of options for your career. Long term, you may decide that you want to move into running a business, or you might realise that the best route for your skill set is to continue as a high performing biller and become an Executive Consultant (super biller & market specialist) and continue to build a Number 1 business. These are the options within our business, but having the right structure is important because it supports and facilitates growth. It also has an overall impact on the culture of our business because we all feel we can progress our careers which collectively is an important mindset to have. 

Since early 2009 our Permanent business has gone through an enormously exciting transition in terms of our culture, and as MD I’m incredibly proud about this. The recruitment industry can often suffocate people by implementing strict guidelines about when certain tasks should be performed and is non-negotiable about specific daily routines. We certainly understand the value of structure, yet our people are provided the freedom, flexibility and autonomy to operate as an individual within their marketplace. If we hire the best talent in the market and we coach, support and develop our people in the right way and closely measure our progress, then this will ultimately create a mature and focused working culture. Making our people feel valued and relaxed so that they enjoy their working environment means we will all have fun and take pride in what we do. It gives everyone the chance of plotting a long term career. We have created a hugely positive and exciting working environment! 

It’s really important to keep this simple and not over complicate my message. Everyone should look forward to arriving at work and enjoy being with their colleagues and the process of building a business. I have personally been involved in building businesses over the years and this is for me such an exciting and rewarding experience. If we are to all realise the ambition of becoming a market leader then we must all have an expectation that 100% commitment and effort is the minimum expectation. We must have an attitude that is about being a winner and coming first in everything we do. Every marketplace and sector that we transact in is hugely competitive which means we must work with a focus and intensity to ensure we win and deliver the best experience possible.  

Your week would normally begin comparing notes on your weekend or discussing a hangover with a team member before arriving at a morning meeting to discuss both your revenue commitment for that month and your priorities and focus for the coming week. You could be shortlisting candidates for live roles, organising interviews with your clients, working with your existing client community, trying to build on relationships, pursuing new clients / mapping new potential client contacts, approaching new HR contacts, interviewing new candidates or supporting their preparation for pending interviews, meeting new clients with a colleague...the list goes on.

 

To be a highly successful consultant, you must manage your time and this is often something that takes time to adapt to and will require support from your business leader. The variety within your role is also a hugely exciting part of the job and it is often a shock to many when they enter this industry that it takes months rather than weeks to get used to. The week will hopefully end with closing some deals, organising to meet new client contacts and finding a number of new talented candidates. On top of working within a high paced environment your colleagues will without a doubt be expecting you to attend many of the team or company wide social events.

 

Many of my closest friends and even my wife have come from the recruitment industry (maybe even my daughter in years to come - although my wife would disagree). I love my career and this passion for what I do continues to become stronger as I progress.

 

Managing Director