One of the biggest things people are looking for in a profession is progression. Understanding how you can evolve from one job role to another is going to have a large influence on your decision making in entering a career, because who wants to ever be in a professional standstill?

So, if you're considering a career in recruitment, we've provided this overview of the structure that your career could end up taking, and roughly the speed at which your job success could accelerate.

Trainee Recruiter

We all have to start at the bottom of the ladder one way or another, and for the majority of rewarding careers the first step is a training programme. In the world of recruitment, this period of training time often lasts up to 6 months. Trust me, it'll fly by!

Training is a necessity and will provide you with all the skills you need to become a successful recruiter, all whilst getting some dollar for it! You'll learn from the best too, often shadowing an established consultant and learning the ropes alongside them.

Here's some of the main duties you can expect to undertake as a trainee:

• Candidate research
• Amending candidate's CVs
• Obtaining references
• Maintaining a candidate database
• Scheduling calls and meetings

Trainee Recruitment Consultants often start off on a basic annual salary between £15,000 - £20,000.  

Recruitment Consultant To Senior Recruitment Consultant

Once you've smashed your training, you'll be ready to take on the role of Recruitment Consultant. This title will award you the opportunity of working closely with candidates and client companies, to really showcase your abilities as a recruiter.

You'll probably find yourself in this role for around 1 year, and during this time you should be taking advantage of building strong relationships, full of rapport and client loyalty.

A record of effective, and persuasive, interpersonal skills will launch you into the next phase of your recruitment career. You'll be developing these through the following responsibilities.

• Using sales techniques and networking to accrue business from client companies
• Developing a solid knowledge of client companies - their industry, their values, their employees
• Visiting clients
• Approaching suitable candidates for job roles
• Briefing candidates

These are just a few of the many rewarding tasks you'll be carrying out. A Recruitment Consultant earns an average base salary of around £22,000 to £28,000. This is before progressing into the role of Senior Consultant, where you should see a salary increase into the region of £28,000 to £35,000. And that's without commission or benefits.

So, what's next?

Team Leader

Now you're really making your way up the ladder. After a few years experience as a Senior Consultant, you can start thinking about becoming a Team Leader.

This is a role where you're going to see a lot more responsibility - in fact, responsibility for an entire team of people! Within this role, you'll be in charge of motivating and inspiring a team, and managing and monitoring all recruitment activity to ensure a successful, smooth running operation.

This role will require a supportive approach to developing a team, both as a collective and as individuals, with business growth in mind. Therefore, as well as creating a healthy working environment, it'll be up to you to create effective recruitment strategies and plans.

Here's some duties you may take charge of to achieve this:

• Preparing reports and presentations
• Allocating resources
• Setting individual and team KPIs and targets
• Oversee application processes for candidates

Management

Well, you've made it to the top!

Being in a senior management role of a recruitment company not only means you'll be overseeing the recruitment processes, but human resource functions too. This means you will be in charge of hiring new employees, from drafting to interviewing to selecting. You're in control.

Other general responsibilities as a member of management include:

• Supervising staff
• Attending meetings, conferences and networking events
• Reviewing company policies
• Conducting performance reviews and disciplinaries where appropriate

The salary will certainly be attractive, and you'll be receiving excellent benefits. It will definitely be worth the effort and time you've put in to get there.

Side Note

Of course, any progression is going to come down to you. Your success relies on how hard you're willing to work and the quality of your job performance. Also, any salary expectation is going to vary depending on the size of your firm and its location. Wherever you are, just make sure you're being provided with the opportunities that you deserve.

So, it's time to get grinding and watch your career flourish!

If you want any other information on recruitment and careers, feel free to get in contact with us, we have a whole host of amazing opportunities to suit all types of recruiter from the newbie right through to those looking to test the waters of owning their own agency.

Want to hear more top tips? Looking to fill a role, or maybe you want to know more about careers at Vertex?  

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