Beginners guide to recruitment jobs

Recruitment adminsitrator

Recruitment agencies need to constantly advertise large numbers of vacancies and build a database of candidates from which they can select people suitable for their clients roles. You will be responsible for co-ordinating advertising through posting vacancies regularly on recruitment jobs boards. Then you will be charged with handling the response via telephone and e-mail to stock the database with new CVs. You will need good IT skills and excellent communication skills.

Recruitment resourcer

The recruitment process has many links in the chain from finding a job, to finding a candidate, co-ordinating interviews, all the way through to chasing for an invoice. Many agencies break up the role into smaller parts. As a resourcer your job will be to take the recruitment vacancies and generate short lists from the database for a consultant to follow up and select candidates to submit via agency interviews. You will need good analytical skills to select good CVs and depending on the company you may be expected to initially screen candidates by phone. This role is often seen as an apprenticeship for the recruitment consultant role

Business Development

As above, this represents the front end of the recruitment process. You will be an out and out sales person charged with developing vacancies for recruitment consultants to fill. You will likely have a field sales background. This role will provide you with your ticket into the recruitment industry. There will usually good bonus availbale with this role.

Recruitment consultant

Depending on the company this can incorporate different degrees of the full process. Some it's the whole process from finding the vacancies to chasing for payment, others you will have business developers and resourcers to help with the process. You will be driven by targets, usually monthly or quarterly. The pressure to produce will always be there, but so will the rewards for success. Earinings can be anywhere from £20K to £100K and above.

Executive Search

Otherwise known as headhunting is a more proactive form of recruiting. Rather than referring to a database or advertising for candidates, headhunters will go out after a particular spec of person and coax them into the role. So, for example, your client may be interested in pinching someone from a competitor. Your job would be to track the down and sell the opportunity to move. Rewards in this role can be huge and uncapped. Top city search people can top the earnings of CEOs in SMEs!!

Recruitment manager

You will be responsible for the achievement of results through a team, likely consisting of a mixture of the above. You may still have recruitment responsibilities but you main focus will be the achievement of results through your people.