Many people think recruiting is a career with repetitive tasks that only serves to fill vacant positions in organisations. 

Some of the most widely believed myths are that online job sites have replaced recruiters, recruiters are only good at filling entry-level positions, and recruiters have the final say in whether a person gets a job. 

These assertions couldn't be further from the truth. On the contrary, recruiting can be a tremendously rewarding career for people genuinely interested in helping people. This article tells you why recruitment is fulfilling and touches on the job description.

What Do Recruiters Do?

Recruiters act as the link between candidates and their next job, and much like an athletics coach, their most refined skill is spotting top calibre talent with an end goal of meeting an organisation's needs. 

However, this is only the crown of the job. Recruiters are deeply involved in human resources development. They not only help to find candidates, but they also participate in screening them and assessing additional skills talent may need so that they can arrange for training. 

They are also involved when it's time for employees to leave an organisation. They oversee the required legal processes of offboarding and conduct exit interviews to help the organisation improve its hiring strategies. 

Reasons Why Recruitment is a Rewarding Career

Here are reasons why you should pursue a career in recruitment:

Attractive Salaries and Benefits

Glassdoor says recruiters in London earn about £39,698 per year with an average salary of £31,756 annually. This figure can increase based on the location and bonus schemes on offer from firm to firm. 

Depending on your role and previous experience, you may also get a basic salary and performance-related bonuses and commissions.

Recruiters in the United States also enjoy attractive salaries. According to Indeed, recruiters in the US earn an average salary of $50,059. These salaries also come with appealing benefits like paid training, paid time off, pet insurance, dental insurance, 401(k) matching, flexible spending account, etc. More than that, 53% of recruiters believe their salaries can cover their living expenses comfortably.

Findings from ZipRecruiter also show that as of April 2022, the average pay per year for a recruiter working on contract terms in the United States is $60,479. That figure translates to about $29.08 an hour, $1,163 a week and $5,040 per month.

Special Skills 

Like other sectors, recruiters need a stack of essential skills to work in the recruitment industry, But along the way, they also develop unique skills that help them in career progression. They include:

• Negotiation Skills. Negotiation in this case applies to negotiating salary scales and understanding how to keep a post attractive even when you can't provide some of the aspects that a candidate is looking for.
• Event Networking. Honing this skill on the job enables recruiters to successfully sell a role to top tier candidates at corporate events and other appropriate avenues. This skill also helps them be more successful at landing talent in a highly competitive talent market.
• Ability to Manage Expectations. The negotiating table often pits recruiter expectations against the expectations of the candidate. Managing both sides for a favourable outcome is a vital skill that recruiters learn.
• Multitasking and Time Management. By juggling writing job ads, screening applicants, running background checks, scheduling interviews, and eventually completing job offers, recruiters learn how to multitask and meet deadlines. 

These skills are crucial in moving recruiters up the ladder, and they add a competitive advantage to their career trajectory.

Vibrant Culture

The crux of recruiting is helping people further their lives through satisfying careers. To do this successfully, people working in recruitment cultivate a culture that appreciates people, a spirit that exudes enthusiasm, and the empathy it takes to understand a candidate's needs and strike a balance between those needs and the organisation's requirements. 

Also, each candidate is different, and the negotiations that worked for candidate A may need a complete overhaul to get candidate B. Additionally, recruiters are naturally gifted with people skills. It's natural for them to work well with others, creating a vibrant work culture. 

Meeting Likeminded People

Recruiting requires curiosity, being adaptable, listening skills, confidence, reliability, big picture thinking, and the ability to deliver tangible results. 

This stack of qualities also draws you to like-minded people regardless of their career level –presidents, C-suite executives, entry-level candidates, interns, etc. The result is infinite chances to network and grow your career.

Transferable Skills

Transferable skills are a toolkit you can carry wherever you go. They include every skill you gain from each role, including internships and volunteering, that you can apply in new jobs. 

For example, if you ever wish to switch from a recruiter to a career counsellor, your time as a recruiter provides invaluable skills to apply to career counselling –people management, reliability, negotiation, and critical thinking.

Progression Pathways

Unlike in the 20th century where career progression was decided for you by employers, employees in the 21st are in charge of their career ladder, where they place it, how long they stay in a particular role and how high they want to climb. 

LinkedIn found that four out of ten recruiters transition into an HR role, and sales and business development are also popular in the career progression of recruiters. 

For example, you could start as a corporate recruiter, climb to a senior recruiter, and finally become a recruitment manager.

In Conclusion

In addition to the reasons stated here, if you're target driven, are a natural salesperson, are confident, and willing to learn, you're most likely to find a career as a recruiter quite gratifying.

If you're a recruitment agency on the market for graduate candidates, Buchanan Search is a rec to rec company with a wide pool of graduate talent that you can tap into to fulfill specific roles. 

We have an eye for detail, a vast network of expert recruiters, and in-depth industry knowledge that guarantees you a reasonable time to fill. Plus, if your chosen candidate doesn't work out, we provide a free replacement for the role. Learn more. 

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