My Recruitment Journey

Like many – or in fact probably MOST recruiters, I did not specifically choose this path.

The majority of people you speak to in this line of work fell into it by accident. My experience was no different.

I always wanted to earn. I had a paper round at the age of 11 and a Saturday job in retail by the age of 15, which led to me running my own shops / branches by 18.

After school, I chose not to head to college or university – choosing instead to attend the ‘School of Life’ – as I wanted to get out of my parental home, get some independence and some decent income coming my way. I was / am not particularly academically gifted, nor driven, but felt I had some natural tools that could see me through.

What line of work?

When I was 19 years old I was working in a bar in Soho, in the heart of London’s West End, and living with friends a little out to the West in Hammersmith. This was the mid-90s so it was a good time to be in that line of work. I loved the sociability of it and the house music era was in full swing, so there were party people all over the ‘Scene’ as well as numerous famous faces and all night after-parties to check out. As a late teen, I was in my element.

At some point during that year I realised that this lifestyle was probably not sustainable – and that maybe I should get some sort of career going, some sort of stability and routine in my life. 19 turning 20 seemed like a good time to grow up a bit and get things moving.

I didn’t know what I wanted to do – I was desperate for some careers advice but couldn’t find any. However, I had some ideas around what I thought I could be good at;  

• Something people-focused

• Something where you work as a part of a team

• Something where you can earn more than just a fixed salary – where hard work was rewarded financially

• Something where you are not micromanaged but left to do your thing as long as you come up with the results

• Something connected with the world and / or travel.

I had some vague ideas of being cabin crew or maybe a London Black Cab driver. Although still now, nearly 30 years later, I can’t drive a car so that could have been problematic.

Being Proactive

Armed with these ideas, I decided to head out into the streets with my printed out CV (old school!) to see what I could find. I went to shop-front businesses around Hammersmith and Soho – and at one point, found a recruitment firm called Blue Arrow Back then, they were a high street brand who were generalists - covering areas such as Office Staff, Care Workers and Industrial temps.

I popped in and had a chat with the team, and asked them for any work they could throw my way to tide me over until I could find something permanent. Anything – warehouse picking and packing, office / reception work.

They said they had 3 days work available if I was prepared to come in the next day and clear out their basement! Haha.

I was happy for the chance to do something so did as they asked.

I had the job done in a day, and as they had promised me 3 days’ work, they had me go home and put on a shirt, and come back in to answer phones and help around the office.

And that, as they say, was that! My recruitment journey had begun.

Becoming a Recruiter

I was hired by them permanently and LOVED it. I loved the colleagues I worked with, I loved matching people with temp roles and helping them and my clients reach a win / win, I loved the steady Monday to Friday nature of it and the fact that if I wanted - I could work extra hours and literally see the difference in my commission as a result.

I was very happy with this and felt I had landed on my feet!

I learned my trade through excellent basic training and on-the-job learning.

For my next role, I was headhunted into an agency who specialised in Catering staff – so I spent a few years specialising in this – first Front of House waiting professionals (staffing functions at the likes of the Savoy and Mandarin Oriental hotels) and then into Back of House, finding chefs for functions, restaurants and hotels.

Over the years, I worked – and was successful – across a few different industries. By this point though, I suffered a touch of ‘recruiter burnout’ and was tired of being ‘Only as good as last month’s figures’.

The pressure in recruitment to hit targets can be a lot to deal with.

Being a Recruiter

So I shifted gear a little and spent a few years focused on helping the unemployed find work. This was really rewarding as I was not just chasing a quick placement, but working with people to change their lives, to facilitate them getting somewhere. A step forward on their journey and that resonated with me.

I then stepped back into revenue-generating recruitment work, finding myself recruiting Office Staff (mostly in Admin and Reception) and it turned out that one of our clients wanted someone to come and recruit internally for them. So once again, quite by chance, I had a career swerve and placed myself into a role with a client!

The next step on my career path saw me recruiting for one of the Big Four accounting firms in London, back in 2003/4 – looking for Financial Services Auditors for their London practice’s Busy Season.

This was my introduction to recruiting for the Professional Services world.

Building the Foundations

On my first day, I started at 9am and was immediately rushed into an interview with a Partner, to conduct an interview for an Audit Manager. I had NO idea what this even meant and what questions one should ask them – but winged it and found – a couple of interviews in, that I was finding my feet. The other aspect of this was that for the first time I was interviewing people around the world – helping them make a move of their dreams. A new opportunity to move to London. I loved it!   

At the end of that contract I was asked by one of my suppliers to join their external recruiting team that focused on Consulting positions within the Big Four. I loved this as my focus shifted from recruiting internationally into London – to internationally into ANYWHERE! I was filling roles in the Caribbean, US, Australia – this role even took me to Australia and I spent several happy years living in Sydney.

A few years of interviewing Auditors later, I thought it might be nice to change things up a little, so branched out – but remained focused on the Consulting world. I specialised in Tax for a while, recruiting into VAT, Expatriate Tax and Transfer Pricing positions in places like Tanzania and Dubai, before stumbling on Deals / M&A recruitment, probably in about 2010.

This is my focus still to this day!

Starting My Own Company

In 2015 I decided I knew enough and was long enough in the tooth to be able to cope with working for myself. So I wrote a business plan, secured some funding and set up Global Pathways!

It has been a journey – as anyone who runs a business will tell you. There is no way I could have predicted the highs and lows that would follow. I have at times been more stressed out than I have EVER been before in my life running this business. But when things go well, there is nothing like it. It is the most rewarding experience I have ever had. And now I get to set the tone – work in an office I have chosen and to live and breathe the company culture, only employing people I want to work with and who fit in with our company values.

Specialising in Transaction Advisory across Financial Due Diligence and Post Merger Integration, our niche is maybe not unique, but it is one we know intimately, and are very well connected in.

If you want your job search in M&A Advisory handled by a very well connected team with opportunities all over the world, from Sydney to Singapore, from Copenhagen to Canada, please get in touch! You will be in very safe hands.  

See you next week!