Associate Consultant Review

Over the past 12 months I have experienced working on 3 different desks on the Education team including, Primary Teaching Assistants, Support Services and Special Educational Needs Teachers and Teaching Assistants. I have enjoyed my placement thoroughly, however there were some aspects of the job which didn't appeal to me as I feel the Education sector isn't well suited to me. I would highly recommend Hays to anyone who is planning on doing a placement like me or wishing to start a career in recruitment - I believe there is a lot of opportunity working for this company and career progression is definitely one of the biggest assets.

From working on the Education desk over the last year, I could not ask for a better team to work with. They are all absolutely exceptional people as both colleagues and friends making me feel very welcome from the day I joined on the 1st July last year. It has been a total pleasure working with everyone and I will miss them dearly when I leave.

I had 3 line managers during my placement year and they were all very assisting whenever I needed any help or guidance. The whole team offered support when needed and vice versa I would transfer my knowledge to any new starters that joined the team. We all have a close bond and ensured the morale was high to motivate each other.

On a day-to-day basis I am very busy, writing up my day plan first thing in the morning and following it through until I have completed all my aims and objectives. This helped me to learn how to prioritise my time efficiently and work independently when my manager was focused on their own work. I would always ask around the team whether there was anything that needed doing and help where I can.

Throughout my time at Hays, I've had various responsibilities including answering the phones, calling candidates, writing and posting adverts, clearing candidates to ensure they are compliant, Business Development calls, writing up candidate CVs, sending out marketing in the form of Eshots and Spec CVs, interviewing candidates for both myself and other consultants.

I have developed hugely from working at Hays, purely by planning how to achieve my objectives in the day and having that taste of success from when I do. To then going on trips down to London with other interns completing the module 1 training, improving my knowledge of the business and how to become a better consultant. To even training myself independently on the job increasing my confidence and continuing to improve my telephone manner and I interpersonal skills when interviewing candidates face-to-face.

The general atmosphere in the office is high energy, always busy on the phones especially during core hours from 10-12 and 2-4. Additionally, we all celebrate success by handing out awards to each other both as a team and individually, which boosts morale! I get on well with everyone in the office, therefore making it a positive experience for me and will really miss everyone once I leave.

Overall, my work placement was very well organised and it expanded and developed as the months passed and is to why I got the opportunity to work on 3 different desks during my time at Hays. I had a lot of on-the-job training particularly during the start of my placement, even though I hadn't had that much training I was left to my own devices a lot of the time training myself which built up my confidence to a high degree.

My training consisted of me going down to London for module 1 which is based around candidate management and our online database to source and find candidates to fill the jobs we get in. The majority of my training was on a 1:1 basis with other consultants on the team or training myself independently by doing my own research and using my knowledge from my previous role in recruitment and implementing it into my work.

The future employment prospects are extremely appealing as Hays offers a lot of opportunity for career progression and if I was offered a position after I finish University, I would certainly consider it. As I've said before Hays is a brilliant company to work for and if the right opportunity came along I would take it both hands.

The social aspect of working at Hays was really good, as we usually go out for a drink at the pub next door every Friday after work. We also have team/office nights out, including the one we have coming up which is our year end do - where all the offices from the Yorkshire and North region come together for food and drinks to celebrate our successes from the year.

The cost of living in Sheffield was quite expensive for me because I was in a house share renting out a student property and lived independently, however the social aspect of Sheffield was quite inviting with great scenery all around and plenty to do to keep you busy during evenings and weekends.

The nightlife in Sheffield was a total buzz, plenty of bars/clubs to go to and has a lot to offer - one my favourite bars there was a place called the wick at both ends because the atmosphere is absolutely unreal, drinks are flowing and everyone has a good time in there. There's various bars and restaurants on the main road I lived off called Ecclesall road also known as the 'golden mile' brought up from being a popular student area.

Since working for Hays, I've taken part in various events including 5-aside football with my workmates, the Sheffield Half Marathon as a personal challenge raising money for the companies chosen charity, Bluebell Wood. I am also taking part in another charity event called 'it's a knockout' which I will be taking part in on the 2nd July along with my workmates. I try and get involved with as many events as possible and set myself personal challenges, I've had an absolute blast!