Hannah has been with Gibson Hollyhomes since 2011 and works on the Legal Desk specialising in support recruitment throughout Manchester and the North West.
After graduating in Criminology and Criminal Justice at Central Lancashire University, Hannah decided to stay a northerner after working within online recruitment in Preston. She then moved to Manchester city centre to join Manchester United’s Executive Sales team, which subsequently led her to Gibson Hollyhomes in 2011, putting her back in the recruitment seat.
She is the regular quiz master for the office and has unique talent of speaking in range of different accents!
From your experience what factors/challenges do you think are affecting the recruitment market?
More agencies are popping up who think they can do the job! I have been here 6 and a half years and I have seen so many people come and go in the market. I think as a recruiter you need to be resilient and know your market down to a T. The successful recruiters are the long-termers!
How has Legal recruitment changed since you’ve worked within the sector?
More clients are retaining staff by counter offers, better pay rises and better relationships internally. The successful firms moving forwards will be the clients who adopt agile working, allowing all members of staff, no matter what level to be on the same open plan floor. More client referrals, more staff involvement from Partner level down to admin. All this makes for happier staff. I think clients now are taking into account how to retain staff, rather than how they need to recruit. This is far more forward thinking.
What values can you bring to clients and candidates alike?
Treat everyone in a manner that you would like to be treated. Being open and honest in this field, not only in recruitment but at life in general is key. If there are issues, tackle them head on and don’t let them fester. Listen – to what the person in front of you is saying – I would hope I can bring that trait to both candidates and clients alike. If I can remove some of the stresses away from the job process for both parties I will gladly do so. Moving jobs is hard enough as it is! I am always here for a chat at the end of the day too. I would never send a candidate to a client that I wouldn’t personally work for myself.
If you didn’t work in recruitment, what would you be doing?
Something to do with designing gardens or a wine and restaurant connoisseur. As a true Taurean, I am most at one with myself outside or trying out new bars and restaurants in Manchester! Maybe I could combine the two one day!