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Best Options to find employment within a HR/People position?

Peter M A

Hi All, 

For the past 5 years, I have been part of a recruitment agency, started as a recruitment consultant, but the role turned into more People and Talent for technology startups and scaleups within EMEA and the US. 

My role now includes working with senior stakeholders from Chief Execs to VPs from companies across the globe, defining talent strategies, hiring plans, contract negotiations, reference checks and even some ER cases such as sensitive cases regarding replacement hires, performance related issues for an employee (previous candidate), we persuaded the company to give him a further 3 months due to the complex nature of the role. 

It was from this experience I wanted to get stuck into a more People or HR focused role hence why I have just started my CIPD Level 5 qualification. 

I am finding it so hard to officially move into a role like this whether it be People Advisor, Junior HR Business Partner or something similar. 

Has anyone got any advice on what I should be focused on or where I should be looking?

Very keen to get your thoughts on this. 

Regards

Peter

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  • Hi Peter,

    How long have you been searching for a new role?

    It took me nine months to land my first HR position, and I had no prior experience despite being CIPD Level 3 qualified. The job market is highly saturated, which made the process even more challenging. At one point, I felt quite desperate—about three weeks before I finally secured my role.

    I also tried reaching out to people on LinkedIn, hoping to build connections, but unfortunately, many didn’t respond. It felt a bit discouraging, especially since HR professionals are expected to be people-oriented.

    What ultimately worked for me was consistency. I checked recruitment websites every single day for nine months. It was exhausting at times, but staying persistent paid off.

    Your opportunity is out there—you just have to keep going. You’ll get there.

  • in reply to Nunzia

    Responding to the point re Linked In here for context - I get a lot of connection requests, largely from people trying to sell me things that they think someone in my role might be responsible for. I would strongly advocate for building a network on Linked In, but be specific if you're connecting with someone you don't know and let them know why you're reaching out to them.

    Please don't just say "I thought it would be good for us to connect", but tell the person why - even if it seems cheeky, I'm much more likely to connect with someone who says "I'm trying to get started in HR and would really appreciate a chat about how to get started in my career" than someone who says (and I quote) Hi Nina, I noticed we both work in the people space — I’m always keen to connect with others who are doing great work in this area. Would love to add you to my network.

    Good luck!

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  • in reply to Nunzia

    Responding to the point re Linked In here for context - I get a lot of connection requests, largely from people trying to sell me things that they think someone in my role might be responsible for. I would strongly advocate for building a network on Linked In, but be specific if you're connecting with someone you don't know and let them know why you're reaching out to them.

    Please don't just say "I thought it would be good for us to connect", but tell the person why - even if it seems cheeky, I'm much more likely to connect with someone who says "I'm trying to get started in HR and would really appreciate a chat about how to get started in my career" than someone who says (and I quote) Hi Nina, I noticed we both work in the people space — I’m always keen to connect with others who are doing great work in this area. Would love to add you to my network.

    Good luck!

Children
  • in reply to Nina Waters

    It took me ages to pluck up the courage to start connecting with people I hadn't met in person.  However once I did I made sure I put in a note when I did so.

    It's amazing how many people try to connect and then immediately try to sell me something.  An awful lot of the time it has nothing to do with HR in the first place!