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Transitioning from Agency Recruitment to HR

Busayo

Hi all, 

I'm currently studying my CIPD Level 3 coming from a sales and Recruitment agency background and looking to secure my first role within HR. A lot of the specialist agencies tend to disregard me even for HR Assistant and Administrator roles due to lack out of outright experience in HR and applications on job boards are ignored or rejected despite feeling I have a lot of transferable skills 

I haven't had the best luck with jobs since finishing university 4 years ago having 5 within that time (3 i left voluntarily and 2 being let go from) so the course is helping me shape where I want to be and how I need to get there and develop professionally. 

I've altered my CV to be more HR focused however all of my achievements are sales focused. Due to my job history I've also looked at temp roles and unpaid work experience but no luck. 

I plan to attend the CIPD conference in London that's coming up on March 23rd 2019 to network as well.

if anyone knows where I can be looking directly for said opportunities it would be greatly appreciated

Thank you 

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  • I think (and sorry to be blunt) you have three big challenges:

    1) You are in a sales function that isn't well regarded by some/many HR professionals
    2) You have neither qualifications or experience in HR
    3) Your career history is at best patchy and at worst concerning.

    Having said all that people can and do succeed in getting into HR and with perseverance and a lot of applications you may well be one of them.

    The best (probably only) avenue that I can see with a high chance of success is via getting an admin job in a recruitment team. Trying to leverage the external experience you have to an internal role then growing your career from there.

    To do this you will need an excellent narrative around the three points above.

    I would be targeting all my efforts at internal entry level recruitment roles and be prepared to be making a lot of applications. Good luck
  • in reply to Keith
    Hi Keith,

    I appreciate your honesty and transparency, the points you have made are ones I am fully aware of the 3rd being something I unfortunately cannot rectify. I'm curious to know exactly why those who come from a sales aren't well regarded by HR professionals? Correct me if I'm wrong but that sounds like a very subjective point of view.

    I'm working towards the CIPD Level 3 qualification at the moment which I am self funding to show commitment to moving my career into a HR direction whilst applying for those entry level internal recruitment roles (temporary included) demonstrating the skills I can bring to such an organisation. I am by no means never one to shy away from hard work and feel I've learnt valuable lessons from patchy/concerning career history to date.
  • in reply to Busayo
    Hi

    Many HR professionals do take a very subjective view of people in agency recruitment. Their experience of them isn't always the greatest and they are seen as performing (by many) a very different type of work and not always displaying the skills or attitudes that people perceive are needed in HR. But for many thats their reality. Its a prejudice (and HR people are people so do have prejudices) and one that you will have to fight to over come.

    The lessons you have learnt from your career history are part of the narrative and part of trying to persuade someone to give you a chance in what they see as a total career change when you have been 8/10 months in each of your five jobs so far.

    As I say its doable but will be tough and you will need to be very resilient and persevere through many applications till you find that opportunity. It could well come in a short term / fixed term placement and I would be looking at those as a starter.

    Good luck
  • in reply to Keith
    They are also primarily sales roles so even if they have transferrable skills, they are still seen as 'just a salesman/woman', a bit like an estate agent.
  • in reply to Busayo
    Look how Google autofills "recruiters are..." or spend 5 minutes on LinkedIn!

    I also made the transition from agency recruitment to HR. I moved into a sales admin role and grew this position and showed my abilities in many areas. Luckily, my company invested in me and my CIPD qualification.
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  • in reply to Cat Jones
    The google auto-fills I must say are no surprise to me. As for LinkedIn, there's not a day that goes by I don't see someone bashing them for one reason or another, most of them I've experienced as a job seeker and unintentionally done as a recruiter.

    That's great! to be honest, I just "fell" into sales probably due to the entry barrier being so low, it's only with being in such a role and my own further research I discovered what HR was
  • in reply to Busayo
    Your problem is that their are many recruiters who are out-and-out sales people who chase a one-off commission without building a relationship. There are also some terrific recruitment consultants who take time to learn your business and only put forward candidates they believe are perfect for the vacancy. Your problem is that we have all met too many of the first.

    There is a cross-over between sales and HR, and I speak from experience as someone who went the other way, although in a different industry, and came back again. HR people need influencing skills as do sales people. We need to build credibility to gain influence with our "customers", as do sales people. Also, the first time you meet a customer and initiate a conversation about their business and what their needs are, you are using the same skills as you use in a recruitment interview.

    I think you are bound to encounter the difficulties outlined by Keith and Peter, but I really liked Catherine and Owen's suggestions and think you are more likely to get where you want to go if you plan the journey in several steps rather than one bound, as Claire suggests.