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New in London- looking for advice and/ or support

Nivek

Hi All! 

I recently moved from Sydney to London and I've been actively looking for a role (Generalist HR Advisor/ Jnr HRBP) for the past 3 months. Whilst I have been trying to stay positive, I have found the process rather disheartening. I'm wondering if there are others who are familiar with the challenges of moving to London and securing their first London-based HR role who may have advice for me? 

Some quick information about me for context: I am a dual citizen with full working rights (British and Australian), most recently working in the technology industry as HR Advisor supporting a client group of 160 based in the UK, Australia and Pakistan, 3.5 years' experience at the Advisor Level, Bachelor Degree in Psychology and Masters in HR and OD, AHRI and CIPD member. 

I have had meetings with various recruiters and two client interviews. One of which I went through to the second stage, however, I withdrew as the role wasn't the right fit for me (I am a Generalist and it was an L&D role with 50% design and 50% delivery). The other was with one of the top 10 tech companies, the feedback was very positive, however my interview responses weren't 'deep' enough - fair feedback as my interviewing is a little rusty. 

I have applied for 67 jobs, with some applications taking as long as 2+ hours each (for big commercial businesses asking detailed questions in their application process), and I have only heard back (rejections and otherwise) from 37%. Each time I get a lead they seem to drop off. Calls to recruiters go unreturned. 

I have since broadened by application to include Junior/ entry-level HR Advisor roles. Although this isn't ideal, I am more than willing in order to get my foot in the door, however I am not having any luck with these roles either! 

Am I potentially doing something wrong? Am I missing something? Any and all advice from those in the industry would be greatly appreciated! 

Warm regards,

Nivek

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  • Hi Nivek

    You may already be doing this, but as your last role in Australia was, "supporting a client group of 160 based in the UK, Australia and Pakistan" I would strongly recommend emphasising the UK part of that, as well as specifically calling out any UK-specific legislation you are aware of or worked with. In line with David's observation on the lack of UK-based HR knowledge, potential employers would likely be put off by that, whether it is the case or not. You therefore need to show that it is clearly not the case.

    Secondly, I wonder why you have selected London specifically? Could it be that opportunities exist in the rest of the UK that you are missing out on?

    All the best with your search!
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  • Hi Nivek

    You may already be doing this, but as your last role in Australia was, "supporting a client group of 160 based in the UK, Australia and Pakistan" I would strongly recommend emphasising the UK part of that, as well as specifically calling out any UK-specific legislation you are aware of or worked with. In line with David's observation on the lack of UK-based HR knowledge, potential employers would likely be put off by that, whether it is the case or not. You therefore need to show that it is clearly not the case.

    Secondly, I wonder why you have selected London specifically? Could it be that opportunities exist in the rest of the UK that you are missing out on?

    All the best with your search!
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  • in reply to Owen
    Thanks for sharing your advice, Owen - much appreciated.

    I think there is room to emphasise the UK experience further. I can certainly understand why an employer would be more attracted to a candidate who does have strong UK experience. Interestingly, ER case management has never been a huge part of my role however not having specific UK ER experience is one of the biggest barriers I'm experiencing.

    London is both a personal and professional preference - My fiance and I are located here and his work is here. I'm still learning the various areas outside of London, but you've got me thinking as to whether I could possibly extend my search further.

    Thanks, Owen!