Recruitment professionals have been on the increase in the past couple of years, bridging the gap between employers and career seekers globally. Vacancy Centre’s team leader Sarah Miceli talks about what it takes to become a successful recruiter and what her position entails.

Coming from a human resources background, I have always had to deal with people coming from diverse educational backgrounds and experiences. It was a role that made me curious to get to know people on various levels, and what it gave me in return was continuous knowledge on people’s behaviours, interests and what basically makes the ‘working’ world go around.

I started working at Vacancy Centre as a recruitment consultant and, since I was the most experienced on the team, my focus shifted towards being the point of reference for existing/new members, while training those who were ready to embark on a new career.

Following this, the team was able to pay particular attention to specific sectors, and I could then assist our general manager as team leader. This was a transition towards expanding the business and meeting the company’s expectations, while the team was rapidly growing.

From an education point of view, an individual who studied or had a background in psychology/HR and recruitment would complement the role. However, skills needed outweigh the education aspect, since Vacancy Centre provides training.

The most important skills would have to be having a strong will to succeed, high emotional intelligence to be able to communicate effectively and professionally with both our clients and candidates and being knowledgeable in your field, as well as knowing all the legal requirements of the recruitment industry and its processes.

Persistence, drive and the ability to manage people’s expectations are three traits of successful recruiters. The last incorporates helping candidates in their next career move and finding the right talent for businesses.

My role tends to have different phases; it requires a lot of energy and dedication. Primarily, as a recruiter, it is important to believe in your own capabilities and at the same time be realistic on what you are able to achieve.

I believe a thorough understanding of what is expected in this position will give an individual the opportunity to widen their network and become more knowledgeable with the relevant industries. From my perspective, given my experience and the challenges I have managed to overcome, I perceive it as an investment in my time spent when searching for talent.

The relationships I have built over the years continue to resurface and appreciation from people gives me job satisfaction. The recruitment role is a cycle that keeps surprising you with something new every day.

The role of a recruiter is very demanding and, as the market is ever-changing, it is becoming more challenging. However, we see these challenges as opportunities to assist candidates in their next career move, as well as delivering talent to businesses.

I have come across challenges when I would be assisting candidates who were made redundant and would be in an unfortunate situation where the individual would not be able to afford remaining without a job. This puts a lot of pressure on a recruiter, as anyone would feel a sense of obligation to assist the most they can.

Being a recruiter is about taking the time to build relationships with clients and candidates

We would obviously consider what positions are currently available and whether the individuals would have the required and relevant skills for our clients. Nonetheless, we do our best to fulfil our clients’ and candidates’ needs and therefore, the satisfaction of helping someone is beyond words.

On another note, a similar scenario occurred from a client’s perspective when a vital position within their company became vacant and I was given the opportunity to help fill that position as soon as possible.

While it was a challenge, the satisfaction of filling that position makes a hard-working recruiter feel pleased and satisfied, and the gratitude received after a job well done is immeasurable.

Being a recruiter, above all, is about taking the time to build relationships with clients and candidates, while understanding their needs. It is crucial for us to stay in contact regularly to be informed of any changes within companies, any new job opportunities, advancement in education and skills of our candidates, along with our existing candidates seeking new roles in different sectors or industries.

The working environment for a recruiter could vary from one day to the next – some days we work from our office, on others we attend meetings with our clients or meet our candidates out of the office for an informal talk about any changes in their recent career life.

Having a natural passion for helping people will get recruiters a long way in this industry; it motivates us to work hard every day, to meet new people and build long-lasting relationships based on professionalism and credibility.

How can one grow within the recruitment industry from an entry-role position? Someone with no experience will be introduced to the lifecycle of a recruiter through adequate, on-the-job training and will also be given the opportunity to specialise in one of the many disciplines we focus on.

From the very start it will be clear to see if you have what it takes to become a recruiter. It is important to understand that we are an intermediary for clients and candidates, and because of this there are high expectations required of us to source talent and achieve placements.

To continuously grow within recruitment, an individual must be a hard worker with a ‘never-give-up’ attitude, having the skill of taking challenges and turning these into opportunities. Constantly improving your skills and widening your network will allow you to excel in your position.

Vacancy Centre, set up 30 years ago, has decided to expand by investment substantially. The team has grown from five to nine and we are looking at increasing the team to 12 recruiters by early 2018. The company is also expanding its office space in Swatar as well as opening a new office in Ta’ Xbiex and currently developing a brand new website to be launched soon.

Vacancy Centre is looking for recruitment consultants with recruiting experience, from talent sourcing and attracting candidates to interviewing and placing great talent with our clients.

The ideal candidate should hold an academic HR background combined with work experience in screening, interviewing and assessing candidates. However we are also looking for hard-working individuals who are interested in starting a new career within recruiting and will provide training accordingly. Contact Vacancy Centre by calling 2123 2224/5 or send an e-mail with your CV to jobs@vacancycentre.com.