Q. Tell us about your PageGroup career so far…

In 2014, I joined as a Researcher in the specialist Financial Services practice, as part of the graduate programme, right after completing my undergraduate degree at Warwick Business School. At the onset and since, PageGroup has lived up to its FTSE status in providing me with the right training – on and off the job, providing me with the skill set required to develop my career. Within three months, I was promoted to Associate Consultant, and eventually even won the Rookie of the Year Award for my efforts in 2015! 

That same year, I was promoted again to Consultant and was on a mission to carve my niche in Financial Services. 2016 was an extremely challenging year for the region, especially for the Financial Services industry – but I put in the hours and finished #1 across our Michael Page brand in the Middle East and won the Consultant of the Year Award. 

I’ve since progressed – from being a Consultant responsible for my desk, to now as a Senior Manager with a management and thought leadership role in the business, leading our efforts across Banking & Financial Services in the Middle East. It has been an absolute privilege to work with the team! My performance has bagged me a spot on Quarterly and Annual High Flyer Incentive Trips to places like Jordan, Serbia, Romania and Mauritius…not to mention, the top spots in Dubai where we’ve celebrated our business successes! What a long and great ride it’s been thus far… 

Q. Why did you join PageGroup?

Factually, it remains fairly unconventional to get into recruitment straight after a Bachelor’s degree at a B-School – I think just two of my peers from my entire batch did! It’s not really a career you go to University for, but more one that you fall into. I love interacting with people and getting into the finer detail of things, and my role offers me that. I saw an intellectual challenge in owning my market – knowing deeply what my clients do, understanding and mirroring their passion for what they do, and taking an active interest in a candidate’s aspirations and trends in the industry. It was also the opportunity for career progression at a renowned global brand which attracted me to PageGroup. I’m unsure if there are many other careers which can offer the right mix of interactions, intellectual & emotional stimulation, progression, and stability within a truly multicultural environment. It's always easy in hindsight but I know I didn’t think it through in entirety in 2014 – as it turns out, it was the best career decision for me.

Q. What are your career aspirations with PageGroup?

As a business which is growing at all levels – my team, the office, the region and around the world, there’s a lot of opportunity to further carve out a role for myself and progress. I see myself leading more than just the Financial Services desk and exploring more than the Middle East market in the next few years. My career progression is not only discussed every 6 months in appraisals, but is also a very engaging, ongoing conversation. 

Q. What is the most rewarding part about your job?

I see it as an experience, not just a job – that’s what makes this role and business fantastic. First, I admire that there’s professional & personal progression because I don’t see many careers offering that within region. Factually, one of the major reasons for changing jobs is due to a lack of progression, and a lot of graduates make mistakes as they pick a job over a career – I know this now as I’m a recruiter speaking to such professionals and have come to really admire that employees at Michael Page don’t jump jobs but are working here to build a career. 

What also makes this job so rewarding is seeing the candidates I have recruited go on to have an impact the Middle East, do well for themselves and their business! I’ve also have had the privilege of seeing clients have tremendous success because of a hire I was responsible for, and this makes it an extremely rewarding experience. At Michael Page, we’re a part of our candidates career progression and our client’s business growth, and for me, it’s great to be part of this!

Q. What advice do you have for someone thinking about joining PageGroup?

I had a very supportive group of University friends who saw me in a role such as this, but I also know that recruitment wasn’t really a career option discussed at my University. Most of my friends were joining Investment Banks & Consultancies, so I knew I was charting my way into something more unique. I think it always takes a bit of courage to look at options outside the conventional roles available after University – Banks, Consultancies, the Big Four – I think these are great options, but they aren’t for everyone, and not everyone wants them either. It’s important to think outside the box, recruitment or otherwise. 

And if you’re exploring a career in recruitment, it must be with PageGroup - there’s just no doubt about it. I believe we’ve got the best training in the industry and have had so for a while; we have a very youthful & fun work culture and are all easy to get along with – you’ll see when you meet us! We can offer a truly global career, complete with the right set of challenges and tools in tow. Like I said before, and I’ll say it again - it’s not just a job, it’s an experience.