Kate Jasper
Principal Consultant
Queens Court, 24 Queen Street, Manchester, M2 5HX
- Specialism: Legal
- Sector: Public Sector
- Roles: Locum, fixed-term and permanent
- Location: Midlands
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Insight in Legal
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Top tips to make a legal recruiter love your CV
A legal recruiter’s job is to match the right legal professional with the right employer, and we are often looking for a particular set of skills and experiences based on a specific job specification. To get noticed your legal CV needs to catch the eye of a recruiter (or hiring manager) as they can make or break your legal job search. Getting the structure, font size and language right is just the beginning. There are a number of things that legal candidates should avoid when preparing their CV to ensure it goes to the top of the pile! 1. Accurately define your legal job experience Often recruitment consultants will refine the information you have provided into a branded CV format before they send it to the employer so they can tailor it for the particular role. Be sure to include as much appropriate information as possible, so the recruiter can get your CV ready quickly. Use bullet points, tailor your experience to the role and always include up-to-date and relevant information. You should also ensure your legal qualifications are listed in full and temporary and locum roles are not grouped together. Separating these out and being super clear will help the hiring manager get a picture of your legal skillset. Remember to explain gaps in your career history, for example if you took a 6 month break to travel or study. 2. Try not to make your legal CV too long Whilst you do not have to strictly stick to the two page rule, you still need to make sure the information is easily digestible so make sure it is clear and concise. Using bullet points is a good way of doing this. At Sellick Partnership we deal with hundreds of legal CVs a week, and reading through a 20 page CV is time consuming. Always keep in mind how busy the individuals reading your CV might be, so make it to the point, focused and most importantly, memorable. Need a hand? Check out our handy Legal CV template as a basis to condense your CV and ensure you are including the most relate information. 3. Check your legal CV thoroughly for grammar and spelling errors It is reported that more than 9 out of 10 CVs contain spelling errors, something you need to avoid at all costs. Think about your legal CV from a recruiter or a hiring manager’s point of view – if you received a CV full of spelling errors, incorrect punctuation and sentences simply not making sense, how would you perceive that candidate? It would instantly suggest that the you have a lack of attention to detail which is hugely important in the legal profession. Make sure that you spell check your CV and get your family, friends or recruitment consultant to read over it – a fresh pair of eyes is invaluable and will help you spot mistakes and recognise where things do not make sense, as well as areas for improvement to ensure your professionalism remains intact. 4. Avoid strange fonts and confusing layouts when writing your legal CV Always remember that a CV is a representation of you and your personal brand so getting the format right is really important. From the font that is used, to the layout and terminology, it gives an impression of what your personality may be like, as well as being a reflection of your skills, experience and values. A well-written legal CV is the biggest asset for every successful candidate, and putting time and effort into this important sales tool will ensure that those who read it will get a strong first impression of you and your potential value to their organisation. Still need a hand getting your legal CV up to scratch? Our legal candidates love our resources section packed with all the advice you need to land your ideal legal role. Why not head over to our candidate resources section and check out our guide to writing the perfect CV or chat to one of our consultants who can give you legal CV advice. Alternatively, you can check out our latest legal jobs here. Or if you are happy and feel like your CV is ready to secure your next legal job, then get in touch! I would love to hear from you.
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Internal rewards and recognition at work: Sellick Partnership breaking the mould
Some months ago I volunteered to get involved in a new committee at work. As a sales based business, previously the focus had largely been on rewarding sales figures and cash generation. This is standard across our industry, but the Board of Directors felt perhaps it was limited in terms of reach, and they decided to offer us the chance to change the status quo. As such, the Rewards & Recognition Committee was established to break the mould in terms of employee rewards at Sellick Partnership. The Board set a budget for the annual spend and gave us the brief to make the reward scheme as inclusive as possible and achievable for all employees. It says a lot when such senior members of a company entrust their employees to make their own decisions about how they ought to be rewarded for their contribution at work. The committee members represent a good cross section of the varying roles within the business, enabling representation from all areas. Having quickly established that a companywide shopping trip to NYC was out of the equation, we set about the task of trying to reward internal talent in the best way possible! As a committee, we took time to speak with employees at all levels and gather ideas from all business divisions including sales, support staff, central services and accounts. Every single employee is key to the success of the business as a wider entity and we really wanted this to be represented by the committee. We quickly decided that it was important to us as a business that not only did all roles have the chance of recognition and reward for excellence internally, but that people had a choice in how they were rewarded. We wanted the new model to be flexible and decided on a suite of prizes to choose from. People seek reward in various forms; some want to have additional income to spend, some would rather have a treat from a retailer they would not usually use, some want to have more time away from work, such as buying extra holiday days or finishing earlier on a given day. We deemed the existing sales based rewards as necessary but altered the criteria so that targets differed for each area of the business. We feel this is more of a true representation of the markets we specialise in and trends within those markets. We added a new element that took into consideration length of service by way of recognising consultant’s initial period of growth and development whilst still in training. This has succeeded in making rewards available to newer members of the sales staff. We also expanded the quarterly rewards scheme to ensure that up to 6 non sales members of the business are rewarded each quarter, based upon nominations from managers across the business. Finally, we introduced the ‘Wheel of Success’ to celebrate all the little wins that people achieve throughout the year. If someone hits a milestone of goes above and beyond their role they get a spin of a wheel and their reward is determined by what the wheel lands on. This has proven to be a huge hit across all offices and the idea is to reward little every day successes of all employees. It is fun and gets everyone involved. Feedback has been positive and with a few tweaks and ongoing assessment we are happy with the changes that have been made. The figures speak for themselves and more people than ever before are being rewarded by the business for their hard work and contribution, which is great. I genuinely think this enhances job satisfaction and makes for a happier work environment. This whole exercise has been excellent, and has really shown me how thinking outside of the box can made a huge difference to employee motivation. If you are interested in learning more about how to get your benefits packages up to scratch, check out our employer resources section.
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From law graduate to legal recruiter
Stepping into any kind of sales position can be a daunting prospect, especially if you are making the move from a completely different sector. There are many misconceptions associated with choosing a career in sales – endless cold calling, unrealistically high KPI’s and the idea of being stuck in a role I did not enjoy. After doing my own research and making the jump myself, I know these misconceptions to be false. My background I’ve always been quite a competitive person who liked a challenge and I suppose that’s one of the main reasons that I chose to study law in the first place. I completed my four year law degree course and Masters at Northumbria University in Newcastle. Throughout the course I worked at the university’s Pro Bono Student Law Office within the Family and Childcare Team assisting members of the public with legal issues including child arrangement orders and drafting divorce applications. After graduating, I worked in law firms specialising in personal injury as litigation assistants. It was while working within these firms that I decided to make the career move into recruitment. What attracted me to making the move? I was looking for something different but also the same. Essentially, for me the best way to do this was to merge both the legal and recruitment sectors. I wanted to utilise all the skills and knowledge that I had gained and developed through years of studying law and working in legal practices. That is why Sellick Partnership was the perfect fit for me. The prospect of a high earning potential, good training programme and excellent career progression, also appealed to me. What are the transferable skills to your current role? Key skills that I have used both as a legal professional and a recruitment consultant include attention to detail, client care, autonomy, understanding of legal terminology and legislation and working towards deadlines. Being a legal recruiter requires a lot of communication with solicitors and other legal professionals. Coming from a legal background and having knowledge of the sector, has helped me empathise with the candidates and clients alike. My experiences so far have shown that this has aided me massively when it has come to understanding a candidate’s motivations and career aspirations and keeping clients updated with market knowledge. Attention to detail is another fundamental transferable skill that candidates and clients both benefit from. From presenting candidates to the clients and prepping them for each interview, to obtaining detailed job specifications from the clients. Paying close attention to what each candidate and client wants, allows for greater control of the recruitment process, ultimately leading to successful placements. My advice to someone who may be considering a career in recruitment? The best advice I would give is to identify all of the transferable skills that you have and do some research into your chosen market. Communicating transparently with your clients and candidates when consulting, will help you to build long lasting working relationships. Each day in recruitment is different and they are often what we make of them. Being a recruiter allows for the autonomy and freedom to work in a way that best suits you as an individual and will help you excel in your chosen market. We are currently recruiting. If you are interested in a career in recruitment, and would like to hear more about my journey feel free to get in touch by emailing me on kemi.awodiji@sellickpartnership.co.uk. Alternatively, you can check out our work for us section to view our latest roles.
