Recruitment
Successful consultants need to be positive, motivated, persistent, well organised and good listeners. Recruitment requires sound judgement and a keen insight into human nature, since you will be relied upon to recommend a candidate or company. Sound judgement comes from listening and learning, as well as experience and common sense. You will often be required to meet employers, and to interview candidates out of office hours. Therefore individuals need to have strong presentation skills and be confident and charismatic, so that both candidates and clients believe in you and your ability to act for their benefit.

Consultants need to be able to work quickly in a highly charged work environment where the pace is fast and frenetic. Work is often pressured as the industry is extremely competitive and can mean a lot of hard work and long hours, so you need to have plenty of drive! In particular, companies will look for individuals who are heavily motivated by money, as they will be the ones who are most ruthless and go that extra mile to close a deal - the best interests of the candidate do not always take precedent…

Overall, recruitment can be a rewarding career not for the faint hearted, where individuals are expected to work hard and play hard. Resilience and perseverance are key attributes needed as even the very best consultants regularly experience the lows of rejection and disappointment as expected deals fall through.