Pros
As a grad, you are surrounded by hard working and intelligent people with many years of experience in business (recruitment or otherwise), who are happy to share their knowledge in order to ensure your time with SA is a success. The team driven nature of the business means that all employees are incentivised to help each other, which is a great way to operate. The lack of KPIs also allows for a good sense of autonomy, aided by the fact you are able to manage your own diary and meetings, which sets the company apart from other recruitment firms. There is a great ‘people’ element to the company, in that cultivating a relationship with both candidates and clients is at the forefront of what consultants are expected to do, which allows for a very warm and network driven working environment and a relative lack of cold calling; as well as giving you great people/client facing exposure at quite an early point in your career. The starting salary for graduates in this industry is also good, and the remuneration once you have established yourself in a team and your start to see commission is very good, but that can take up to around a year. The opportunity to work internationally is there as well, however this is reserved for the more experienced consultants. Generally, it is a good place to develop soft skills which will help you in any career - and if that career is recruitment SystemsAccountants would be a great place to do it.
Cons
Training for new starters could be more formalised, and it can often feel that new starters join without a real plan for what there is to do, especially if joining at a quieter time. Although the help is there if you need it, more structured guidance could be given - such as spending time in different teams. The lack of KPIs can also lead to a lack of rewards as well. Whilst the pay is good, more could be done to incentivise consultants without having to have a formalised target scheme (such as more focus on social events outside of work, or perks at work as well). The company prides itself on being somewhat old school, but as it continues to grow it needs to mould and change its approach if it wants to continue to attract and retain graduates.