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Tech Recruiter Life: From Hospitality To Recruitment - Why Rebecca Canner Switched Career Path To Join Us
12 Sept, 20225
DevOps recruitment specialist Rebecca Canner has had an amazing year – with not one but two promotions, numerous targets surpassed, and impressing a long list of clients and colleagues alike – and she wasn’t even working in the sector until 12 months ago! Following her recent promotion to Account Manager, we sat down with Rebecca (record holder of fastest ever promotion at Understanding Recruitment – in 5 months!) to find out what has driven her success, how she has navigated joining a completely new industry, and how the career change has benefitted her so far.
What was your career journey before joining us? What expectations did you perhaps have about working in recruitment (and were any of them proved to be true?)
I was working as a General Manager of a bar and restaurant – having been in hospitality since I was 16 and was ready for a change (as well as more sociable working hours!)
My expectations of recruitment were in line with my expectations, it’s a rewarding role that can be hard at times but is worth it both in terms of personal development and financial gain. My impression of recruiters was way off, however! I expected people to be very selfish, cold, and unwelcoming and it couldn’t be further from the truth as in reality, everyone celebrates each other’s achievements and people are always happy to help.
What appealed to you about working in recruitment?
I knew I wanted to continue to work in a role focused on people and seeing people’s careers develop had also been something I enjoyed in my previous role. Along with this, was the pull of the earning potential from speaking with a friend who is a tech recruiter I knew there was the opportunity to earn significantly more than I would have staying in the hospitality sector.
"I wanted to continue to work in a role focused on people and seeing people’s careers develop...[and] I knew there was the opportunity to earn significantly more than I would have staying in the hospitality"
How is it different from working in your previous sector?
The amount of autonomy you have in deciding what your day comprises of was a big shock to me at first, but being able to choose what my day looks like and where my focus is has led to building confidence in myself and knowing that I am trusted with these decisions.
What do you enjoy about working here (e.g. people, skills, culture, what you’re learning)?
The opportunities really are limitless, you can earn high salaries, get promoted based on your achievements rather than having to wait for someone else to move, and even have multiple (funded) company trips internationally in a year! The team all really support each other in these milestones and it’s great to see how much everyone rallies together.
What’s the most challenging thing about working in recruitment?
Putting your all into a candidate or client who drops out of a process or doesn’t accept an offer you thought was a certain can really hit hard. It’s difficult to bounce straight back and carry on but you always learn from these experiences, and with the support of the team find the drive to keep going onto the next challenge.
How has Understanding Recruitment evolved since you joined?
The team has grown in size both in team members and office space. The training from the company has also developed to provide more bespoke training to all team members relevant to their focus ensuring you’re constantly growing and supported.
What excites you about being part of the tech recruitment industry right now?
In the DevOps space tech is constantly evolving and advancing which is always interesting to learn about. The job market is very candidate driven at the moment meaning there are more opportunities than ever for engineers and with overall packages comprising of substantial bases and in a lot of cases equity, it really shows the value clients place on their team members.
What’s a standout accomplishment or memory from your first 11 months at the company?
In my first year with the company, I’ve been promoted twice which is an amazing accomplishment for me and shows how Understanding Recruitment really allows for professional development. I’m also going on two company trips this year to Boston (as part of our Road to Olympia incentive) and Mallorca, as the whole company is being taken on holiday as a thank you for our hard work recently and to celebrate our 15-year anniversary, which I’m sure will become stand-out memories!
What are you most excited about looking to the future working at Understanding Recruitment and in the DevOps sector?
I’m looking forward to growing my team in the future and being a manager along with the prospect of more international trips with the company. I’m also excited to be developing deeper relationships with clients and candidates in the DevOps industry.
A big thank you to Rebecca for sharing her experience moving into Tech Recruiter Life from a completely different industry. Check back to our blog for our next feature on one of our talented specialist recruitment team soon!