Becoming a recruiter with no experience? Here's what you need!
Becoming a recruiter with no experience? Here's what you need!
Connecting talented individuals to the right organizations gives us the daily dose of energy! Would you also like to become part of this beautiful matchmaking process? Not necessarily professional knowledge is required, because even without specific experience you can start as a Recruiter. Britt van Heffen, Recruiter at HeadFirst Group, tells what you need to become a Recruiter.
Skills Required for Recruitment Consultant
Are you someone who likes to help others, do you like to be in contact with people and are you sales driven? Then recruitment might be the ideal profession for you! At Sterksen we are always looking for enthusiasts to join our team of IT Recruitment Consultants.
Key recruitment skills include:
- Strong communication skills, both oral and written. For example, you must be able to write job postings and have a lot of contact with clients and candidates.
- Being able to listen well and ask through questions is also essential. After all, it is important to find out as much information as possible.
- Persuasion is important, wantsales is a big part of recruitment. In this case, you're just not selling a product, but a position in the IT industry.
- Stakeholder management is also part of this, because as a Recruitment Consultant, you are the link between the client and candidate. In doing so, you have to inform everyone in the right way and at the right time.
- Perseverance, because rejections are also part of this field. So it is important to stay focused on your goal of finding the best matches.
- Your time management must also be in order. After all, recruitment can go on forever because there is no hard deadline. In addition, it is important to prioritize. There is always a new candidate or organization coming forward.
Can just anyone become a Recruiter?
With a college education in HRM, Sales or Marketing or Communications and up to 1 year of recruitment experience, you have a good foundation. We pay particular attention to the skills you possess. When we receive an application, our Corporate Recruiters always check whether you really know what you are applying for.
To step into this role, you must be motivated and enthusiastic. You are client responsible and therefore have to bring in both candidates and vacancies. And yes, that includes some cold acquisition. Are you up to the challenge? If your answer is a resounding yes, then Sterksen is the place for you! And do not worry, we will not throw you in at the deep end.
Getting started as a starter at Sterksen
Sterksen is a committed and warm organization. Cooperation and team building are very important to us. When you become part of the team, you always start with an onboarding process. In a 10-week onboarding period you will learn all the tricks of the trade and receive the necessary guidance.
During this period you will get to know the work environment: the organization, the colleagues and the systems you will be working with. You will also learn interview techniques to learn how to deal with clients and of course you will learn all the ins and outs about the content of your job. You will then find the right candidates for our clients in the IT field.
The advancement opportunities as a Recruiter
As a Junior Recruiter, you start by filling Traineeship vacancies, for example, dealing with students. From there you pick up increasingly "difficult" roles and your work also becomes increasingly varied. We offer you plenty of opportunities to grow into a medior or senior role.
Do you have the desire to become a recruiter? Then check out our vacancies for open IT Recruitment Consultant positions, or contact our recruiters directly on 088 04 42 000 or info@sterksen.com.
New website and branding Striive
New website and branding Striive
We proudly launched Striive's brand new website and branding. Striive helps professionals find new challenges, supports suppliers in matching assignments with their talent and assists clients in their search for the best candidates. The platform is revolutionary in ease of use and uniquely uses artificial intelligence (AI) to connect supply and demand. In addition, Striive offers innovative services to fully support professionals in their entrepreneurship.
Connector between tech and touch
HeadFirst Group believes in - and fights for - a fair, open labor market where technology and human touch go hand in hand. In this "next world of work," Striive takes the position of excellent connector. Every year, the platform brings together more than twenty thousand assignments at over five hundred leading organizations in one place. In doing so, it provides easily accessible new career opportunities for professionals, self-employed or employed by suppliers.
Mattijs Wassenburg, Managing Director Digital at HeadFirst Group, explains: "Our goal with Striive is to make all assignments in the market available in one online place for all professionals, regardless of contract form. Ease of use is hugely important in this regard. We rebuilt the platform from the ground up, based on thousands of reviews, user interviews and data analysis. Independent professionals and suppliers on our platform have four primary needs: 1) challenging assignments with reputable clients, 2) minimal red tape, 3) prompt payment of invoices, and 4) personal contact when they want it. Striive fulfills the first three needs, giving my colleagues more time for the fourth: the human touch."
Are you ready to be part of the "next world of work"? Discover the opportunities at HeadFirst Group and view our job openings here.
HeadFirst Group: An inspiring workplace for growth and development
HeadFirst Group: An inspiring workplace for growth and development
As an employer, we have evolved rapidly in recent years. Guided by our three core values: Customer first, Learn everyday and Connecting people. Engagement, fun and ownership are central to our organization.
Responsibility
We encourage our employees to be entrepreneurial through personal development and give them responsibility. We combine our focus on customer experience with the Lean philosophy, which is based on the principle that improvement initiatives come from the entire organization rather than just from the top of the organization. We have put our employees at the wheel of continuous improvement.
HeadFirst Group Academy
To encourage our staff to continue to learn and develop, we have our own HeadFirst Group Academy. The Academy is an online learning environment where employees collectively attended 483 training sessions in 2023. In addition, a large number of classroom training sessions were conducted (305 training sessions).
Mental well-being
The mental well-being of our employees is also essential to us. That's why we joined forces with OpenUp, an organization whose mission is to make mental wellness accessible to everyone. OpenUp offers resources that make people more resilient and help them in their personal development such as a health check, one-on-one consultations with certified psychologists, master classes and group sessions, mindfulness consultations and online programs, articles and manuals.
Acknowledgment
Since we moved into our new headquarters in Hoofddorp in early 2022, we have our own HeadFirst Group theater at our disposal. We use this for our customized escape room, company parties, knowledge events and inspiration sessions.
All of this has been greatly appreciated: we were certified as a Great Place to Work (GPTW) for the second time in 2023. This is a great recognition of who we want to be as an employer. In the GPTW survey, our employees rated us highly on the topics of fair treatment, diversity & inclusion, responsibility and independence within work, and feeling that they can be themselves at work.
Does HeadFirst Group seem like a great place to work? Check out our vacancies and maybe we'll see you soon at our monthly drink!
HeadFirst Group is among the Best Workplaces™ 2024!
HeadFirst Group is among the Best Workplaces™ 2024!
For the 22nd time Great Place To Work has announced the Best Workplaces of The Netherlands. These 40 employers are the leaders in the field of being a good employer. HeadFirst Group ended on place 10 in the category Mid Large!
We participated in the Trust Index, Great Place To Work's employee survey. Based on the results of this survey, HeadFirst Group is Great Place To Work-Certified™. Not only that, but as an organization we are among the 40 Best Workplaces Netherlands 2024!
On June 27, the final ranking was announced by Great Place To Work. HeadFirst Group ended up on place 10 in the Mid Large category (250 to 499 employees). We are very proud of this achievement. You can watch the aftermovie of the event here.
Frontrunners on good employment practices
René Brouwers, managing director of Great Place To Work, says: "This year the 40 Best Workplaces once again set the standard for safe work cultures. Environments where everyone can be themselves, rewards are equal and the proverbial door really is always open. So in a time when anxiety cultures and burnout are the order of the day, these organizations can rightfully call themselves frontrunners in the field of being good employers."
100% based on employee feedback
The Best Workplaces 2024 list is based on the Trust Index™, Great Place To Work's employee survey. This survey tells companies how they score on trust according to their own employees. At a score of 70% or higher, an organization may call itself Great Place To Work-Certified™. This certification is 100% based on employee feedback. Certified organizations had a chance to win a spot on the Best Workplaces 2024 list. Winners earned the title Best Workplace according to their own employees.
Building a career at Sterksen
Building a career at Sterksen
Sterksen has been a specialist in innovative and industry-leading recruitment for more than 20 years. When you have been with an organization for 17 years, you go through a lot. This is also the case for Yvonne van Amelsvoort, Principal Recruitment Consultant at Sterksen. She tells what it is like to build a career at Sterksen.
The process from A to Z
"With the service IT Search (ITS) we work with (international) clients on the basis of recruitment and selection. We advise and support around recruitment issues in the full breadth of IT. I am currently active in both IT Search and Executive Search. With this we search, approach and select the best talent for key positions, such as a CEO or CIO.
What I enjoy most about this position is being involved from A to Z. From recruiting clients and picking up vacancies, to selecting suitable candidates and filling the vacancy, with everything in between. All facets of recruitment are covered. In this role you will also visit clients a lot, because being physically present is different from doing everything online.
When you join this Business Unit, you will receive the same onboarding that every new employee at Sterksen receives, to get to know the organization well. If you step into a junior role, your focus is on recruiting candidates. As a senior recruiter, you go right through the entire process to placement."
Growth within the organization
"A lot has changed in recent years. Think of the market and customers, the growth we have experienced and new colleagues. There have also been changes in our services. In the beginning this was limited to recruitment & selection, but now all forms of recruitment have been added. Currently we offer six services to our clients and work with three contract forms for professionals.
A nice development of this is that, regardless of the recruitment demand of the client, we can offer everything. Think of mediating interim professionals, filling internal projects at clients and deta-permanent constructions. We work with all kinds of clients and receive many requests from clients with whom we have worked before. Investing in relationship management is therefore essential, because you get a lot in return."
Creating career opportunities
"In this market, it is important to focus on quality in recruitment. It's not about quick wins, but building relationships, both with clients and candidates. We want to grow even further, of course, so the commercial part also requires attention because of the changing labor market. So you have to have that drive.
You will find yourself in a commercially driven team, with tremendously fine cooperation. We grant each other success and work together on a customer demand - something you don't see much in this industry. The teamwork, the diversity of services and the many possibilities make Sterksen's strength.
In 2022, we became part of HeadFirst Group. This gave us a large organization behind us. With joint clients, we can work better together and strengthen each other. This in turn creates additional opportunities for the future. For example, if HeadFirst gets a need for permanent recruitment, Sterksen can also contribute to that. There are still many opportunities to explore in that."
Are you interested in a versatile role as a Recruitment Consultant? Then take a look at our vacancies or contact one of our corporate recruiters. And who knows, maybe you will soon start a career at Sterksen that will last for years!
Sport connects
Sport connects
At HeadFirst Group we have seen it many times: sports connects. Therefore, we regularly make room within the organization for sporting initiatives. Also this year there are regular sports activities on the agenda.
- At the beginning of the year, a group of colleagues organized the HeadFirst Group padel tournament. More than 60 colleagues signed up and enjoyed a sporty afternoon and evening together.
- In June, several colleagues braved the Mud Masters run in Haarlemmermeer together. During this 6 km long run they helped each other through, under and over various obstacles. Real team building in other words!
- And although we ourselves are not physically participating in the European Football Championship, we are mentally fully involved. Daily the results and standings in the HeadFirst Group EK-poule are discussed.
- After the summer break, the Dam tot Damloop is scheduled. A group of colleagues will be at the starting line to run the Dam tot Dam by night together.
Togetherness
Sports initiatives are enthusiastically started by colleagues and everyone is welcome to join. Sports connects us and contributes to a close and enthusiastic working environment at HeadFirst Group. Would you also like to join an organization that makes room for sports activities? Check out our vacancies.
Tomorrow's bosses at HeadFirst Group
Tomorrow's bosses at HeadFirst Group
In early June, as part of the JINC Boss of Tomorrow initiative, we had the privilege of hosting two students who stepped into the shoes of our CEO, Marion Van Happen.
Dominique and Inha got to work with TikTok and thought about how we could use it to recruit new colleagues.
JINC Boss of Tomorrow offers young people between the ages of 8 and 16 from neighborhoods with socioeconomic disadvantages the opportunity to take a seat in the chair of a CEO, director or politician. During this day, they participate in meetings and think about specific issues. It offers young people the chance to step out of their often small world and take a look at the workplace, where they gain valuable insights, gain self-confidence and make contacts for the future. All essential for their future success in the job market.
HeadFirst Group is committed to a better world beyond the job market. We are committed to improving the lives of people around the world. Do you think this is important in a new employer? Then you've come to the right place. Check out our vacancies here or contact us.
A look at the 2024 plans
A look at the plans for 2024
In a world that is constantly changing, the courage to look ahead and explore new paths is the basis of leadership. That's why HeadFirst Group is taking the lead into the next world of work. The world we believe in is driven by technology and is free of prejudice, regardless of contract form. We dare to lead.
Therefore, we have created an ambitious plan through which we are taking steps toward this next world of work. This plan is based on the following five themes;
Tech enables touch
We believe that by making smart use of automation and AI, the end-to-end process of sourcing, matching, contracting and paying professionals can be fully digitized, allowing us to add personal touches at the moments when they really add value for clients. The main driver of this added value is our platform brand Striive and our other tech products ProUnity and OpenTalent.
HeadFirst Group has experienced a digital transformation from traditional labor market service provider to HR-tech solutions provider with a technology platform and various forms of labor market services with a human touch. We will continue this path unabated in 2024.
Continuous improvement
By 2023, we have laid the groundwork for continuous feedback loops from our different types of clients: customers, independent professionals and partners. The common thread from this feedback serves as input to our improvement roadmap for our processes, technology and how our colleagues work around our core processes: matching, contracting and funding. We learn everyday!
We do the same with our candidate and employee experience. Based on feedback from candidates in the hiring process for our job openings and our existing employees, we make improvements in the hiring process, the onboarding process, around our learning opportunities, in our benefits, in our locations, etc. With the goal of becoming an even better employer for our people. Specifically, we have set ourselves the goal of achieving a rating of 8+ in the next Great Place to Work measurement by the end of 2024.
Scarcity in the labor market
We will face scarcity in the labor market for many years to come, due in part to the structurally growing demand for STEM professionals and under pressure from an aging population. Talent scarcity will force organizations to be as creative as possible. This also applies to us. With all the different solutions to labor market issues available in our group, we will be able to demonstrate such creativity. Our solutions combine technology and human touch to meet any customer demand.
Sustainability Policy
As a leading HR-tech solutions provider and growing platform, HeadFirst Group takes its role in the labor market and in society very seriously. To make our impact as concrete as possible, we have organized our ESG impact along these four axes: (1) sustainability, (2) decent work and lifelong learning, (3) diversity and inclusion, and (4) governance and ethics. In each of these areas, we are developing new initiatives and making choices about how we - together with our employees, customers, suppliers and independent professionals - will contribute to a more beautiful world. To bring these initiatives together, the HeadFirst Group Foundation was created, in which budget has been made available to develop concrete initiatives that fall under the four aforementioned axes and encourage colleagues to be socially and sustainably active. And we believe that achieving B-Corp certification complements our ESG ambitions.
Challenges of Dutch labor law
The amount of legislation in the Netherlands regarding the labor market is large and more and more is being added. In line with our public affairs agenda, we continue to campaign for a good solution that combats false self-employment at the bottom of the labor market, while allowing conscious self-employed workers at the top of the market to run their businesses without restrictions.
Working at HeadFirst Group
At HeadFirst Group, we believe in continuous improvement and remain committed to innovation and growth. Together with our partners, clients and professionals, we are building a future of work that is inclusive, sustainable and technologically advanced.
Do you also want to work on The next world of work? Take a look at our vacancies and discover how you can contribute to our growth and innovation. Together we can shape the future of work.
HeadFirst Group strengthens second position in Flex Market Turnover Ranking with impressive growth
HeadFirst Group strengthens second position in Flex Market Turnover Ranking with impressive growth
We are super proud! In 2024, HeadFirst Group once again achieved the second position in the prestigious Flex Market Turnover Ranking Top-100.. In the Netherlands, we achieved an impressive organic revenue growth of €333.3 million during 2023. On to next year!
For the year 2022, we still recorded a Dutch turnover of €1,926 million. In 2023 this increased by over 17% to €2,259.3 million. We also saw a nice increase in employee satisfaction of almost 10%, which says a lot about the work culture within HeadFirst Group and our commitment to letting talent flourish. Equally important is the jump in satisfaction among our clients, suppliers and independent professionals, with 31 points in the NPS.
Our CEO Marion van Happen says; "We set ambitious goals for 2023, driven by our core values. I am immensely proud that we not only achieved these goals, but exceeded them! This underlines our determination to not only meet expectations, but to rise above them. Our team's passion, drive and effort drive our performance. This makes us leaders in HR tech services in thought leadership, talent intelligence and innovation."
About the coming year, she would like to say the following. Marion continues about this year's ambition and goals: "In 2024, we will continue our existing strategy. We want to realize our vision of being technology agnostic for all our stakeholders, with our platforms Striive, ProUnity and OpenTalent at the center. By making smart use of automation and AI, we can further digitize the end-to-end process so that we can add our personal touch at the moments when it really adds value. Beyond our core business, we are taking the lead in moving toward a just, diverse and inclusive labor market. We are building an even more sustainable organization so that we can provide value to the society around us. Our ambition is to be the first HR tech company to become Bcorp certified this year."
All annual figures
Early this year, we presented our annual results, including our international operations. We achieved record sales of 2.6 billion, representing organic growth of 21 percent over 2022. Our annual report is available for viewing and download on the Investor relations page. Do you also want to contribute to this and are you interested in working at HeadFirst Group? Take a look at our vacancies and discover how you can contribute to our growth and innovation.
Joke de Graaf, Head of HR & Organization at HeadFirst Group: "Growth and development of our employees is key."
Joke de Graaf, Head of HR & Organization at HeadFirst Group: "Growth and development of our employees is key."
"Attracting and retaining talent with whom we can realize our ambition together, both in the Netherlands and internationally, is one of our spearheads," says Joke de Graaf, Head of HR & Organization. "HeadFirst Group is growing fast, so we are constantly looking for people who want to contribute to shaping the new world of work. We invest in their development and provide a nice workplace."
What is the aspect of HR that intrigues you the most?
"The common thread in my career is the love for 'people'. After studying hospitality & leisure management, I started in a commercial sales position at Philip Morris, an international company. I worked there for ten years and had the opportunity to take on a different role every two years. During that time, my motto arose: "You can learn anything, as long as you have the will to immerse yourself in new things. In my last role, I was responsible for a sales team, focusing on continuous growth, both of the business, the team and the individual. From there, I moved into the HR profession. The combination of experience with business/commercial and HR now brings me the advantage of bringing knowledge from the business and from the 'people'."
"I have now been working in HR for almost 20 years, the last six of which have been with HeadFirst Group."
"As Head of HR at HeadFirst Group, I am responsible for shaping and executing our HR strategy. Together with my team, I provide a positive work environment for over 450 employees. We aim to develop talent, foster engagement and cultivate an inclusive culture that contributes to the success of our company. My passion for 'people' revolves around encouraging employee development so that they take a step forward and grow every day."
"I am practical-minded and driven to achieve concrete results. I find it important to have good HR policies that contribute to the organization. At the same time, I get my satisfaction mainly from the hands-on approach and making a direct impact on the growth and development of individuals within our organization so that they move forward and become a little better every day."
What are currently the main challenges in your work/role and how do you see the future of the industry?
"HeadFirst Group is growing fast, both organically and through acquisitions. By 2023, we have achieved 21% growth resulting in revenues of 2.6 billion. We find it important to maintain our open culture and strive to create an environment where employees can continuously develop. One of our core values is therefore "learn every day. The challenge lies in actually providing opportunities for continuous development, in which the leadership of our managers is crucial. How do you get employees to join you in an organization that is growing larger and more complex? This is only possible by truly integrating development into our processes, actively managing behavior and actually creating opportunities that are taken advantage of."
"We find it important to be an employer that employees enjoy coming to. Through the 'Great Place To Work' survey, we measure the work climate at HeadFirst Group. In recent years we scored almost 100% satisfaction on our work climate. We want to maintain this by paying attention to it every day. Our HR Business Partners have an active role in this by being visible within the teams on a daily basis and discussing points of improvement within their own circle of influence. This is the only way we can make an impact.
"As I mentioned, HeadFirst Group is growing fast. The growth in the number of employees is therefore challenging. It remains important for us to hire the right people, so rather wait a little longer for the right match than hire someone too quickly. Sometimes this is tough, for example when a team is understaffed, but we stick to this. Attracting and also retaining the right talent, both in the Netherlands and internationally, is one of our major spearheads."
How do you encourage training and employability?
"Within HeadFirst, we work with a training budget. In addition to fixed trainings, this budget also allows for individual development. Fixed trainings with us include onboarding, leadership training, Yellow Belt and we have our own Academy where employees can follow trainings."
"Broadening and improving the employability of our employees is also a theme for us. We have seven different entities within HeadFirst Group with their own brand name and proposition. This offers employees, who want to develop, the opportunity to work at a different brand within the group with a different type of service in a different role. Thanks to the growth of our organization, we have the opportunity to grow our talents internally."
How important is employee engagement to you, what do you see as its benefits, what are you doing about it, and how do you measure it?
"One way we measure it is through the 'Great Place To Work' survey and then implement the outcomes. For HeadFirst Group it is important to be and remain attractive as an employer. Therefore, we give a lot of attention to this through training & development, the right terms of employment and creating the right work-life balance. In addition, we find it important to celebrate successes and let employees come together. We organize big parties, monthly get-togethers, celebrations and sporting events. A lot of initiative comes from our employees themselves which we as an employer respond to, because we are happy with employee engagement. For example, we organized a padel tournament in which over 100 employees participated. Every year we participate with our colleagues in the Dam tot Damloop and cycle or walk the Alpe d'huZes for charity. These are all ideas that originated with our own people. These activities have a binding effect and contribute to our vitality."
"We see that people, who are looking for a new job and challenge, know how to find us better and better. We were still relatively unknown in the Netherlands, but we notice that our brand awareness is growing. With our employer branding campaigns we are going to pay even more attention to this in the coming period."
What do you think is the ideal manager of a branch or team, and how do you ensure that they want and stay with you?
"For HeadFirst Group, the ideal manager is someone who wants to get a little better every day and guides and encourages his/her employees in this. We are a fast growing organization in which it is expected that as a manager you are entrepreneurial, flexible, but also open and honest. You have to be critical and dare to challenge. The downside of a rapidly growing organization is that not all employees can always keep up 100%. Empathy, commitment and patience are therefore also important qualities to be successful as a manager with us."
How do you handle work-life balance and (preventing) absenteeism?
"For me, work-life balance is all about job satisfaction. We have embraced hybrid working which allows our people to decide where they work. I like to see that colleagues actually choose to work in the office. That confirms to me that we are a nice place to work. We give attention to being able to relax at work. For example, we have our own gym, offer a healthy lunch every day and have created nice places in our office where you can sit quietly or challenge colleagues at the soccer, or ping pong table. In addition, four moments are important. Every month we have a themed get-together where we reflect on our successes. In this way we emphasize that development is central, both of the organization and the individual. That makes me happy, it gives me job satisfaction."
"Working hard gives me positive energy, but I also try to work smarter and gather good people around me. This is how I create my own balance in my work. On the weekends, I plan fun things, which also gives me real distance. And if I notice that something doesn't feel right, I listen to this. Then I know there needs to be balance and I intervene for myself. Sometimes that's a small thing, sometimes it's something bigger. An important lesson for myself and I think for everyone is: keep listening to your feelings and do something with them."
Who or what is your inspiration? What drives you?
"My interest in people forms my basis for inspiration and is my intrinsic motivation. When someone is open and positive it gives me a lot of energy. By the way, I also get a lot of energy from nature, being outside. Spring is therefore a fantastic time of year for me. From my role and interest in the HR profession, I participate in various HR meetings. I enjoy talking about our wonderful profession with fellow professionals and being inspired by others and great examples."
What are you most proud of and what have you found difficult?
"I am really proud of the growth our HR department has experienced over the past few years. As a team, we have made great strides and achieved wonderful results. Looking back personally, I'm also proud of the decision I made when I was seventeen to go into my room to study. That was a big step for me at the time. I learned that it is important to step out of your comfort zone and take on things that you find exciting. That's exactly when you grow as a person."
"In my role, of course, I also make mistakes sometimes and I still learn every day. For example, we worked with a startup in developing an app. In the end, unfortunately, it was disappointing. It took us a long time and I learned to brief more clearly, so that we know at the beginning whether an idea is feasible or not."
"In addition, cases with employees can sometimes be difficult, although that is part of our responsibility as an HR department. Then it's nice to have colleagues to spar with."
How do you harness and encourage the potential of technology such as AI, for example?
"HeadFirst Group is an HR Tech service provider. Traditionally, we have been a contracting company. Now we are in full transition to a platform and online service provider. Technology is in our genes, we don't do anything else. AI and technology is the future in our eyes. All technological developments are going to affect jobs and roles. There will be even more automation. We too are constantly looking at what can be easier and more efficient. We work on technology in projects throughout the organization; so it is not invested in one department. If a technical development is interesting, a project group starts a pilot. When it is successful, we roll it out in the organization. Innovation is an important topic for HeadFirst, however, always from the idea 'tech enables touch'."
What HR topic are you curious about?
"I'm curious about the impact AI will have on work in a general sense. What is in store for us?"
