Almost two years to the day I made the jump from a Marketing Graduate to the world of Marketing Recruitment here at Better Placed. It has to be said I was unsure as to whether FS was the right choice for me and I knew I would need the training to gather experience as to how Marketing worked within this sector. However, I was eager to learn and ready to start my career at BPR!

WHY FS?

Now two years on and recently promoted to ‘Senior Consultant’ I can happily say ‘I love it’! Where many people see the mass of regulations and compliance, hurdles to overcome, I and many candidates I work with thrive from the complexity of such challenges, furthermore it is these challenges that make (in my opinion) FS Marketers the best in the market.

Better Placed has value’s I truly believe in, making my day to day work genuinely enjoyable and extremely diverse. The #realnetwork has allowed me to build many long lasting fantastic relationships with both candidates and clients which I truly believe will only continue to develop throughout my career.

“ David is a great support when recruiting new members of your team. He is very quick and efficient with passing forward ideal candidates for consideration. He clearly has a large portfolio of candidates and knows their skills which allow him to be so quick. He’s also a great support when looking for positions for me, he works with me to understand my requirements and finds roles that are suited. On top of all this he’s genuine nice guy.” (Nicola Terrett – Senior Marketing Manager @ Yorkshire Building Society)

MARKET CHANGES:

Yorkshire has been a hub for Financial Services for many years and only looks to expand as more and more London based organisations recognise the Marketing talent pool that the North presents. I have noticed two recognisable shifts over my two years within the industry; Firstly, the growing demand for digital talent, with the likes of new challenger banks offering customer focussed digital platforms, the ‘big players’ have had to adapt and thus invest. Secondly, over the last 12 months, Financial Services companies have opened their eyes to the idea of looking for talent, outside the traditional FS Marketing backgrounds. As a result, I have seen people move across from industries such as Retail, Utilities and Agency.

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“I’ve had a number of dealings with David and have always found him to be proactive and professional. Importantly for me, he strikes the right balance between keeping on top of our requirements without being overbearing or intrusive. He takes a realistic view, only referring potential candidates that are relevant and of the requisite quality, and he clearly recognizes the importance of building strong relationships.” (William Gill – Senior Product Manager @ Skipton Building Society)

SO WHAT’S NEXT?

Whilst we have always worked with clients within the East Midlands, my mission is to now develop a stronger presence within the FS network similar to the one I have established in Yorkshire throughout the last 2 years. Nottingham has many dynamic and diverse FS organisations that are growing at an extremely fast pace. As a result, they are looking for outstanding candidates to develop these businesses and add value. I see this as a hugely exciting proposition and opportunity for me to expand my network and strengthen the reputation of Betterplaced as a business.

Two years on, with many more wrinkles but loads more experience, I can honestly say I have enjoyed every minute at BPR and look forward to what the next two years present. If you’d like to have a chat to discuss opportunities within either Yorkshire or the East Midlands then do get in touch as I’d love to hear from you. Leeds seems to open a new bar or café daily so pick your spot and I’ll get the drinks in!

Cheers,
David Hickling