Sze Sze Yeung

From iBank to Recruitment

Thinking about switching fields and becoming a recruitment consultant? Read our interview with Sze Sze on why she moved from iBank to recruitment and how rewarding her journey with Argyll Scott has been.

1. What made you decide to leave your job at an investment bank and join the recruitment industry?

I've always been an entrepreneurial person and you can't find a more entrepreneurial job than being a recruiter! As a 360-degree recruiter, you’re the business development manager, the client relationship manager, researcher, and operations manager all wrapped into one.

Whereas if you're in a large investment bank, it’s very difficult to own your desk/space unless you're a trader, but even then, you would probably need to move to buy side at some point in order to have your own book to trade for your P&L. You’d likely get paid a lot but you don't see your true value add. You'll be a tiny piece in a huge machine.

2. Why did you choose to recruit for Insurance? Did your background in iBank help at all?

Plain and simple – insurance was a very hot market three to four years ago and it’s still a healthily growing market. It is probably and will continue to be the healthiest and a stably growing sector within the financial services industry.

Insurance and iBank are 2 fairly different sectors, but there is a growing trend of people moving from iBank to insurance companies as they see the same pattern I see, and with my background, I can help candidates better understand the pros and cons of switching sectors.

Furthermore, the two sectors are both parts of the financial services industry which are basically abstract services that significantly affect your monetary situation. My experience in iBank made it easier for me to understand the technical side of things than other recruiters and puts me in a position where I can help my clients find the best candidates, and to help candidates find the most suitable roles.

3. What was it like when you first made the switch to recruitment?

I didn’t face any major challenges, except perhaps for the different working style. Coming from an iBank where all responsibilities were clearly divided and had plenty of resources, to a recruitment business where you are in a 360-degree position where you have to do business development, client and candidate management as well as admin work on my own certainly took me some time to get used to. But once I’d adapted to the working style and started gaining control of my own desk, results started to come in and I could see myself starting to build a successful desk within the business, which was so exciting!

4. What do you like about working for Argyll Scott?

The first thing comes to mind is definitely the fact that we have a true team culture here, where everyone helps everyone. It’s by far one of the best working cultures I've experienced! People spend most of their lives at work and we see our colleagues more often than our family and friends so you want to work with people you like. And I like my colleagues here. I enjoy working with them and laughing with them!

Apart from that, unlike many recruitment companies, we also truly believe in building long-term relationships with clients and candidates. Therefore, I'm proud to say that we have a great brand image in the market. Many client and candidates enjoy working with us too!

Click here to find out more about what it’s like to work at Argyll Scott.

Posted almost 6 years ago
About the author:
Ann Cheung

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