Pros
I worked at SA Ltd for 3.5 years and had a blast. There are a couple of reviews on here that I don't believe are balanced, so this is as accurate-a-picture as possible, from someone who took everyday as an opportunity to learn & improve, getting stuck into the business pretty much from the get-go as a fresh grad. - Huge degree of supported autonomy - Instills confidence in you and your ability. If you've passed the hiring process (which has got a lot tighter in the last year!), you'll be invested in as an individual. - The culture is "do right by the client/ candidate". You learn how to go about business/ relationships the right way - there are no underhand stereotypical "recruiter" tactics at play - Constant encouragement to network outside of the office. You're given a company card with a generous budget large enough to cater for a meeting a day + entertainment, if you wanted that. - Incredibly well paid if you make a success of your market. I'd argue you will not be as well remunerated in other recruitment companies once you've established your market and start earning commission. - Fantastic office space with latest mod cons. - Expanding at a good, sustainable pace. - Incredibly supportive Middle/ Admin offices. The best. - For a recruitment firm, exceedingly low staff turnover (I saw another review say otherwise - simply not the case). That said, if a hire has been made and subsequently deemed incorrect, once all efforts to up-skill have been exhausted they will be let go. You can't run an effective profitable business any other way. - Opportunity to travel regularly and live internationally - Well known in the market place as a decent recruitment firm and extremely well networked. It makes it far easier to get a referral into a business and dominate a market if you're going about relationships the right way. - Decent work/ life balance: working hours are 9:00-5:30. Everyone (almost everyone) is out of the office by 6pm every night and usually in by 8:40, which is rare in recruitment. - A huge knowledge base within the company. Both in terms of network and tenure in certain markets - a lot of valuable insight. - Team based commission and paid monthly: when off, you cover your team (and vice versa) without sacrificing a process for a client/ candidate, or your own pocket. Hugely beneficial for consistency and reputation.
Cons
- If you're worried about job title progression, there's a ceiling after 2-3 promotions. - Due to recent international expansion, there was sometimes a feeling of lack of direction/ awareness of dynamics in the UK. That said, with any successful expansion there needs to be a rebalance of focus and by the time I'd moved on in May 2018 this was more than addressed. - Because you're in a team, if you're a new consultant learning the trade it can take a while for your commission to build up to the point of seeing it. However, you're compensated with quarterly bonuses and once you do start seeing the commission you'll likely never go a month without seeing it again.