I’ve been working in legal recruitment with Jepson Holt for a little over 2 weeks now, and I thought now was an appropriate time to share some insights into what I’ve learnt in this complex and diverse industry since I started.

As someone who doesn’t have a background in either the legal or recruitment sectors, needless to say the learning curve has been steep! Despite this, however, I have found the experience fulfilling and enjoyable, and one which has provided a solid foundation for me to build on in the coming weeks, months and years. I’ve found my colleagues a particularly useful source of information when I’ve encountered a concept or process which I’m finding it difficult to understand.

One surprising thing I’ve learn about myself over the last 2 weeks is that I’m much more of a “learn-by-doing” person than I thought I was. The nature of the work with Jepson Holt is very practical, and from my first day I was given projects and tasks to work on for real clients with real deadlines. Whilst this was a little daunting at first, I’ve found it’s the best way to learn when trying to pick up the new skills and terminology needed to succeed in this role. Within this industry, there is only so much “classroom-based” learning that you can do before you hit a brick wall with your development; picking things up as you go along is a much more effective way of learning within this role.

Another important lesson I’ve learnt is the invaluableness of being able to use the many tools and resources available to me successfully. I’ve found it particularly useful spending periods of time throughout my day not only trying to find the information I need for projects I’m working on, but also learning the most efficient and effective ways of navigating what can at first appear an unfathomable minefield of data. Doing this job in the pre-internet era must’ve been difficult and I’m glad I can turn to Google in my times of need!

Despite the fact I’m still learning my trade, I can already get a sense of the fulfilment and enjoyment that can be achieved within the legal search industry. I’m looking forward to continuing my development with Jepson Holt and am hopeful for what the future holds.