Recruiter – Sales & Marketing

Henry Budd

It was the lure of early morning surfing that led Hudson sales and marketing recruiter Rachel Ashton to Australia. Originally from Gloucestershire, England, Ashton had been working in the recruitment industry for three years when she was tempted by Hudson to move to Australia.

“They came to England and said, ‘Who wants to go surfing before breakfast?’ and I thought: `I do!’ And of course I’ve never been surfing before breakfast once in the three years I’ve been here,” Ashton says.

With a degree in biological science, Ashton finds candidates for jobs in pharmaceutical companies and for medical product suppliers.

“The objective of my role is to try to help clients find their ideal candidate to fit the job for the long term and to try to find my candidates my ideal, dream job for them,” Ashton says.

“[The people I recruit] usually sell pharmaceutical drugs to hospitals or they’ll be part of the marketing team developing those strategies.”

Ashton spends each day screening potential candidates and meeting with clients to determine who will best fit their needs.

At any one time, she will be trying to find the right person for up to 35 jobs.

“I am constantly on the phone to clients or candidates every minute of the day,” she says.

Having a science background gives Ashton an insight into what her clients are looking for in candidates.

“I like the jobs that I recruit for because I have to say that I’m a bit of a boffin and I get to hear about all the latest drug developments which is nice because I’m always learning,” she says.

Ashton fell into recruitment after being made redundant from British Airways after September 11.

“After doing a little bit of travelling, I went into a recruitment agency to try to find a job and they were advertising for someone to join them and I thought I could do it,” she says.

Having fallen unexpectedly into the industry, Ashton says she was unsure of what to expect from it.

“You have to like people because that is what your product is,” she says.

Qualifications: Hudson sales and marketing recruiter Rachel Ashton says there is more than one pathway into the industry. Many people work in a particular industry, such as pharmaceuticals, before using their knowledge and experience to become a recruiter for that industry. A human resources management major will also cover recruitment practices.

Course description: At the University of NSW, students can major in HR management as part of a commerce or economics degree.

According to the UNSW handbook, the study of HR management offers the chance to acquire advanced knowledge in a range of areas, including staff planning, recruitment, selection and development, gender equity, employee motivation and performance management.

HR management majors are also available at the University of Sydney, Wollongong, Western Sydney and the University of Technology and TAFE.

Assumed knowledge: Entry to UNSW is based on academic merit.
HSC mathematics is assumed for commerce and economic degrees.

Cost: Both commerce and economics cost $8499 per year for students starting after 2008.

From the inside: Ashton says an HR background will put you in good stead to understand the hiring process from the client’s perspective.

* More information: unsw.edu.au