Please excuse this indulgent nostalgic post, but I was walking the dog earlier this morning and started thinking about the first 5 years of my recruitment career.

Here are some key moments – if anyone remembers the businesses or that far back generally😊

I started in recruitment in the very early 1990s, working on IBM DOS/VSE, VM/VSE Operating systems (This evolved to include MVS and the IBM midrange (AS/400) sector as tech progressed).

The jobs I covered were Print Operators, Computer Operators and Operations Analysts. Pretty much every one of the print and ops roles involved working shifts covering 24 x 7 x 365! Operations Analysts were day/evening shifts and something a lot of Computer Ops wanted to move to!

The medium used to advertise jobs was Computer Weekly, Computing Magazine, Evening Standard and an A-board outside the offices we had!

CVs were received and sent out by post or fax.

All CVs were A4-size printed paper copies of varying lengths. No AI, career or life coaches to be seen!

All searches we did involved trawling through tons of paper CV’s kept in rows of filing cabinets.

Tipex was essential to hide contact info.

The only way to contact someone was by a physical landline, or a handwritten note on a compliment slip (remember those) that was then posted!

1st ever placement – Printronic Wimbledon – Laser Print Operators working shifts.

1st IT placement – IBM Ops Analyst at Philip Morris, The Old Kent Road – I know it was cigarette machines, but a different era. Candidate now lives in Australia and has had a hugely successful career!!

1st Major account win – Direct Line Insurance – Croydon.

In the days you could ring up Personnel and speak to someone (not a dig, honest)

A candidate I always remember … they applied for a job, went through several interviews. Offered and declined a role. Then came back and said they did want to take it…then declined again…then got in touch 2 months later, saying would the client reconsider them a third time…

1st ever huge disappointment – Safeways Supermarket. Found someone for a senior IT role who had hidden alcohol issues.

Placements that always bring back good memories – Citibank. Molesworth Street, Lewisham.

Whenever you get the Tunbridge Wells to London train, Citibank used to be the biggest building in Lewisham. Now, on the train, you can barely see the small building….

Thanks for reading!