Q&A with Abacus recent joiner Hannah Bishop

Interview with Hannah Bishop

Q. What is your work experience to date?

Once qualifying in Human Resource Management at the University of Ulster, I continued my path in management, this allowed me to gain HR experience alongside recruitment experience, this then lead me onto my path of a career in recruitment, I always enjoyed the people aspect of management but mainly the recruitment and progression of individuals, which then made me realise recruitment was the track in which I wanted to follow in my career path, and here I am today as a HR Specialist recruitment consultant with Abacus.

Q. Why did you choose to go into HR?

I chose HR as a degree, as when I was at school I had always enjoyed business studies, but had always said I wanted to go into a more specific topic such as HR or recruitment. I always felt HR was for me as I was a good communicator and loved dealing with people on a daily basis, this experience was gained through my part-time work during school and University as a customer service advisor.

Q. What made you go into the recruitment industry?

Good question, I feel being a manager within the retail industry allowed me to identify the areas in HR which I enjoyed and which I wanted to strive further in. I felt in recruitment I loved the fast-paced environment and working with different people from all different backgrounds every day. I feel a great sense of reward, knowing you play a role in helping someone reach the career path they want to go along.

Q. How has your 1^st few months with Abacus been?

As I have now been part of the Abacus team for a few months, looking back and reflecting it has felt like I have always been a member of the team, I was made to feel extremely welcome from the get go and always made to feel like no question is a silly question (sometimes I felt they were being too nice, with the silly questions I was asking) I have had some successes in placements and some frustrations, but the team have always helped to overcome those frustrations and build on my knowledge and recruitment skills, I look forward to continue to grow with Abacus and the next team night out!

Q. What do you see as your biggest challenge for the remainder of 2021?

On an individual level I feel my biggest challenge this year will be to get myself out there into the local HR market. It is about adding value to a company and I am still at the start of my journey as a specialist HR recruiter. As a team and business the biggest challenge will be the bounce back from Covid and 2020 as the market is picking up at a very fast pace. This is a great opportunity to build strong relationships with both candidates & clients and a challenge I am really looking forward to.

Q. What advice would you give to any aspiring HR professional?

Personally, I feel if you are completing an HR qualification at University, I would advise you if possible to carry out a placement year, this allows you to gain a wealth of experience in what you have been learning in your previous courses at university and start a pathway into your HR career. Speaking to an experienced HR Manager they said they would advise an aspiring HR professional to reach out and get a mentor to help push and widen your experience, they also said always get to know all functions of the business, get an understanding of the positives and the negatives of their jobs, this will allow an aspiring HR professional to add value to the business.

Q. Finally, what do you do when you are not recruiting?

Outside of recruitment you will find me on the hockey pitch with my teammates, attempting to play hockey (really I’m there for the social drinks after a game) or out for a nice meal with my partner with a Pornstar Martini in hand. (In my eyes nothing better than a good meal and cocktail!)