This week, Shirley chats to another one of our valuable team members – Sibongile Khoza, a Placement Partner Support Consultant. Sibongile, affectionately known as S’bosh, shares with us her experiences and the wisdom she has gained through the lockdown period.
What do you love most about your role with Placement Partner?
The thing I like most about my role is that I really get to connect with our clients and I have the opportunity to assist them. Essentially, I get to be the hero who comes to the rescuewhenever they are having problems. It’s very fulfilling to help people in this way everyday. I love being the person who steps in and makes them feel comfortable with using the system.
What have you learnt from our clients while we have been in lockdown?
I’ve learnt that we really are all very much the same. Our clients feel the same way as we do – Everyone has been shaken by this experience and it has shown me that I can have a great impact on others by simply offering some reassurance by reminding people everything will be ok and that we have things under control on our side.
This time has shown me the importance of my role in this business ecosystem. I have found purpose in being calm and understanding to support our clients who are under pressure and feeling anxious about their businesses. I see now that by going the extra mile, I have a real impact in the world.
What do you feel most proud of yourself for? Is there anything specific you have learnt or achieved in this time?
I’m really proud of the professional way in which I handle my personal feelings in life. Even when I have a bad day I have learnt how to hold that separate from my interactions with clients, which means they don’t need to feel any of the negativity. This has really helped me to focus my full attention on my work to offer my clients that heartfelt assurance.
The resilience shown by the Placement Partner team has been nothing short of exceptional and we have been made aware of our strength in a way we may never have realised without the opportunity presented to us by this pandemic.
What do you think the future of recruitment looks like?
Based on what I remember from my personal experiences as a candidate in the past and comparing this to the innovations and developments being churned out by the Placement Partner team, it is clear to me that recruitment is going to become a whole lot easier for everyone involved as time goes on.
Features like our Video Interview Tool are going to make the lives of candidates much easier. These are people who already have limited resources and this innovation saves them from having to spend time and money going to see a multitude of recruiters in their offices. The recruitment industry is going through a lot of changes. Things will have to be done differently going forward and technology is a vital part of the transformation. It’s great to know that we have been working for some time now to provide our clients with exactly what they need to be successful in this new terrain.
The keyword which everyone is throwing around right now is PIVOT. Recruiters need to adapt to the needs of their clients and candidates right now and their partners and service providers like us must be able to support them through these changes. That is what makes our close, personal relationships with each of our clients so important.
