With just over 10 years of recruitment experience, ‘Client Engagement Manager’ Cian McDonagh, has joined Dynamic to lead the way in new business acquisitions and client engagement. We’ve spoken to him for some of his insights, and to find out more about what he’s learned from a career in recruitment.
Can you give us a brief overview of your role?
So basically, my role is to bring on new business and to handle all client engagement for new business opportunities within new accounts. I’ll be covering the Cloud, Infrastructure and Networks side of Dynamic.
What led you to a career in recruitment in the first place?
I moved to London when I was 19 and I started in a recruitment agency. It was a good way to earn some cash when I first moved to london. And the world of sales is something I’ve always been drawn to and enjoyed: It’s people orientated, fast paced and every day is different. And you get to meet some really cool people.
So you’ve had a great career in recruitment. What’s your advice for someone just starting out?
So I started 10 years ago, and have been working purely in new business acquisition for the last 6 years.
What I’d have to say to someone learning the ropes is to build a thick skin. Don’t let rejection get you down. Any rejection you get isn’t personal, even though it can feel like it is. The best way to think about it is, when you say no to a sales pitch or something, you’re not saying no to them personally, you’re saying no to what they’re providing.
And if you ring someone out of the blue, you never know what their day has been like. And they don’t know you: So it can’t be personal.
What’s been the really memorable moment in your recruitment career?
I remember making my first deal. That was quite cool, it was for a company called viadecks. It was a really quick turnaround actually, I found the guy, gave him a call and the deal was done before the end of the week. That was at the end of my first or second month as a recruiter.
What led you to choosing Dynamic for the next stage in your career?
Dynamic’s just a really exciting looking company. And it’s right in my sweet spot for technologies. I’ve always worked in this area of recruitment. And when I met the two owners, John and Adam I got on with them really well, straight away. I was really delighted.
What aspect of recruitment do you think is often overlooked?
How hard a job it actually is, being a recruiter. It takes a strong willed individual to keep at it, and to get good at it. A lot of people can try it and fall by the wayside, saying no it’s too hard. So it does take a certain type of individual to keep cracking on.
What are you looking forward to, as you progress in your new role?
So I’m eventually aiming to become the Head of Sales further down the track. Before that I’ll be bringing on big clients, some partners, building up our jobs pipeline and getting some really good candidates through the door and into roles. That’s my immediate target.
And teaching people the ropes: Growing a team is something I’m really looking forward to. I did it pre-covid, but unfortunately it was only for 2 or 3 months before covid hit. So as I’m sure you can imagine, it quickly fell by the wayside. And I was really enjoying teaching these entry level recruiters about how to bring on new clients. So I’m looking forward to the point of getting back to that.
If you could meet anyone, who would it be and why?
Frank Sinatra, I’m a big Frank Sinatra fan, and Elvis. He was a brilliant musician, and outside of being a fan of the music, he was a really interesting character.
Or someone who helped build the pyramids. How they did that: Like the size of blocks, and the speed at which they built those massive structures. We’re still not sure how they built them today. It’s mad.
Can you tell us 3 interesting facts about yourself?
- I entered the xfactor when i was 16, and again when i was 19. I made it through to the second stage the second time around, but not onto TV unfortunately.
- I’ve driven a tuktuk all the way through India, from the bottom of India to the north. I was on my way back from Sydney after working there for a couple of years, and I met my brother in south Kerala. And basically, we signed up for this challenge, where we had 14 days to make this trip, called the tuk tuk rally. And we did it in 14 days! It wasn’t easy, some days we spent about 8 or 9 hours on the road.
- And lastly, I’m the youngest of 8 kids. There’s 7 of us lads and 1 sister.
At Dynamic we’re always looking for new members to join our growing team. If you’re ready to get started in your career, contact us here to find out if you’ve got what it takes. Or apply directly to our open recruitment consultant position here.