Legal

As the Middle East has grown in popularity among lawyers as an attractive, tax-free emerging market, we recognised we had an increasing number of existing relationships with both common-law qualified expats there, as well as international clients moving into the region, keen to hire high-calibre candidates with UK training and qualifications. When we entered the market, there was a distinct lack of specialist recruiters in the space, particularly any that could provide our quality service and source candidates from top-rated UK and Australian law firms. We began with regular trips to the Middle East to gain market intelligence and recruitment trends, and were very soon brand ambassadors for our clients, as well as trusted advisors to candidates interested in relocation.

As the market matured, many new firms entered the region, making it a highly competitive space, with firms forced to differentiate themselves to attract candidates. The competition for talent has increased, particularly for locally based candidates with GCC experience, as well as in the in-house market. Recently, COVID-19 closed borders and paused visa applications, further intensifying the demand for lawyers already in the region and putting a question mark over future relocations. The evolving Gulf economies, such as Saudi Arabia’s VAT increase and move away from a reliance on oil, has also meant widespread restructuring in many sectors, and a new sensitivity to costs.

Confident that movement restrictions will be relaxed over time, we have continued with our relationship-driven approach, both selling the Middle East appeal to global candidates, and strengthening our relationships with lawyers already in the region. Through our MarketWatch service we keep passive international candidates up to date with market trends, and in the light of the global pandemic have been advising on remote working and onboarding to continue our high-quality service to clients and candidates alike.

Our standard delivery model across the Middle East region. Ideal for clients who want the best candidates in the quickest time. Whether you’re recruiting for a handful of roles a year or a handful of roles a week, we are here to use our extensive network to find the best candidates for you. We can provide long term, permanent additions to your team or also support on any long-term contract support. We can adapt depending on your requirements.

​

Key features:

• On-off flexibility to suit your needs

• Time to hire: 2 to 4 weeks, including search

• Dedicated resourcing of 1 or 2 recruiters in your specific disciplines

• Shortlists within 48 hours

• Pre-agreed timeline to hire

• We source and secure high calibre talent using innovative, customised search methods

Why you’ll love it:

• Quick and easy access to quality candidates

• Reduced time to hire

• Less time spent reviewing CVs and interviewing

• Low risk - no need for financial investment. Our search-to-fill rate is one of the best in the market

• We can accommodate the differing needs of your business over time; whether you are reaching a project stage or need a full team restructure

• You can start your process as soon as you are ready to ensure a complete handover phase

• Long term support and advice

Carried out by expert researchers, our market maps provide invaluable insight into active and passive candidate communities within specific market areas and aim to help you gain a more comprehensive understanding of your market position.

​

Key features:

• Using both our Regional Research Center of Excellence (COE) and experienced in-country Consultants, we will objectively map niche markets

• Fully bespoke from a location, skill set and seniority perspective

• Maps will give a visual of the current market conditions and where the talent sits from a regional perspective

• Provides insight on restrictions / NOCs / notice periods

• Proactive and organic for quick access and use

​

Why you’ll love it:

• Increased awareness of your employer brand to help you stand out from the crowd

• Benchmark your reward strategy and team structure against the most effective in the market

• Successfully headhunt direct competition to your business

• Your experience will be interactive - we’ll empower you and engage candidates towards your brand

• Arms you with the information you need to make a business case to senior decision makers about gaps in your team

• Proactive and strategic approach to talent acquisition helps you structure your budgets more effectively

Perfect for senior hires or multiple roles requiring similar niche skill sets. We take full responsibility for the entire search – our approach is targeted and specific, we meet and screen all prospective candidates for cultural fit before considering an introduction.

​

Key features:

• Pre-defined timelines and start date for the candidate agreed as the search is started

• Using innovative, customised search methods, we source and secure the market’s best talent

• Dedicated recruitment team on each specific search

• Thorough market map to present market data and insights along with a weekly update and longlist

• For each new role, you will be assigned to of our experienced Consultants as your primary point of contact

• Flexible billing structure

​

Why you’ll love it:

• You gain preferred access to the best candidate pool of active and passive candidates

• Ability to rapidly ramp up and scale down resource

• Your experience will be interactive, as we’ll empower you and engage candidates towards your brand

• Remain anonymous whilst you go out to market

• Easier to plan around a pre-agreed start date

• Guaranteed to secure the hire

• More insights into the market conditions through market maps

• Staggered payment plan

• Work to tighter deadlines due to the increased resources that can be committed to the search

Combining the strength of your brand and the reach of our networks, this solution enables you to tap into a wider candidate pool.

Our in-house design studio develops bespoke co-branded advertising campaigns to raise awareness of your search within the right networks. These campaigns, which can consist of individual adverts or an end-to-end multi-media campaign across several weeks, attract valuable and hard-to-find talent.

Advertising alone cannot be relied upon to provide the best shortlist of candidates. We use a dual-sourcing approach that combines advertising with headhunting to ensure full coverage of the market and increase our chance of securing the best candidates.

We'll run an advertising campaign and screen all applicants, whilst headhunting in the background. All relevant candidates who respond to advertising or who are generated through headhunting will be invited to meet our experienced consultants to discuss the role in more detail. We’ll assess their commitment to the role and screen them against specific criteria, both in terms of experience and personality.

​

Key features:

• Dedicated marketing expertise to represent your brand in a consistent and impactful way

• Adverts will feature across multiple platforms including relevant Job Boards, LinkedIn, Email and other social medial platforms

• Engage with passive candidates who are keen to understand more about the opportunity

• Fully vetted short list of the most suitable candidates

• Flexible pricing solutions to meet your needs

​

Why you’ll love it:

• Tap into a wider talent pool across multiple marketing channels

• Raise your brand profile in the market

• Increase job response rates with the right candidates

• Adds weighting to the overall search campaign, to help you fill roles much faster

• Flexible pricing: more cost effective than advertising your own roles