Middle East

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 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 media platforms

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

• Fully vetted shortlist 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

​Key features:

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

• On-off flexibility to suit your needs

• We can deliver a “full package” from resourcing high-quality candidate to contactor care and compliance

• Ongoing brand awareness campaigns via our headhunting schemes

• Weekly or bi-weekly meetings to discuss progress, candidates, and feedback

Why you’ll love it:

• We can accommodate the differing needs of your business over time

• Long term support and advice on your talent management strategy

• Easier to compare the quality of candidates across the market, so you can make more informed decisions

• Option to request a search for a specific role or to be kept regularly informed of relevant people becoming available in your market

• No commitment to hire unless you really like a candidate

Key features:

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

• Our dedicated research function will provide lists of active and passive candidate communities within a specific market

• We can also provide current market trends, competitor analysis and brand perception surveys

• Proactive and organic for quick access and use

Why you’ll love it:

• Better awareness of the candidate pools available in your market

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

• Benchmark your talent strategy against the most effective in the market

• Successfully headhunt direct competition to your business

• Arms you with the information you need to make a business case on your talent requirements

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​Key features:

• You have one specialist point of contact at Hydrogen

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

• Searches conducted by a consultant and dedicated research team, to ensure a thorough search and all relevant candidates in the market are spoken to

• Weekly updates on your search

• Option to conduct market mapping and report on your brand perception in the market

• Staggered pricing solutions, in line with different hiring phases

Why you’ll love it:

• You gain preferred access to the best pools of active and passive candidates in your market

• Working exclusively with us, we will control your message in the market and promote your brand successfully

• We’ll work to tighter deadlines due to the increased resources that can be committed to the search

• Ability to spread the cost across a number of weeks or months