Basit
Zaman

WHO I HELP

Large international organisations.

HOW I HELP

Recruitment & selection. Improving HR Functions. Optimising HR Processes. Pre-Employment Checks. Salary Benchmarking & Reports. Recruitment & Onboarding. Recruitment process management. Coaching & Supporting Managers.

SECTORS/SUPPORT

Technology.

“I HAVE AN INCREDIBLE WORK ETHIC; I’M SOMEONE WHO LIVES & BREATHES MY WORK.”

As a Resourcing Manager, Basit Zaman’s role is to provide a recruitment function A-Team, which is responsible for recruiting across multiple countries, as well as multiple sectors and specialisms for his client. Basit is responsible for providing resources for up to 50 vacancies at a time across multiple sectors.

Despite also managing a team of a fellow recruiter and a resourcing coordinator, Basit is hands-on with the work he does for his client. He remains involved in every aspect of the recruitment life cycle, including headhunting, administration management, stakeholder engagement, stakeholder management, and more.

TRUST & HONESTY ON BOTH SIDES

“First and foremost, for me, an ideal relationship with a client or a candidate is one that is built on trust and honesty from both sides. It’s obviously important for me to be honest and transparent with clients, but it’s great when they know they can be honest with me. From a recruitment perspective, if a client isn’t honest and clear about what they’re looking for, I may not be able to find the right candidate for them. So, for me, open and regular communication is key to making sure the process is as efficient and successful as possible.

Being able to challenge and disagree with each other is really important as well. If there’s a chance for improvements to be made, you need to feel comfortable enough to push back, and I think that’s something that can be overlooked sometimes.”

CLIENTS EXPECT RESULTS & ACCOUNTABILITY

“Ultimately, clients expect results. At the end of the day, when you’re in recruitment, when you’re tasked to find candidates for a job, the main purpose is to find the right candidate essentially. So it’s as simple as that. I also think, again, communication is what they expect. So if you’re unable to find someone because of various challenges, letting them know and having regular touchpoints is also important.

Accountability is so important as well. You need to take ownership of the situation and make sure that you’re responsible for the overall process, and not just leaving it to other people.”

MAKING CLIENTS HAPPY & LEARNING FROM COLLEAGUES

“The most satisfying aspect of working with clients for me is delivering results. That’s what makes clients happy, and that’s what makes me happy as a recruiter: being able to find the right people for the job. There’s nothing better than when you find a candidate and then in six months, the manager tells you how great they are, that kind of the perfect scenario.

I also think the people aspect is satisfying to me. I mean, whether it’s colleagues or clients, being able to build long-term relationships and friendships where we look forward to catching up… those are the kind of things that appeal to me.

I really love learning from clients and colleagues. Everyone in the team has slightly different expertise – they’ve come from different backgrounds and different companies. For me personally, learning, developing and sharing knowledge is incredibly important.”

A BLEND OF VIRTUAL & IN-PERSON COMMUNICATION

“In terms of communication, my ideal scenario is a blend of virtual and more ‘hands-on’ or in-person approaches. I’m very much used to working remotely, but meeting people face-to-face and spending time with them is really helpful. It builds trust, and helps to develop relationships.”

FACING CHALLENGES WITH CREATIVITY

“In the tech sector in particular, a lot of roles are very niche, so there are often more jobs than candidates, which can be a challenge. For us, it just means we have to be a bit creative in recruiting candidates. We can’t do things in the same way as other recruiters; we have to be a step ahead, try different things, and be proactive. It’s not a case of just putting out adverts and hoping people apply – we have to go out there and target people to get in touch with. We have to be different, and stand out.

Another challenge is dealing with the negative perception of recruiters that some people have, usually after they’ve had a bad experience with a recruiter. But, of course, the easiest way of changing someone’s perceptions about recruiters is by delivering results – which is exactly what we do.”

OPPORTUNITIES TO GROW

“The thing that most excites me about the future for myself as part of the people team is probably the growth journey that we’re going through right now. There are lots of opportunities ahead to grow and develop. Things like being able to share knowledge across such an experienced and dedicated team is really exciting. There are so many experts in different fields on the team, so there’s so much we learn from each other.

It’s also exciting to be able to share my thoughts and ideas with people on how to continually improve processes and methods, and provide solutions to challenges. I’m someone who doesn’t like to just be stagnant and do the same thing day in and day out. I’m ambitious, and I’m always keen to keep growing.”

BEING A TEAM PLAYER

“One of the AAB Group Values that really stood out to me was that ‘collaboration is our superpower’ – I’m someone who always likes working together with people, whether it’s with my team, my clients, or stakeholders. I think having that team player mindset is really important. Being a lone wolf or someone who just wants to do things on your own can have a detrimental effect on relationships and lead to long term problems.

I believe you can achieve goals a lot more quickly if you work together, regardless of whether they’re personal goals or shared goals. Taking a team approach just has a more successful outcome in general. Working together can lead to better, more efficient, and more sustainable processes which is what we’re all striving for.”

A STRONG DRIVE TO SUCCEED & DELIVER RESULTS

“The greatest strength I think I bring to AAB is my work ethic. I’m someone who lives and breathes my work. I love getting things done, and I never put something off if I can do it today.

I think my other major strength is just being able to deliver results. I make a huge number of hires, and recently, for example, I saved my client half a million pounds in six months. So delivering results and exceeding expectations is what I’m all about!

I’m also adaptable – I’m always able to change and adapt depending on what the situation requires of me. People are different, organisations are different, and so my approach has to be different. I’m very motivated to be adaptable, as I’m keenly aware that things can change at any time. I need to be ready for all kinds of situations and challenges. I’m very good at putting out fires, as well as pre-empting and avoiding potential issues.”