Rebekah Allen UAE, Dubai, Middle East...
This is a question I am frequently asked by both lawyers and law firms alike – how can an international career move to the UAE be coordinated from the UK, with both candidate and client relationships built/maintained? Read on to find out…
At Nexus I primarily focus on assisting internationally-based lawyers in moving to the UAE market, as well as laterally within the local market for those already on the ground. I have focused on the Middle East since training as a consultant and now as a senior consultant, have relationships with a variety of international and top regional firms across UAE, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, many of which I have recruited for on multiple occasions.
If you are a candidate looking to move overseas to the Middle East, it is important to find the right consultant who has a good knowledge of the legal market to match you to your dream role. Having focused on this market for some time now and speaking to candidates who have worked in the Middle East, I have built up a clear picture as to how certain teams operate and what sort of working culture you can expect from a move to these firms (along with any market intel which you won’t find on a firms’ websites!). An initial call will enable us to discuss your career goals and which teams you would best fit into. Thereafter I am on hand throughout the recruitment process to offer advice, run through mock interviews, facilitate any offers you receive, advise on VISA applications and ensure your transition overseas runs as smoothly as possible.
Being UK based, the bulk of my work is done via phone and e-mail and on a day to day basis I speak with candidates from the UK, Australia, South Africa and United States who are looking to make a move across. Many of the clients I work with have global offices which my colleagues have recruited for in other jurisdictions and we have built up global relationships with these firms. At Nexus we recruit into Australia, Asia, Middle East and South Africa and have tailored our working hours here in the UK to facilitate differing time zones. As a Middle East consultant, I personally find Sundays to be one of the busiest days for me as the working week in the GCC is Sunday – Thursday, thus I find myself regularly on e-mails over the weekend!
Recruiting into the Middle East is both exciting and satisfying – enabling legal professionals to gain overseas experience at top international firms is something I thoroughly enjoy being a part of and I have gotten to know candidates from all over the world – many of whom I have spent several months working with and have kept in touch after placement.
If you’d like to know which teams in the Middle East could be a good fit for your career progression, get in touch with me on +44 161 870 6776 / rallen@nexuslr.com. For a full list of our current vacancies, click here.
To read more about our Middle East consultant, Rebekah Allen, click here.