nice decision, the boutiques have a lot to offer and can provide a good career. in general i'd say that emailing a partner is fine [b]providing[/b] that your message is [b]immaculately[/b] worded. not because they are such powerful, important people (we're not... we're just older and further into our careers than the young ones who are in fact the most important people in the world as they are our future) but because you wouldn't believe the garbage we receive from most people. they're wasting their time as well as ours. 99% of them get deleted the instant I see some sloppy grammar or a typo or, worse still, an unfocused application that is basically irrelevant. or, if i'm honest about it, an application from somebody who lives on the other side of the planet who has every technical IT qualification under the sun but absolutely no experience or skills of any relevance to the work we actually do. Then there are the smugly worded ones from grads who have their head up their own bum and who you just know will leave after a year when they get offered £500/year more by a competitor.the way you worded your first sentence would definitely grab my attention. you have a lovely way with words and the clear preference for "one of those neat boutiques" rather than mbb indicates that you have done your homework and know what you want and why you're applying. Had your post been a covering note or email, I would have almost, but not quite, hit the delete key owing to the spelling of "enquiry" - however although I personally wouldn't have spelt it that way in that particular context, I recognise that "inquiry" is technically also acceptable English in the UK and your delightful phrase "those neat boutique firms" would have persuaded me that you're a clear communicatorso yes, direct approaches are fine - but approach it in the right way! no 10,000 word cover emails or requests for "advise" and the like. chatting up a HR bod on the phone can sometimes help too. :)(I know my own post here is riddled with errors by the way!)
