Articles & Resources

A collection of published talent acquisition articles, founder stories, and other musings from my 30 years in the executive search business.

Looking to hire the best?

Consult with the expert

How Executive Search Pro’s Hire

What does it take to make a great C-Suite hire? You have to know what you’re looking for, choose carefully, and make strategic hires rather than making emotional decisions or impulse hires. When you think you have found what you’re looking for; maybe you have, maybe...

The Founders Mindset

Founders are different. They are the ones that start businesses and enterprises. To them, risk is part of the deal. Risk is relative in their minds. It doesn’t guide them. It doesn’t drive them. It just figures into their calculus. Webster defines risk as: “the...

Negotiations and Love Songs

In 1983, The great American poet and musician, Paul Simon, was going through a nasty divorce with his then-wife, Carrie Fisher. He wrote and produced the album “Hearts & Bones.” While it was an ode to his personal trauma, he coined a phrase that stayed with me all...

Articles & Resources

A collection of published talent acquisition articles, founder stories, and other musings from my 30 years in the executive search business.

How Executive Search Pro’s Hire

What does it take to make a great C-Suite hire? You have to know what you’re looking for, choose carefully, and make strategic hires rather than making emotional decisions or impulse hires. When you think you have found what you’re looking for; maybe you have, maybe...

The Founders Mindset

Founders are different. They are the ones that start businesses and enterprises. To them, risk is part of the deal. Risk is relative in their minds. It doesn’t guide them. It doesn’t drive them. It just figures into their calculus. Webster defines risk as: “the...

Negotiations and Love Songs

In 1983, The great American poet and musician, Paul Simon, was going through a nasty divorce with his then-wife, Carrie Fisher. He wrote and produced the album “Hearts & Bones.” While it was an ode to his personal trauma, he coined a phrase that stayed with me all...

Looking to hire the best?

Consult with the expert

Judgement. A Necessity in the C-Suite.

As we sauntered through the bucolic hills and valleys of Western Pennsylvania, my friend and colleague looked at me and said, “What were they thinking?” It was a rhetorical question. The subject was judgment, and how sometimes it is not used by operating executives....

Empathy

A recent 60 Minutes Report featured David Kelley, co-founder of IDEO. David and his company were instrumental in designing many of Apple’s early products. In that segment, the reporter asked Kelley what unique qualities or characteristics IDEO brought to a design...

The Actions We Take

No matter your political stripe, the IRS spectacle before us is compelling. How do employees that largely possess common sense, are educated, and respectable law abiding citizens do such dumb things. The answer lies in leadership, and the culture advanced by example....

The Messages We Send

Peter Drucker said if you want to understand an organization, look whom they promote. I would humbly add, look whom they hire. As an organization, the individual promoted and hired speaks volumes about the values, culture, and intentions of the firm. Employee’s look...

The Return of Profitability

With the return of markets and profits, the Forest Products Industry is staging a long anticipated, and overdue, recovery. It’s been a ride. The bench for top tier executives is shallow. Many long time, key executives, are close to retirement. Here are some key points...

Hire the BEST

Everybody talks about hiring the best people, but few actually do it. Why?  Hiring, like cooking, driving, or playing golf is a learned skill. Once you learn a process, steps, and follow them, your success rate improves dramatically. For 2012, hopefully, the beginning...