| HEALTHCARE | Top Of Page |
| SEARCH |
| VP/Country General Manager |
| ORGANIZATION |
| Global consumer products and healthcare company |
| SITUATION |
| Due to the recent acquisition of this healthcare company by a global giant, the existing President, who had founded the business in Canada elected to depart to pursue more entrepreneurial endeavours. The US head office, in addition to inviting pitches from a couple of firms they used regularly, asked the new parent company for an additional referral. As Madison MacArthur had successfully placed a number of executives in their various divisions over the years, we were referred to participate in this pitch and subsequently were awarded the assignment. |
| ASSESSMENT |
| The business, a leader in its field, was extremely well run and highly profitable. The outgoing President was very effective and charismatic and had built the business and the team to this success. The acquisition by the larger entity would open up significant new opportunities for product and service synergies and growth. However, the acquisition and subsequent announcement of the pending departure of their leader was very unsettling to the organisations staff. It was critical that the new VP/Country General Manager be successful in quickly winning the trust and support of the staff to ensure the stability of the business. |
| CHALLENGE |
| The challenge is often greater in finding someone that can take a very well run and profitable business to the next level than to find someone that can resuscitate a poorly run business. The candidate in this instance would require significant leadership skills, strong general management skills and a depth of marketing experience, preferably in service based businesses. The candidate would also have to fit into a uniquely caring culture and have a very high customer service sensibility. |
| METHODOLOGY/SOLUTION |
The consultants at Madison MacArthur developed a comprehensive search strategy involving looking at not only comparable companies in the healthcare space, but also, all other types of service focused companies that would offer up candidates with the requisite transferable skills and experience. Within four to five weeks, Madison MacArthur was able to provide the client with a shortlist of candidates that included two CEO's from large international service companies, one CEO and one General Manager from Canadian based service companies and a VP Marketing from a global bank.
The client prioritized the candidates that they would meet and invited the first candidate to the US for interviews. The result of this initial meeting was a quickly orchestrated series of follow-up meetings and an offer being extended. Unfortunately, having multiple offers, the candidate elected to assume a different position. The second candidate was subsequently invited to the US for interviews and similarly was invited back for a series of meetings and was on track for receiving an offer. In the interim, the Madison MacArthur consultant made the suggestion that the client should invest the time in meeting with the candidate from the global bank as we felt very strongly that they were both a very solid cultural fit as well as bringing exceptional marketing skills which would serve them well in taking the business to the next level. Despite their reservations of someone from the banking industry being an appropriate candidate, the client agreed to meet with the additional candidate. The client ultimately found our counsel to be right and offered the position to this candidate instead. |
| CANDIDATE |
| The successful candidate brought a wealth of marketing and management experience accumulated from a number of diverse industries. He possessed a Commerce undergrad and an MBA, has a track record of building strong teams and has a very engaging and charismatic style about him that the staff readily gravitated towards. |
| POSTMORTEM |
It is early days yet for the candidate with the firm but all indicators are that he is getting well settled into the role and has the full support of the people.
The US head office subsequently thanked us for pushing them to meet with this additional candidate.
While it may have been a bit risky to push for the additional interview with a candidate the client had no initial interest in meeting - especially when another candidate was already on track to be hired - we felt that it was the right thing to do. While the candidate they were ready to hire was also very strong, we felt that the stronger marketing skills and cultural fit that the additional candidate offered would serve our client better for the long term.
Madison MacArthur has already been awarded two additional searches from this client. |
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| CONSULTING | Top Of Page |
| SEARCH |
| Senior Vice President, Sales & Relationship Management |
| ORGANIZATION |
| Our client is one of the big 4 global consulting firms |
| SITUATION |
| The client, with whom we had placed a number of Business Development Directors for various lines of business, was in need of a National Leader for this team. The predecessor had brought the team to a solid level of effectiveness and the client was looking to have the new VP take them to the next level. The new VP would be managing a large team of seasoned sales executives and working closely with the Firm Partners to ensure that sales opportunities were maximized and the pipeline was continually filled. |
| ASSESSMENT |
| The candidate would need to have a high level of business contacts across multiple industries. They would need to be seasoned and polished to win the respect of the Partners, the sales organization and Firm clients and they would need to be able to adapt to working within a partnership environment. |
| CHALLENGE |
| The challenge was in finding candidates that had the requisite level of contacts and sales management skills and the drive to take a highly successful organization to the next level, while at the same time being comfortable in working in a matrix environment where there was no further career step. |
| SOLUTION |
| The consultants at Madison MacArthur developed a search strategy which focused upon identifying candidates within service industries that sold their services to a wide spectrum of industries. Within the target companies, senior sales executives were identified that had successfully sold across multiple verticals, thereby having an optimal number of business contacts. |
| CANDIDATE |
| Madison MacArthur presented a roster of 5 exceptional candidates - all of whom had significant track records of business development and sales organization development throughout their careers. The successful candidate was a very seasoned executive with a wealth of experience in IT, Telecom, Manufacturing, Retail, Consumer Packaged Goods and Finance. Throughout his career he had built and managed sales organizations on both a national and international level. At the time that we recruited him, he was a VP with one of the world's largest IT companies and travelling 80% of the time. He had reached a level in his career within his current company where any other role within the company that would allow him to travel less would have been a step backwards in his career. Although he had tired of the constant travel, he was a vital executive that was looking forward to taking on a new and completely different kind of challenge. Due to his career successes, compensation was not a key factor, nor was future promotion and, as he had started his career as an accountant, he was very comfortable in working within a partnership environment. |
| POSTMORTEM |
| Since taking on his new role, the candidate has been successful in galvanizing both the sales organization and the Partners, building a stronger sales culture within the Firm and expanding the business development pipeline. As a result of these successes, his team has continued to grow and Madison MacArthur has been fortunate in helping facilitate that growth. |
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| MARKETING | Top Of Page |
| SEARCH |
| Team Leader, Strategic Merchandising Initiatives |
| ORGANIZATION |
| Consumer Goods Marketing Company |
| SITUATION |
| This tier 1 marketing company was looking for a director level individual to lead their category management/merchandising initiatives with their major customers. This was essentially a new role within the industry and one customarily handled in-house by the retail customers. The client had put the search out to two executive search firms previously with no success. Madison MacArthur was introduced to the client company by a new addition to the Human Resource department. |
| ASSESSMENT |
| This new role required a combination of right brain/left brain skills as there was a high degree of analytical work required as well as creativity in finding innovative, strategic merchandising solutions. The candidate was required to build sophisticated business cases and have the ability to sell concepts both up the line internally and to customers - who were not accustomed to vendors providing this insight. |
| CHALLENGE |
| Previous candidates presented by the other search firms were either too creative (coming from the visual merchandising stream) and lacking strong business skills or too business focused (coming from the marketing stream) and lacking the creative component required by the role. Candidates presented with sales backgrounds were found somewhat lacking on both fronts. |
| SOLUTION |
| Madison MacArthur's Marketing Practice team implemented a strategy to specifically target companies whose primary mode of marketing was through merchandising at point of purchase ie: battery companies, cigarette companies, confectionary and snack food companies and the marketing services companies that provided services to these clients. It stood to reason that companies who spent the bulk of their marketing budget on merchandising initiatives and companies that developed these programs would have the strongest potential candidates. |
| CANDIDATE |
The successful candidate embodied all of the requisite skills. She had an excellent foundation in marketing and sales in tier 1 consumer goods marketing companies and had moved to the more creative environment of a marketing services company where she developed her creative skills. She had been responsible for developing and implementing a number of award winning merchandising concepts for her clients - including a number of competitors to our client company. The candidate had the business savvy and creative flare for the role and was an excellent cultural fit for our client.
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| POSTMORTEM |
| At the three month update, the hiring manager stated that the candidate was likely the best hire he had made in his career. The candidate was able to build credibility immediately with their major customers and helped solidify their position as category management leaders. Three years later, the candidate has been promoted twice and continues to be happy and challenged in her position. |
| FOOTNOTE |
| Madison MacArthur was subsequently named a preferred supplier to this company and continues to work with them closely today. |
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| WEB/ONLINE | Top Of Page |
| SEARCH |
| Director, E-Business |
| ORGANIZATION |
| International Specialty Retailer |
| SITUATION |
| A few years ago the US based head office of this client had moved from an in-house to an outsourced e-commerce strategy in partnering with a full service e-commerce provider. With a new focus on developing their in-house capability again, they decided to use Canada as the test market and situate the role here - reporting directly into the US. Due to time pressures, the client retained Madison MacArthur in Canada as well as using a contingency firm in New York. |
| ASSESSMENT |
| As the client had a predetermined site launch date, and were already significantly behind schedule, it was critical that the hire be made very quickly. The role required experience in both site strategy/development and experience on the operational/merchandising side to build the infrastructure to support the site. |
| CHALLENGE |
| In addition to the breadth of experience the position required, another challenge in this hire included the need for exceptionally strong people skills to manage the politics surrounding "ownership" between the Canadian and US offices as the role would need the support of management here in building the operational side of the business. This required a level of business maturity not too often found in the "e" world. As well, an excessive amount of travel would be required of the chosen candidate. |
| SOLUTION |
| Being very well networked in this area, the team at Madison MacArthur was able to quickly hone in on the relatively small pool of potential candidates in this market that had the depth and breadth of business experience the role required. All of the candidates on our shortlist possessed a depth of traditional business experience prior to having made the change to the internet space. With a foundation of a combination of consumer goods & services and retail experience, each of the candidates had been early adopters of technology and had been responsible for developing high profile web based businesses. Each of the candidates had also worked in the US for periods of their career and understood the dynamics of brokering relationships on both sides. All four of the candidates presented by Madison MacArthur were invited to the US head office for interviews. Two potential candidates presented by the New York firm were also invited in for interviews. Of these six candidates, two of our candidates were deemed to be absolute standouts and invited back for a final round of interviews - with one of them subsequently being hired. |
| CANDIDATE |
| As the successful candidate had extensive experience in developing e-commerce businesses and was very well networked with the appropriate resources, they were able to very quickly put the foundation in place. Working closely with both the US management in fine tuning the strategy, and with the Canadian management in developing the operational components to support the business, they built the organization up quickly and were able, in short order, to make up for lost time. |
| POSTMORTEM |
| Ultimately, the candidate was successful in meeting the launch date with a site that provided a high level of consumer interactivity and appeal and which garnered very positive response from the marketplace. The President of the Canadian division commented that the candidate was likely the perfect hire as they had the business savvy to effectively engage all of the critical parties on both sides of the border - without whose support the initiative would have been an impossible challenge. The plan is to take the successful Canadian template and launch in the US in the near future. |
| FOOTNOTE |
| Madison MacArthur continues to enjoy a very close partnership with this client. |
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| MERCHANDISING | Top Of Page |
| SEARCH |
| Global Sourcing - 6 Director Global Sourcing assignments |
| ORGANIZATION |
| US Retail Company |
| SITUATION |
| This $30 Billion US based retail concern had recently emerged from Chapter 11 status as a much leaner, more focused merchandiser. In order to differentiate themselves and revitalize the organization, they reorganized their overall sourcing initiative into three silos: Buying Group, Design Group and a new Global Sourcing Group. All three would work independently in their areas of expertise but would be interlinked in order to offer improved margins, quality and shelf appeal across their merchandise categories. |
| ASSESSMENT |
| This new group required candidates that had a depth of experience in various categories spanning from soft lines to home decor. Candidates had to have extensive experience and connections in sourcing from the Orient, Asia, South and Central America as well as other markets. While the career growth potential was excellent for these new recruits, there would likely be some residual resistance to the organization as a result of having come out of Chapter 11 so recently. |
| CHALLENGE |
As the client had been trying to make these hires on their own for some time, the timelines for the searches were extremely tight. There was a global meeting taking place in 4 months that required all of the candidates be in place to attend and the searches had to be completed during the summer with holiday challenges on both the corporate and the candidate side. In addition to specialized experience, there were specific multi lingual language requirements for some of the rolls (Spanish, Portuguese etc.) as well as specialized accreditations and educational credentials. As candidates would be sourced from around the world, it would require relocation to Miami or the US mid west.
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| SOLUTION |
| The team at Madison MacArthur worked with the client to establish interview dates prior to starting the search to ensure the executive team would be available. From there, a work back schedule was developed and a long list of target companies was developed - including global sourcing divisions within other retailers as well as international manufacturers and importers. Candidates were recruited from the US, the Orient, Asia, Australia and South and Central America. Extensive phone screens were conducted, the most promising candidates were subsequently interviewed in depth and tested via an on-line profiling tool and final short list candidates were flown to the US offices for personal interviews. |
| CANDIDATE |
| The successful candidate for Director Global Sourcing, Soft Lines had extensive experience in key markets including South and Central America as well as the Caribbean. They had a combination of retail and manufacturing experience, they were fluent in English and Spanish and possessed a good working knowledge of Portuguese. The successful candidate for Director Global Sourcing, Home Decor had over 20 years experience sourcing in all key world markets, had a combination of retail and manufacturing background and was fluently trilingual in English, Spanish and Portuguese. Short listed candidates for the other rolls had similarly impressive credentials. |
| POSTMORTEM |
The first 2 hires were made precisely on schedule and shortlists for the remaining positions had been presented as scheduled and were in the interviewing phase when the project was suddenly put on hold. News broke soon thereafter that our client had acquired another major retail organization. As there would be significant duplication of staff resources with this acquisition, the client would now likely have an excess of talent and would redeploy some of these people into the Global Sourcing Group.
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| RETAIL | Top Of Page |
| SEARCH |
| Manager of Category Analysis and Forecasting |
| ORGANIZATION |
| Specialty Retail Company |
| SITUATION |
| The Human Resources professional from this established client awarded this assignment to Madison MacArthur with the advanced warning that this would not be an easy search. The hiring manager had been attempting to fill this role for over 1 year and had previously used both internal and external resources with no success and was extremely frustrated by the whole process. The hiring manager, while very dynamic and entrepreneurial in style, was also said to be fairly temperamental. |
| ASSESSMENT |
As this was a highly specialized buying group, dealing with very high-end, seasonal and fluctuating products, the ability to analyze, forecast and make educated buying recommendations was critical. This was further challenging as most of the products were unique year-over-year and only available for a "one-time" buy.
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| CHALLENGE |
| The client had provided a comprehensive 12 page job description outlining a number of prerequisites for the role including experience with a number of specialized software tools. The Retail Practice Group at Madison MacArthur conducted extensive research to identify retail organizations that used the specific software tools required and developed a search strategy targeting merchandising groups specializing in fluctuating, seasonal products within retail organizations known for their sophistication in inventory management. A shortlist of 5 candidates was presented to the client within 3 weeks. The client refused to meet all but 2 of the candidates without explanation. The two candidates met with the client and the client reaction was extremely negative - to the point where he wanted to pull the search. |
| SOLUTION |
| The Director in charge of the search was stunned at the response and suggested to HR that the candidates had surpassed all of the criteria outlined in the job description. The Director suggested that there had to be some disconnect in what the client was saying he was looking for and what he really wanted in this individual. The Director called the client and suggested that this must have been happening all along as he had tried several avenues to fill this role to no avail. We requested a half hour of the clients' time to try to get to the root of the problem as we were not prepared to just walk away from the search. Madison MacArthur went to the meeting with a breakdown of the job description listing 12 key skills and experience criteria to meet and the client agreed that this was accurate. In addition, we presented a graph listing each of the candidates presented and comparing their skills/experience to the criteria set out. The client agreed that each of the candidates more than met the criteria and that that was not the issue - there was an elusive 'something" that was lacking for him. Further discussion revealed that the issue was that the client's product category would be considered "elite" and the companies best known for their inventory management tended to be in the mass/discount retail sector and would not understand the nuances of elite specialty products. |
| CANDIDATE |
| Taking the time to get to the core of the problem really paid off. It completely re-focused the search and the client hired the very next candidate that he met. The candidate, although not quite having all of the prerequisite skills and experience, had the "elusive" qualities and experience that were much more important to the client and that were not outlined in the original job description. The candidate had years of experience working with high-end, elite products, had a passion for the product category, had worked with most of the software tools and had intuitive skills in determining key products that cannot be learned. She was also an excellent cultural fit for this client group and comfortable in dealing with passionate individuals. |
| POSTMORTEM |
| The client subsequently commended us for having the tenacity to get to the root of the problem and not give up on the search. At the 3 month update, the client stated that he was very pleased with his hire and that the candidate was having a positive impact on the role and the buying group. The candidate was promoted within the first year to a more senior management role, built a department and continues to be very happy with her position |
| FOOTNOTE |
| Madison MacArthur continues to partner very closely with this client company, working across a number of their divisions. |
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| DATABASE MARKETING | Top Of Page |
| SEARCH |
Database Analytics Department (12 positions)
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| ORGANIZATION |
Loyalty/Direct Marketing Company
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| SITUATION |
| The client organization was in the process of building a new, very sophisticated database analytics capability. The vision was to both provide analytics services in support of company programs and their existing customers but also to develop an organization of a caliber that the analytics department would become a new profit center for the company providing services to potential external customers. |
| ASSESSMENT |
| This new department would require a blend of experience and expertise to deliver against highly complex data analysis requirements. The search timeline was very concentrated and as these were new positions, within a new department, the need for flexibility to changing position descriptions would likely provide additional complexity to the search. |
| CHALLENGE |
| The hiring manager was a brilliant, very lateral thinker that provided a broad strokes outline of the capability requirements for the whole department and an outline of the overall deliverables for the group. Aside from that, the direction from the client was that they had no preconceived notion of where the talent would come from and a directive that the one common trait they wished to see in each candidate was an insatiable curiosity - people that would turn over every stone to find the answers. While no individual would possess all of the qualifications, the team as a whole needed to cover off all of the technical and business requirements. From there, the challenge was in putting the mosaic together - both in terms of the bringing together the requisite qualifications and keeping a close eye to the potential fit between all of the colleagues recruited for the team. |
| SOLUTION |
| The team at Madison MacArthur broke down all of the requirements and grouped them in related categories - where there was a likelihood of finding multiple capabilities within individual candidates. From there we developed a search strategy that covered a wide range of potential sources ranging from consulting companies to academia and embarked on a broad-scale recruitment program. As data analytics expertise was very much in demand at the time the project required out-of-the-box thinking in building this department within the overall budget. Ultimately a series of shortlists was assembled that included PHD's in statistics and econometrics, analysts from numerous and wide ranging businesses, as well as actuaries - due to their predictive modeling expertise. The entire team was hired during the course of four months and the department was fully functional well within the client's timeline. |
| CANDIDATE |
| While the 12 selected candidates represented a very diverse group, the overriding common trait amongst them was the insatiable curiosity the client was looking for. The finalist candidates came from equally diverse backgrounds including consulting, financial analysis, data analysis and academia. Each brought their own unique approach and business and technical expertise to the organization and the entire team possessed the collective capabilities that the department required in order to deliver against its mandate. As well, although traditionally several of the roles would have been considered "backroom", all of the candidates were very capable of assuming a front line role when it was required. |
| POSTMORTEM |
| With 12 hires made in fairly rapid succession and candidates coming from such diverse backgrounds, building cohesion amongst the group was a real challenge. Of the 12 placements, one candidate proved not to be a cultural fit and struggled with the change from academia to a business environment. This candidate was replaced in short order. |
| FOOTNOTE |
| Madison MacArthur continues to be a preferred supplier to this client, making placements across a variety of disciplines. |
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| HUMAN RESOURCES | Top Of Page |
| SEARCH |
| Manager, Human Resources Planning and Development |
| ORGANIZATION |
| A Canadian Essential Services company |
| SITUATION |
| This mid-sized Canadian company's HR department had been well managed by the VP, HR for a very long time. In the course of succession planning for the organization, she was looking for her own 2IC to grow into her position. Further to this, the organization had recently gone public, so they were looking for someone who could bring the required level of sophistication to the role, have enough growth potential to hold out for 6-7 years before moving up to VP, and be able to operate effectively in an environment of flux. |
| ASSESSMENT |
| This newly-created role required a mix of disciplined approach, planning and strategy, with the ability to influence and succeed in an environment of constant change. This individual needed the ability to work with and influence a leadership team who had been working together for many years, many of whom are quite set in their ways. Specific skills were required, including expertise in Compensation & Benefits, Succession Planning, and ideally Organizational Design. An interest in managing union negotiations was required, and experience was ideal. |
| CHALLENGE |
| This assignment was challenging on several levels: 1. we were looking for a very strong, progressive thinker, who would be willing to take on a not-so-progressive organization and industry; 2. we were looking for someone with the professional and personal maturity to work comfortably with the senior executives, and with the union; 3. and we were looking for someone who was strong enough and senior enough to play an active role in effecting organizational change, yet who would have enough career growth left to wait 6-7 years for the VP role. Because of this lead time, the successful candidate also needed to have demonstrated career longevity. The organization has a corporate culture of respect and team work; it was essential that the successful candidate fit in. |
| SOLUTION |
| Madison MacArthur specifically targeted companies, across industries, with progressive HR policies, and a mix of blue and white collar employees. We did not look at other companies in our client's industry, as our client is one of the most progressive organizations in that industry. The key to this search was networking through all of our contacts and candidates to find a person with that unique blend of skill set, at the right point in their career development. |
| CANDIDATE |
| The successful candidate had enjoyed excellent career progression, having spent over 10 years with one organization. His experience had developed through assignments as a generalist, in compensation & benefits, and several years in succession planning for their most senior leadership. With his likeable personality and warm professional manner, he was an excellent cultural fit for the organization. |
| POSTMORTEM |
| Both the client and the candidate were, and are very happy with the match. The candidate has integrated very quickly, earning the respect of his peers and co-workers. He has enthusiastically brought new ideas and discipline to the organization, and is proving to be a very strong and eager 2IC. |
| FOOTNOTE |
| Madison MacArthur was subsequently engaged to build their marketing department, which was a total of 4 searches. |
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| CONSUMER DURABLES MARKETING | Top Of Page |
| SEARCH |
| Director, Purchasing for the Canadian Operation |
| ORGANIZATION |
| International Durable Goods Marketing Company |
| SITUATION |
| This tier 1 marketing company was looking for a Director of Purchasing for their Canadian division. The incumbent had been promoted to General Manager in a wholly owned subsidiary. Another search firm had suggested the President use Madison MacArthur, as this search was in an area in which they were not experienced. |
| ASSESSMENT |
| This role required an experienced purchasing specialist comfortable with working in a fast paced environment as part of a lean senior management team. The individual would be conditioned to negotiate both long-term sourcing contracts and making opportune purchases on the "spot" markets for electronic components and related accessories in all world markets. Improving the professionalism of the purchasing team and creating consensus building relationships with all purchasing managers from all worldwide subsidiaries would also be priorities. This person would work closely with all senior management including the President, to ensure their products and services are delivered to each client on time as contracted. |
| CHALLENGE |
| Many purchasing professionals working in large manufacturing environments are conditioned to working in process-oriented, highly-structured, politically-charged landscapes. Change is normally slow and decisions are difficult to expedite. Purchasing professionals in smaller entrepreneurial firms work in generally unstructured, sometimes chaotic environments. Finding candidates with the appropriate formal education and career experience gained in both the smaller and larger venues with world class firms was the challenge. The appropriate candidates must also have the potential to be promoted to more senior management roles in the future. |
| SOLUTION |
| Madison MacArthur's Operations Specialty Practice Team implemented a strategy to specifically target successful companies in the manufacturing-assembly sectors that were primarily engaged in high-tech or related product categories. These firms would be leaders in J.I.T. processes, and have excellent reputations in the marketplace. |
| CANDIDATE |
| The successful candidate had all the requisite skills. He had started an entrepreneurial venture prior to graduation that was extremely successful and profitable. He then gained a broad knowledge base and extensive experience in purchasing analysis, strategies, planning, negotiating, cost management, project management, joint ventures and strategic alliances at three firms that were widely respected as leaders in their fields. |
| POSTMORTEM |
| At the three month update, the client stated that the candidate was a great fit. Since that time, the candidate has been given additional responsibilities for the purchasing activities in the United States as well. The candidate has also been selected to Chair the Firm's International Purchasing Management Executive Committee. |
| FOOTNOTE |
| During the first meeting with the company President, it was very clear that in general, he was wary of search firms and obviously had some bad experiences in the past. Two months after the successful candidate was hired, the Director of Human Resources informed us that they were delighted with the new hire, found our process to be the most responsive and professional they had ever experienced and that although they did not have cause to use external resources frequently, Madison MacArthur would be their search firm of choice. |
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| TECHNOLOGY | Top Of Page |
| SEARCH |
| Director, Telecommunication Products |
| ORGANIZATION |
| Internet Start-up Company |
| SITUATION |
| This US based Internet company was building a marketing infrastructure to support their service launch in the Canadian marketplace. The client had been referred to Madison MacArthur by a business colleague and was looking for a search partner that would be capable of sourcing a broad range of senior management staff. It was also critical that the search partner have the resources and relationships with high caliber candidates to sell them on an opportunity with an unknown start-up. |
| ASSESSMENT |
This venture represented a relatively new concept involving essential yet low interest services. The business model was based on aggregating a suite of essential services including telecommunications, gas, electricity etc., creating a buying group and selling these services at discounted rates to their membership. The concept was consumer focused and, aside from direct to consumer sales, builders and property managers and associations and affinity groups were targeted in order to bring on large numbers of customers quickly.
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| CHALLENGE |
| As telecommunication services were to be the lead products for the fast approaching Canadian launch, the candidate would have to have intimate knowledge of competitive service offerings and develop superior product offerings for the launch. They would have to be adept at building and presenting business cases for potential service wholesalers/providers and have a very broad knowledge of voice, data, and land and mobile products in anticipation of future product offerings. |
| SOLUTION |
| Within 3 weeks, a slate of 4 candidates was presented to the Canadian General Manager and subsequently interviewed by the US CEO as well. As the US was in the process of conducting a parallel search and the Canadian candidates were considered to be significantly superior to the US sourced candidates, the client elected to hire the two lead Canadian candidates. The product portfolio was split between voice and data products and each of the candidates was given North American responsibility rather than strictly Canadian. |
| CANDIDATE |
| Both selected candidates had broad based backgrounds in telecommunications having worked in product development and marketing for voice and data products as well as land and mobile products. Both candidates also had strong combinations of technical expertise and marketing experience. |
| POSTMORTEM |
| Madison MacArthur's performance on this initial search led to being awarded the searches for a Director of Business Development, Director of Marketing, Director of Energy Products, Director of Sales and Director of Customer Service - all of which were recruited and in place within a 3 month time span. As well, the caliber of the Canadian candidates was consistently so high that they immediately became involved in key activities with the US parent company. |
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| INSTITUTIONAL HEALTHCARE | Top Of Page |
| SEARCH |
| Chief Engineer |
| ORGANIZATION |
| Regional Hospital Group |
| SITUATION |
| This new client to Madison MacArthur was in need of a Chief Engineer for their primary hospital. We were awarded this assignment despite the fact that it would be our first search in the hospital sector and our first search in the engineering field. The V.P. Corporate Services and Director, Human Resources were comfortable in awarding Madison MacArthur this search due to our diligent search process and due to our track record in successfully placing candidates in new industries. |
| ASSESSMENT |
| It was required that the successful candidate be a certified engineer, that they have extensive facilities management expertise and that they had hospital management experience. The Client previously had a series of contractors filling the requirements of this role. Consequently they were overpaying for this function and had no continuity of service. As they were also about to embark on a significant installation/upgrade, it became critical that they fill the role with a permanent hire. |
| CHALLENGE |
Along with overall compensation budget constraints, which ultimately restricted the search to outside of the GTA, the role required the candidate relocate to northern Ontario. Budget constraints also impacted on only having a minimal relocation allowance as part of the package. We went into this search knowing that the talent pool for this type of position was extremely limited and that it would require extensive research in a new area of search for us. In addition to the challenges of relocation, specifications and compensation that the search presented, the need to get the candidate onboard in fairly short order was an additional factor.
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| SOLUTION |
| We knew that we would need to cast a fairly wide net to ensure a strong shortlist. Research identified every Chief Engineer in every regional hospital in Ontario. To ensure that the opportunity was appropriately showcased, potential candidates were contacted by the Director managing the search and initial phone screens were conducted. These initial discussions led to the identification of a strong pool of potential candidates that were subsequently interviewed in depth as well as being invited to complete a psychometric profile. |
| CANDIDATE |
| A shortlist of candidates was presented within the agreed upon timeline. All of the candidates met the client specifications in experience and credentials. As each of the candidates hailed from different regional hospitals, they were acclimatized to living in a small center and all were open to relocation. Upon meeting the candidates, the client suggested that any one of them would be capable of filling the role and that each would fit into the organization well. The personal dynamics of two of the candidates led to their being the top considerations - with one being seen as only a slightly better cultural fit. This provided the client with the luxury of making an offer to the lead candidate with the knowledge that if they could not come to terms for any reason, they had an excellent fallback candidate. |
| POSTMORTEM |
| The preferred candidate did accept the position and was able to fit into the organization effortlessly. He was successful in bringing continuity and structure to the function and managed effectively through the installation/upgrade. He has also found the new community to be an excellent fit for his lifestyle. He continues to add value to our client organization. The client was delighted with the caliber of candidates presented and the thoroughness of our process. |
| FOOTNOTE |
| The Healthcare Team at Madison Macarthur have since built an impressive client list of hospital groups and healthcare facilities - making senior management placements. This client has continued to present us with challenging, specialized searches that are consistently "first of" assignments for us. We have been equally successful in filling each one of them and count this hospital group as one of our key clients in the sector. |
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| MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS | Top Of Page |
| SEARCH |
| Director of Client Services |
| ORGANIZATION |
| Marketing Services Company |
| SITUATION |
| This long standing client who was well established in a number of marketing services disciplines wanted to develop a start-up Direct Marketing Agency to compliment their service offering. While exceptionally well known and respected for their existing businesses, the client had no track record or credentials in direct marketing. |
| ASSESSMENT |
| Madison MacArthur's Marketing Practice Team conducted extensive research in the direct marketing industry. This included not only identifying the top Client Services talent in the market but also assessing what the priorities were in delivering effective direct marketing services. It became evident that prior to hiring someone to manage prospective clients, the agency would need creative product to attract these potential clients. |
| CHALLENGE |
| The first challenge was getting client buy-in to re-focus the assignment from a search for a Director of Client Service to a search for a team of Co-Creative Directors. The second challenge was to attract top creative talent to a start-up agency affiliated with a company that had no presence in the direct marketing field and one that was not aligned to an Advertising Agency. |
| SOLUTION |
| As effective direct marketing is a sophisticated blend of creative and science, Madison MacArthur adopted a strategy of identifying and attracting a top creative team that also had strong strategic skills and were savvy in business development, in order to immediately build credibility for this new start-up. To make such a move attractive to the premier candidates, the Director managing the search worked closely with the client in structuring a package that included performance bonuses based on business acquisition and an equity stake in the new company. |
| CANDIDATE |
| In this instance there were two candidates - the top direct marketing creative team in the market. Both of these candidates had a track record of developing effective and award winning direct marketing campaigns. Both had strong strategic thinking skills in addition to their creative prowess and both were very comfortable in leading new business activities - a mix of skills difficult to find in creative people. |
| POSTMORTEM |
| At the three month update, the President was very pleased with her new business partners and the Company was well on its way to developing a substantial client base. Three years later, the company is one of the most respected Direct Marketing Agencies in the marketplace with an enviable client roster. The Co-Creative Directors have been promoted to overseeing creative services across all disciplines and divisions of what is now the largest integrated marketing services company in Canada. Subsequent to these hires, Madison MacArthur filled the Director of Client Services role as well as several other key positions within this new division. |
| FOOTNOTE |
Madison MacArthur continues to partner effectively with this client company and it's affiliates.
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| MEDICAL EQUIPMENT | Top Of Page |
| SEARCH |
| Vice President, Sales & Marketing |
| ORGANIZATION |
| Medical Devices Company |
| SITUATION |
| Engaged by the CEO and VP/HR of Corporate for this multi business global company, for whom we had conducted numerous searches across the various divisions of the company, we were advised that the search required complete confidentiality as there was an incumbent in place. Madison MacArthur was further advised that this would be a politically sensitive search and that if we did not deliver against this assignment, or if word got out, all of their business would be at risk for us. |
| ASSESSMENT |
| As this was a highly specialized business and the highest growth area for this global company a stand-out candidate was an absolute must. Not only was our client's neck on the line with this hire, but so too was the relationship between the client and Madison MacArthur. |
| CHALLENGE |
| As the company had recently gone through acquisitions and other significant change, the candidate needed to possess exceptional leadership capabilities to both galvanize the organization and provide the vision to take the business to the next level of growth. As well, the candidate needed to have the presence and credibility to immediately win the confidence of the US management to whom they were answerable. This was particularly critical as replacing the incumbent, who had been appointed by the US management, was not a popular decision. In addition, we were working with a very tight compensation budget. |
| SOLUTION |
| The initial phase of the search resulted in presentation of a slate of short-listed candidates that included the role peers from both the major competitors as well as from other related industries. One candidate, from the most aggressive competitor, required numerous approaches to bring them to the table - especially as they were very content and we could not share with them who the company was. Due to the confidential nature of the search, candidates were ranked and the client met with the top three candidates including those from their largest competitors. Madison MacArthur developed, and had candidates sign, a confidentiality agreement and provided candidates the company information immediately prior to their meetings. Changes in the North American business shortly thereafter resulted in the search being put on hold for a number of months. When circumstances changed again and the search recommenced, further discussion with the client led to the compensation budget being revisited and subsequently significantly increased. This came about as a result of the initial interviews where the client indicated that while the three candidates that they met with all possessed the experience and appropriate track records, the political landscape required that they hire an even more seasoned executive and now the pressure was on to fill the role very quickly. The managing consultant indicated that during the course of the initial search activity, a number of excellent candidates had been sourced that had not been presented due to significantly higher compensation requirements. These candidates were immediately revisited and three were presented as a new slate within a couple of weeks. Once again, the candidates were ranked in order of strength and potential fit and, again due to confidentiality issues, only one candidate was met in this second round of interviewing. This candidate was fast tracked through a series of interviews and hired in very short order. The accelerated process required careful management of the candidate as they had not been in the market, had been with their organization for much of their career and had excellent upside career progression opportunities within their company as well. |
| CANDIDATE |
| This truly stand-out candidate brought to the organization exceptional leadership skills and the presence and credibility to immediately make a highly positive impression on the US management. The candidate had an excellent track record of managing through change, focusing and pulling organizations together, had managed equally complex and large businesses and achieved continuous double digit growth in highly competitive business environments. |
| POSTMORTEM |
| The candidate had an immediate, positive impact on the organization - on both sides of the border. In Canada, he was able to quickly assess immediate needs and focused on pulling the disparate internal groups together thereby regaining momentum while also developing a new long term strategy to continue to grow the business. With US management, he was successful in winning their confidence and support and to get them to recognize that Canada was a unique market requiring a distinctively different approach. Within 9 months of joining the company, the division was at 300% of operating plan and outperforming the US business. |
| FOOTNOTE |
| Madison MacArthur was awarded two new searches, for two different divisions shortly thereafter and continues to enjoy an excellent relationship with the client. |
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| STRATEGIC INITIATIVES - MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS | Top Of Page |
| SEARCH |
| Vice President, Corporate Strategic Initiatives |
| ORGANIZATION |
| Energy Company |
| SITUATION |
While conducting research for a major group of search assignments (building a marketing department for an electricity company), the Director managing this search networked with an Executive Vice President at an energy company who was impressed with the professionalism and level of industry knowledge demonstrated by our representative. Subsequently when he had a need, he awarded the assignment to Madison MacArthur.
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| ASSESSMENT |
| As the energy industry is still in the midst of deregulation, the landscape is rapidly changing with new competitors, regulatory changes, diversification and aggregation impacting on how these companies conduct business and position themselves for the future. In executing against a new corporate strategy, our candidate would be responsible for directing the execution of strategic initiatives including mergers, divestitures, acquisitions, partnerships and alliances- on an international level. |
| CHALLENGE |
| Finding individuals with extensive knowledge of the power generation business, an understanding of market issues and sufficient understanding of various business disciplines (e.g., economics, finance, accounting) to assess potential opportunities and work through critical business issues was the challenge. In addition, the ideal candidate would have had experience within an industry that had gone through deregulation and would have led merger and acquisition activities for projects in excess of a billion dollars. |
| SOLUTION |
| The Finance Practice Team at Madison MacArthur developed a strategy that involved researching key international markets where electric power had recently gone through deregulation and where, as a result, significant merger and acquisition activities had taken place. These markets included the United States, Australia and Britain. A long list of potential candidates was identified and extensive phone interviews were undertaken resulting in a short list of candidates that were flown in for interviews from Dallas, Chicago, Maryland, Los Angeles and Calgary and subsequently presented to the client. |
| CANDIDATE |
| The successful candidate had an excellent educational base with a combination of degrees in business, finance, and engineering. He had led international mergers and acquisitions valued in the billions of dollars for American and Canadian companies. He had extensive experience in developing complex strategic partnerships and alliances and had moved from the previously deregulated gas industry into the electricity industry. |
| FOOTNOTE |
One year later, one major deal has been successfully completed and the ground work has been put into place to execute additional deals as the deregulation continues to evolve. Madison MacArthur has subsequently placed a Director of Corporate Strategic Planning into the same group.
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| FINANCIAL SERVICES - CREDIT CARD MARKETING | Top Of Page |
| SEARCH |
| Relationship Manager Credit Card Portfolio |
| ORGANIZATION |
| Financial/Credit Card Marketing & Consulting Services |
| SITUATION |
| The consulting company, based in Atlanta, Georgia had run into difficulties with their direct marketing campaigns for the credit card portfolio of one of Canada's leading banks. Inexperienced in the Canadian market, they had repeatedly sent US personnel to Canada for brief assignments to try to comprehend the basic market differences. Discouraged, and with the prospect of losing a major contract, the company recognized the need for a relationship manager to facilitate communications in both directions. |
| ASSESSMENT |
This was the client's first major foray into the Canadian market. Eager to grow their presence in the Canadian market, they soon came to the realization that US principles cannot be transplanted to the Canadian environment without modifications customized to our particular culture.
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| CHALLENGE |
| The client was located in Atlanta, Georgia, and the Canadian Bank was pressuring them to have a relationship manager in place within a month's time. The role required someone with extensive experience on both sides of the border and someone comfortable and savvy enough to work on-site with the client they were managing. The client also felt that the candidate selected should be prepared to transfer to the US should the Canadian contract not be renewed. |
| SOLUTION |
| Using our extensive database and referral network, within 2 weeks Madison MacArthur presented a short list of 5 well-qualified candidates, including one just completing his MBA in France. Interviews took place in Atlanta the following week, with all arrangements finalized by our company. |
| CANDIDATE |
| The chosen candidate was an exceptional individual with whom Madison MacArthur had developed a relationship early in his career. We knew that he was about to complete his MBA in Europe and that he possessed all the skills and requirements of the job. He had strong credit card experience in both Canada and the US and had previously managed the credit card portfolios of several leading Canadian banks. The candidate also possessed the people skills and flair to act as liaison between the two organizations. |
| POSTMORTEM |
| At the 3 month update, our client and their respective client are enjoying a fruitful relationship, with both parties attributing the ensuing success of marketing campaigns to the new relationship manager. Armed with this strengthened rapport, the client is expanding Canadian operations. |
| FOOTNOTE |
| At time of writing, the candidate has been in the role for 4 months. The client has indicated that as they develop their expansion plans in Canada, Madison MacArthur will be closely involved in this initiative. |
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| CONSUMER GOODS | Top Of Page |
| SEARCH |
| Vice President, Marketing |
| ORGANIZATION |
| Global Consumer Products Company |
| SITUATION |
The General Manager of one of the Canadian Divisions of this client company had initially utilized the services of another search firm to work on his assignment for a VP of Marketing without success. As a result, when Madison MacArthur was recommended by the VP of HR to execute the search, we were advised that it would require significant effort to win the confidence of the hiring manager. We were successful in doing so enough to win the assignment and now the challenge became one of demonstrating a completely different search experience to the client.
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| ASSESSMENT |
| While an excellent company and opportunity, the product category would likely have somewhat limited appeal. The product had very wide distribution, some of which was not common for many consumer goods, and it was required that the candidate have experience with all of the channels. Being a relatively mature business with rather tight margins required the candidate have very strong financial acumen as well. |
| CHALLENGE |
| The bar for the hire was very high as the likelihood of the successful candidate to be promoted to replace his boss, within a few years at maximum, was high. In discussing the optimal fit for the role, the client described a candidate profile that complimented, rather than replicated his own skills and experience. However, considering the promotion timeline it became evident that the candidate would both need to compliment and replicate the client's skills and experience. |
| SOLUTION |
| In order to satisfy all of the client's candidate criteria, we concentrated on identifying consumer goods companies that had similar broad distribution. The team at Madison MacArthur made field trips to some of the more non traditional channels to identify additional product categories that may take a similarly disciplined approach to marketing their products as a tier 1 marketing company would. These efforts produced a surprisingly large list of companies for us to target. In showcasing the opportunity effectively, we were successful in drawing significant candidate interest - in what would be considered a low interest category - and were able to pull together an impressive candidate shortlist. |
| CANDIDATE |
| The successful candidate possessed an unusual combination of skills and experience. Having started his career in finance as a CA within the consumer goods industry, he eventually completed his MBA and moved into marketing. While his career had all been within tier 1 companies, he had consistently worked on core, mature, unglamorous product categories that required careful management to continue to grow the business. As a result, the category was not an issue - as the candidate found it more interesting and challenging to manage mature businesses. The candidate had a similar pedigree to the hiring manager as well as the financial skills and channel experience that the role required. |
| POSTMORTEM |
| The hiring manager, who had been highly skeptical when we started working with him, demonstrated his satisfaction by immediately awarding us another search within his division and referring us to another division for a similar assignment. The candidate was promoted to the General Manager role of the division within two years and, within three years, was promoted to the role of Global CMO for all of their divisions and made the move to the US. |
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| CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS | Top Of Page |
| SEARCH |
| Senior Manager, Media & Public Relations (3 assignments) |
| ORGANIZATION |
| Tier 1 Bank |
| SITUATION |
| The client was in the process of building up their Corporate Communications department to manage media and public perception during a time of significant upheaval. The client had initially given out one of the searches to another firm but pulled it very quickly. This was as a result of the firm putting a junior researcher on the assignment who promptly called members of the financial press for potential candidate leads. The fallout was significant as, at the time, part of the upheaval was due to broad scale layoffs within the bank. The need for absolute confidentiality was paramount in engaging our services for these searches. |
| ASSESSMENT |
| While parallel roles, each assignment required very different and specialized industry experience as each would be working with different lines of business. As the fallout from the initial search took a bit of time to overcome, the timelines for getting the new people on board was very tight. Timing became even tighter when considering the rigorous client interview process and the searches taking place in the summer with overlapping holidays to contend with. |
| CHALLENGE |
| The assignment required sourcing candidates with specialized experience in commercial and investment banking as well as technology - each requiring a separate search strategy due to the depth of skills and experience desired in their respective areas. The confidential nature of the search would also provide a challenge especially for one of the positions where a financial journalist was the preferred profile. In each case, the candidates would require both superb writing skills and the personal dynamics to function as the official spokesperson for their client group. |
| SOLUTION |
| Working with the client, hiring priorities were developed and interview times were blocked off with the various stakeholders at the beginning of the search process. The team at Madison MacArthur developed a work back schedule in order to meet the tight timelines. Target lists were developed for each assignment and scripts showcasing the opportunities without divulging the client were developed as well. As per our usual practice, one of our senior Directors made all of the candidate calls to ensure that the positions were appropriately showcased and no potential candidate opportunities were missed as there would be no time to revisit them. Initial potential candidate shortlists for each position were developed comprising of four to five candidates per assignment. These candidates were invited back in to meet with other senior Directors at Madison MacArthur for an additional screen and the top two for each assignment were presented to minimize compromising confidentiality. Only the two candidates selected for each of the positions were informed of the identity of the company after signing a confidentiality agreement. Candidates from each of these abbreviated shortlists were hired in very short order and the searches completed within the client timeline. |
| CANDIDATE |
| Each of the candidates brought a depth of experience in their respective areas and was able to hit the ground running. Two of the three candidates found the opportunities sufficiently compelling to make lateral moves resulting in a level of experience beyond the client's expectations. Each of the candidates demonstrated exceptional writing skills and each was an accomplished and comfortable spokesperson with extensive media contacts. |
| POSTMORTEM |
| The hiring manager was extremely pleased with the process and the level of confidentiality that was maintained - especially after the earlier fiasco. Due to the level of candidates selected, integrating them into the client company was painless and required minimal ramp-up time. The candidates were able to add value to their respective client groups almost immediately which reflected well on the Corporate Communications department. |
| FOOTNOTE |
| The HR Business Partner involved in these searches commented that this was likely the most seamless recruitment experience he had ever had with an external firm. |
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| SALES MANAGEMENT | Top Of Page |
| SEARCH |
| National Sales Director |
| ORGANIZATION |
| Consumer Goods Marketing Company |
| SITUATION |
| This diverse consumer goods company, an established client of Madison MacArthur, was a consistent market leader in their many categories. They were looking for a National Sales Director for their flagship division. This division, which had enjoyed a long history of record breaking sales year-over-year, had for the first time, experienced a significant sales decline and was not tracking well for the current year. |
| ASSESSMENT |
| This role required a candidate that would be capable of quickly establishing rapport, confidence and credibility with existing customers as well as the ability to open up new channels of distribution in a very mature industry. Additionally, the candidate would require the skills to re-motivate a long term, somewhat complacent sales team. |
| CHALLENGE |
| In addition to the initial sales and staff challenges that the candidate would need to address, the culture of the Canadian office was significantly more laid back than that of their US parent and the candidate would have to bridge those two styles. Early recruits that the client sourced directly did not make it through the final interviews with the US head office. |
| SOLUTION |
Madison MacArthur's Sales Practice team implemented a strategy of focusing primarily on companies with a similar North American reporting structure and identifying candidates within those companies that had established relationships with the same customer base. As well, the search was focused upon identifying candidates that had a track record of leading sales "turn-arounds" and developing new channels of distribution. A slate of 4 candidates, that more than met all of the criteria, was presented along with an additional candidate that, while meeting most of the criteria, did not have the tenure that the client had requested. Although the client was somewhat concerned about the lack of tenure, they agreed to meet this candidate upon our strong recommendation.
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| CANDIDATE |
| This additional candidate was ultimately the one selected. While not having the requisite tenure, she had an amazing track record of building businesses and building teams - well beyond what you would expect from her years of experience. She brought to the table well established relationships with the same customer base and had the personal dynamics and business savvy to impress the US management without overwhelming the Canadian team. |
| POSTMORTEM |
| Despite sales' tracking in the negative mid way through the year, when she joined the organization, the candidate was able to drive sales into the positive by years' end. She led by example and was able to re-charge the existing sales team and to challenge the whole team to develop additional channels of distribution. In her second year, the company sales had recouped to the point where they were once again realizing double digit growth. This early success on her part resulted in her assuming the responsibilities of general management for the division reporting directly to the US |
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