Talent Hunters

If you're staffing for an industry that has a higher demand for talent than the supply available, you're seeking people who aren't actively looking. In many ways, connecting the company to the candidate is like putting together a jigsaw puzzle. It takes more than just knowing a guy or gal to get someone hired.

You have to create the right combination and make sure the pieces fit together seamlessly. Workforce trends come and go, technology changes all the time, but the secret to success remains the same.

There'll always be a solid need for a good dependable recruiter in a niche industry who can identify candidates that are already working. How do you do this job so well you can outlast downturns and shifts?

How do you go above and beyond to match candidates to clients? How do you find talent for an industry that has a talent shortage? In this episode, I'm joined by President and GM at Management Recruiters of Davidson, Joe Bubenzer. He talks about what it takes to thrive for decades, and the one thing that will never become obsolete in recruiting.

On the hunt for talent to drive your business to big goals and big growth?

Connect with an MRINetwork office today.

We have a network of 250 search firms globally, many of whom have years or decades of experience in the industries they serve before transitioning into talent advisory. They bring deep networks and industry connections.

For more details, visit MRINetwork.com and click "Employers."

Guest Bio

Joe Bubenzer has over 25 years of Industrial Management and Recruiting experience. Joe served executive positions such as President – Bertram Yacht and Divisional President & VP Sales / Engineering – Dura Automotive along with various Senior Manufacturing and Sales positions for General Motors and ITT before founding Management Recruiters of Davidson. Joe's professional approach is to match the best candidates with specific industry needs. For more information, head to https://mrdavidson.com/ and connect with Joe on LinkedIn.

Meet the Host

Vince Holt is the founder and CEO of Management Recruiters of Mercer Island. With 35+ years industry experience, he is the only MRINetwork team member to win CSAM of the Year, Person of the Year and Lifetime Achievement Awards. In addition to spending time with his wife, children and grandchildren, Vince has raced motorcycles for over 50 years, winning 5 National Championships.

If you've been in the recruiting game for 4 decades, you would have had a front row seat to the changes technology has brought to the industry. You also would have seen what technology has never been able to change.

For many years, the only way we could find talent was by asking other people. Now thanks to job boards and LinkedIn, finding talent is as simple as opening a webpage. Recruiting used to be super local, now we can make placements in other cities and even continents.

The amount of information that is out there now is far superior to what we used to have, but one thing has remained the same. That's the phone and how important it is to our jobs.

What should recruiters continue to focus on? What is it like handing your office over to your superstar? In this episode, I'm joined by the owner of MRI Dayton, Jeff Noble.

Jeff talks about his full-circle recruiting journey, taking over an office and now handing that office over to a successor. He shares how he feels about retirement and the secret to success in this business.

On the hunt for talent to drive your business to big goals and big growth?

Connect with an MRINetwork office today.

We have a network of 250 search firms globally, many of whom have years or decades of experience in the industries they serve before transitioning into talent advisory. They bring deep networks and industry connections.

For more details, visit MRINetwork.com and click "Employers."

Guest Bio

Jeff is the owner of MRI Dayton, a global network of impact search professionals. MRI of Dayton is the manufacturing talent management firm dedicated to a more nuanced and collaborative approach to executive search. Their focus on manufacturing provides their consultants unique insights into the fast-paced world of production. They work closely with their clients, ensuring that every candidate they present will give their businesses a greater competitive edge. MRI of Dayton assists manufacturing companies all over the world in the identification and recruitment of impact players. Their areas of expertise include automotive, medical device and consumer products industries. For more information, go to www.mridayton.com and connect with Jeff on LinkedIn.

Meet the Host

Vince Holt is the founder and CEO of Management Recruiters of Mercer Island. With 35+ years industry experience, he is the only MRINetwork team member to win CSAM of the Year, Person of the Year and Lifetime Achievement Awards. In addition to spending time with his wife, children and grandchildren, Vince has raced motorcycles for over 50 years, winning 5 National Championships.

In the wealth management world where money is always in motion, trust is the true currency of success. Behind every hire is a liquidity event that needs to be handled well. If you're helping companies find talent, it's not just about introducing people to people.

You have to build relationships and facilitate a process of credibility and trust in order to stand out. When you do it right, those relationships will create more strong relationships and ultimately, referrals.

How do you build a proactive wealth management business? How do you stand out to candidates? What's it like going from working a desk to leading an office?

In this episode, I'm joined by Hunter Judson Jr., Managing Partner and Wealth Management Practice Leader at The Judson Group. He talks about why he's passionate about his dig and what it takes to have real value in it.

On the hunt for talent to drive your business to big goals and big growth?

Connect with an MRINetwork office today.

We have a network of 250 search firms globally, many of whom have years or decades of experience in the industries they serve before transitioning into talent advisory. They bring deep networks and industry connections.

For more details, visit MRINetwork.com and click "Employers."

Guest Bio

Hunter Judson Jr. is the Managing Partner and Wealth Management Practice Leader at The Judson Group. The Judson Group is a search firm that specializes in wealth management and banking. Since 2002, they have partnered with their clients and candidates to help build high-performing teams with top talent. The Judson Group uses their client-centric approach, direct industry experience, and intimate market knowledge to bring their clients comprehensive talent solutions in an efficient and timely manner. For more information go to https://www.judson-group.com/ or connect with Hunter on LinkedIn.

Meet the Host

Vince Holt is the founder and CEO of Management Recruiters of Mercer Island. With 35+ years industry experience, he is the only MRINetwork team member to win CSAM of the Year, Person of the Year and Lifetime Achievement Awards. In addition to spending time with his wife, children and grandchildren, Vince has raced motorcycles for over 50 years, winning 5 National Championships.

Recruiting might not be a career many people set out to get into, but once the bug bites you, there's no going back. This is very true for Lauren Kesterson. She grew up in a recruiting family, heard all the stories at the dinner table, and though she initially didn't think she'd take the same path, she leads the family office today!

It all started with putting note cards in alphabetical order for the office, and training the office on Microsoft. That's how a love for the industry was ignited. Today, she leads an office with an average tenure of 15 years, ranked 17th. Their secret: subject matter expertise, a commitment to the industry, and instead of feeling threatened by tech, they use it to make their process better.

Why do so many people get bitten by the recruiting bug? How is Lauren using AI instead of fearing that it will run her out of business? In this episode, the president of Management Recruiters of Raleigh talks about her journey in the industry business, and what makes this job such a gift.

On the hunt for talent to drive your business to big goals and big growth?

Connect with an MRINetwork office today.

We have a network of 250 search firms globally, many of whom have years or decades of experience in the industries they serve before transitioning into talent advisory. They bring deep networks and industry connections.

For more details, visit MRINetwork.com and click "Employers."

Guest Bio

Lauren Kesterson is the President of Management Recruiters of Raleigh. Management Recruiters of Raleigh has been a leader and innovator in recruitment for more than 30 years. They've learned a thing or two about pinpointing those people who can become the heart of your business – when and where you need them. Management Recruiters of Raleigh's approach is a customized combination of our streamlined methodology and the knowledge of our industry experts designed specifically to help you target impact players. Go to https://www.mriraleigh.com/ and connect with Lauren on LinkedIn.

Meet the Host

Vince Holt is the founder and CEO of Management Recruiters of Mercer Island. With 35+ years industry experience, he is the only MRINetwork team member to win CSAM of the Year, Person of the Year and Lifetime Achievement Awards. In addition to spending time with his wife, children and grandchildren, Vince has raced motorcycles for over 50 years, winning 5 National Championships.

When your staffing strategy extends beyond singular placements, it truly becomes a service and an ongoing client relationship. You're not just a recruiter, you become a talent coach and consultant, and that has to be reflected in the way you engage with clients.

You have to develop a package that provides continuous value and solves different problems, not just in talent acquisition, but in business development. When you're charging a monthly service fee instead of a placement fee, you have to consider what makes your "subscription" stand out.

Andrea Hoffer and the aha! Talent Experts have developed a process and found a beautiful niche in this space. What are the things they do differently?

How do they build a bond with clients and candidates? In this episode, she shares her unique recruiting process, the solutions she provides and what makes RPO different from executive recruiting.

On the hunt for talent to drive your business to big goals and big growth?

Connect with an MRINetwork office today.

We have a network of 250 search firms globally, many of whom have years or decades of experience in the industries they serve before transitioning into talent advisory. They bring deep networks and industry connections.

For more details, visit MRINetwork.com and click "Employers."

Guest Bio

Andrea Hoffer is the founder & CEO of aha! Talent Experts. They empower companies to turn the art of hiring into a predictable, high-impact business process. As pioneers of the Hire Higher method, the aha! Talent Experts team stands at the forefront of redefining talent acquisition. As the driving force of aha! Talent Experts, Andrea has seen firsthand the challenges CEOs and hiring leaders face in today's competitive landscape as both a business owner and Talent Acquisition professional. With over three decades of experience in recruiting and hiring, she has a proven track record of delivering tailored solutions for talent acquisition and engagement, leveraging AI-driven insights and strategies. For more information, go to https://ahatalentexperts.com/ and connect with Andrea on LinkedIn.

Meet the Host

Vince Holt is the founder and CEO of Management Recruiters of Mercer Island. With 35+ years industry experience, he is the only MRINetwork team member to win CSAM of the Year, Person of the Year and Lifetime Achievement Awards. In addition to spending time with his wife, children and grandchildren, Vince has raced motorcycles for over 50 years, winning 5 National Championships.

Over the last 5 years, the recruiting industry has undergone change at an accelerated pace. Between covid, advancements in technology and AI, there's a lot for recruiters to keep up with. In order to stay relevant, differentiation is non-negotiable.

We have to find a way to cut through the noise and move with the changes. One particular area where this is evident is in our contact strategy. There was a time where a phone call guaranteed a contact, now it's much harder to reach people.

That means we have to shift our success metrics away from call volume to actual conversations - whether that's over the phone or on LinkedIn. How can we still ensure we meet our goals in this changing landscape? Can we use AI to get better at our jobs?

In this episode, owner of Top-Tier Talent Advisors, Mike Santiago talks about his business, his differentiation strategy and advice for recruiting newcomers.

On the hunt for talent to drive your business to big goals and big growth?

Connect with an MRINetwork office today.

We have a network of 250 search firms globally, many of whom have years or decades of experience in the industries they serve before transitioning into talent advisory. They bring deep networks and industry connections.

For more details, visit MRINetwork.com and click "Employers."

Guest Bio

Mike is the owner of Top-Tier Talent Advisors. He brings over 30 years of experience in Senior Management Roles in Operations, Engineering, Product Management, Marketing and Sales. Mike has built Engineering, Marketing and Operations teams for major companies. As a former Vice President and General Manager of a $200 million-dollar division of an international publicly held company, he managed the entire operation. Mike has successfully guided Top Tier Talent Advisors to 23 straight profitable years.

Since 2001, Top-Tier Talent Advisors has been one of the Top Manufacturing Recruiting and Executive Search firms in the Manufacturing Industry. Their clients represent manufacturers from the multiple industry segments of the Consumer Packaged Goods, Food and Industrial Manufacturing Industry. For more information, visit https://toptiertalent.us/ and connect with Mike on LinkedIn.

Meet the Host

Vince Holt is the founder and CEO of Management Recruiters of Mercer Island. With 35+ years industry experience, he is the only MRINetwork team member to win CSAM of the Year, Person of the Year and Lifetime Achievement Awards. In addition to spending time with his wife, children and grandchildren, Vince has raced motorcycles for over 50 years, winning 5 National Championships.

In a market that's constantly evolving, recruiting with a "set menu" approach doesn't work. Instead of doing the same thing over and over, we have to constantly create new solutions for clients and candidates.

What if you could treat recruiting like an adventure? What if you went into the market every single year with a new recruiting product, tailored to the exact demands of your dig at that time?

That's the approach Source Recruitment Group takes. They are constantly innovating and evolving how they staff, which keeps them ahead of the curve. The basics of good recruiting don't have to change, but how we connect with candidates has to. It's harder to reach people on the phone, so we have to take a marketing approach and be innovative about how we get in front of and in touch with them.

What are some of the innovative recruiting products they are developing? How did our guest rebuild after a rough time in business? In this episode, CEO and founding partner of SRG, Stephen Sweeney shares the story behind the success of his trans-Atlantic recruiting operation and his unique staffing mindset.

Guest Bio

Stephen is the CEO and Founding Partner of Source Recruitment Group, a company that specializes in staffing Technicians and Operational professionals for the automotive and RV dealership, car rental, driving, fleet, and marine and pharmaceutical sectors.

They are focused on a niche market, identifying candidates who don't tend to respond to advertising, designed for decision-makers with urgent and critical needs. SRG is aimed at companies WHO CAN'T FIND TOP PERFORMING TALENT on their own. They started by sourcing, attracting, resourcing, and relocating top branded technicians in the South East and have now grown to have clients in over 35 states in the US. Connect with Stephen on LinkedIn.

Meet the Host

Vince Holt is the founder and CEO of Management Recruiters of Mercer Island. With 35+ years industry experience, he is the only MRINetwork team member to win CSAM of the Year, Person of the Year and Lifetime Achievement Awards. In addition to spending time with his wife, children and grandchildren, Vince has raced motorcycles for over 50 years, winning 5 National Championships.

Just like many industries, recruiting isn't immune to market highs and lows. Every dig is going to have its dips, and that can affect both demand and supply.

When there's uncertainty in the economy, no one wants to rock the boat. Candidates want to stay where they are, and companies decide to cut back on hiring.

Over the last year, tech has found itself in this position. Between layoffs and concerns around AI, there has been a dip in demand, and it can leave a recruiter in a tough spot. How do recruiters deal with these pull backs and survive to see the inevitable market upswing?

This is where tenacity and persistence really come into play. A post-and-pray approach won't take you far in this market, a shaking-the-trees mentality will.

How do you make your business market-proof? What's the secret to finding those hidden gem candidates? In this episode, president and managing director of The Trevi Group, Karel Lukas talks about what attracted him to recruiting, what makes his team stand out and his mindset on demand dips.

Guest Bio

Karel Lukas is the president and managing director at The Trevi Group. The Trevi Group guides their clients to hire top performing technology professionals, IT Leaders, Engineers, Architects, and Sales leaders with expertise in Networking, Security, Cloud, Data Center Infrastructure, Collaboration, and Artificial Intelligence. They are strengthening their clients by assisting them to locate and hire outstanding individuals to make an immediate impact on their business. The Trevi Group focuses on the top 10 percent of the workforce that makes 80 percent of the economic impact. As part of MRINetworkTM, The Trevi Group is recognized by http://Forbes.com as one of "America's Best Executive Search Firms." For more information, go to https://www.thetrevigroup.com/ and connect with Karel on LinkedIn.

Meet the Host

Vince Holt is the founder and CEO of Management Recruiters of Mercer Island. With 35+ years industry experience, he is the only MRINetwork team member to win CSAM of the Year, Person of the Year and Lifetime Achievement Awards. In addition to spending time with his wife, children and grandchildren, Vince has raced motorcycles for over 50 years, winning 5 National Championships.

In a world of polished job listings and carefully curated references, it's hard to distinguish lip service from the true DNA of a client or candidate. Add an increasingly transactional approach, and it becomes a dangerous time to be in this business.

Trust - the lifeblood of this industry has been broken, so it's never been more important to dig deep, and do your homework to make sure you're getting the reality on both sides of the placement.

There's so much emphasis on how much we can take out of the process through technology, but some things can't change. Listening to people, doing our research and putting trust at the center of everything we do - that can never be removed from how we serve clients and candidates.

How do we cut out the tire-kicker candidates and make sure they have skin in the game? How do we dig deeper into polished listings and references and get the full story?

In this episode, we're joined by owner and director of The Woolf Partnership, Amy Woolf. She talks about the power of authenticity, curiosity and trust in the search business, especially today.

Guest Bio

Amy Woolf is owner and director of The Woolf Partnership, an Executive Search firm focused on Technology, Transformation and Change. Working with both scale-ups and large corporations, they partner with clients to find forward thinking, talented and passionate individuals to transform their leadership teams. Based in the heart of London, The Woolf Partnership combines a deep background in recruitment with a wealth of in-house experience, harnessed from numerous years working in the consulting industry. We have an extensive understanding of the rapidly growing market we operate in and a genuine love for the work they do. For more information, go to https://www.thewoolfpartnership.com/.

Meet the Host

Vince Holt is the founder and CEO of Management Recruiters of Mercer Island. With 35+ years industry experience, he is the only MRINetwork team member to win CSAM of the Year, Person of the Year and Lifetime Achievement Awards. In addition to spending time with his wife, children and grandchildren, Vince has raced motorcycles for over 50 years, winning 5 National Championships.

The rise in demand for contract candidates is one of the biggest workforce shifts to emerge out of the last 5 years. More companies are opting for fractional employees over the permanent placements. It gives them access to an exceptional talent pool they otherwise couldn't afford. It allows companies in the start-up phase to advance while staying lean. It gives them short-term expertise to solve a specific problem.

On the candidate side, many people are looking for these exact opportunities. Maybe it's a Boomer who isn't quite ready to walk away from the workforce altogether. Or it's an entrepreneurial individual who wants freedom and autonomy. As more people reimagine work, they might consider taking the non-permanent placement route.

This has created a whole new value proposition for well-positioned recruiters, like the team at ace Talent Curators. How do you build relationships in the world of short-term and fractional work? What does it take to succeed on that side of the recruiting business?

In this episode, president of ace Talent Curators, Andres Rodriguez shares the factors driving contract placements and what makes his team different.

Guest Bio

Andres Rodriguez is the Managing Director and President of ace Talent Curators. ace Talent Curators is building the leading marketplace for Interim Executive and Contract Staffing Talent in the Consumer Goods, Hospitality, and Banking industries. Our leadership team has been helping consumer-facing companies win top talent in the retained search space for over 25 years. ace TC brings those deep industry insights to the contract space, offering fast-moving companies flexible talent solutions that can make an immediate impact. Connect with Andres on LinkedIn.

Meet the Host

Vince Holt is the founder and CEO of Management Recruiters of Mercer Island. With 35+ years industry experience, he is the only MRINetwork team member to win CSAM of the Year, Person of the Year and Lifetime Achievement Awards. In addition to spending time with his wife, children and grandchildren, Vince has raced motorcycles for over 50 years, winning 5 National Championships.