The Resilient Recruiter

If the ability to perform under pressure is a pre-requisite for success in recruitment, then it’s no surprise that Craig Picken has reached the peak of our profession as one of the top-producing recruiters in the United States.

Eight years’ experience as a decorated Naval Flight Officer – with more than 100 combat missions, 2,000 hours of flight time, and 325 aircraft carrier landings – was perhaps the ideal proving ground for Craig’s later career in recruitment.  

Craig is the co-founder and the managing partner for the Northstar Group which is a boutique executive search firm based in Wilmington,  North Carolina. Since 2009 Craig has concluded several hundred executive-level searches in leadership, sales, and operations for some of the most prominent companies in the aviation and aerospace industries.

Episode Outline and Highlights

• [1:36] Craig’s background: from being a naval pilot to being a recruiter.
• [6:06] Three main skills from Craig’s naval career that are transferable to the recruitment business.
• [14:50] Dealing with a very difficult client - hear how it was handled professionally. 
• [21:30] Long-term business perspectives that you can apply during this pandemic.
• [31:45] Craig speaks about the biggest challenges in his career.
• [34:40] The story of how he once got fired -  and how it led to a making a fortune in two different industries 
• [44:45] Craig’s strategy on how to handle recruitment business downtime due to an economic downturn.
• [53:50] Craig discusses the value of doing a podcast and other ways he is connecting with his audience.

“ How to Fly When Your Airplane is on Fire”

During the interview, Craig recalls several instances where sudden unexpected airplane system malfunctions endangered the lives of his co-pilots. He then added, “The one thing that the navy teaches you well is not how to fly. It is how to fly when your airplane is on fire. And all your systems are going to hell.” He strongly believes in keeping an open mind rather than being a control freak. When things are not going the way they should be, it should be about the ability to be flexible. 

Translating it to recruitment, he says “That is where recruiters got to understand. What are you doing when everything is going to hell? It’s a very emotional business, you can’t control people. A lot of recruiters talk about control. I don’t try to control anybody.”

Being a Value in these Difficult Times

With the significant impact of the coronavirus to the aviation and aerospace industry, what is Craig currently doing to maintain his momentum? “Building my network, talking, and being a value.” Craig’s perspective is helping people get to where they need to be. And when their business comes back, he is the person they will be thinking about. Strategically, he looks at the long term rather than immediate results. “I take everybody’s call… And my only goal is to be a value.” Hear his philosophy on how the recruitment business is a business of helping people.

Where there is Chaos, there is Opportunity

Just when Craig and his wife are expecting the birth of their twins, something terrible happened - he got fired from his job. This caused them monumental stress, but as Craig puts it, “where there is chaos, there is an opportunity.” For him, getting fired taught him to be more entrepreneurial and to be more on moving forward. 

Giving back to the Community

Aside from rescuing dogs, Craig is also a big contributor to Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation Ltd (JDRF), a charity focused on eradicating juvenile type 1 Diabetes. If you wish to know more about this organization, you may refer to the link in the below section.

Craig Picken Bio and Contact Info

Co-founder and Managing Partner for Northstar Group, a boutique executive search firm based in Wilmington, NC, Craig is focused on recruiting senior-level leadership, sales, and operations executives for some of the most prominent companies in the aviation and aerospace industry. Clients include well-known aircraft OEM’s, aircraft operators, leasing / financial organizations, and Maintenance / Repair / Overhaul (MRO) providers. Since 2009 he has personally concluded several hundred executive-level searches in a variety of disciplines.  

• Craig on LinkedIn
• Craig on Twitter @craigpicken
• Craig on Facebook 
• Northstar Group website
• Aerospace Executive Podcast
• JDRF website

People and Resources Mentioned 

• Paul Siker on LinkedIn

• Get your FREE 30-minute strategy call: www.RecruitmentCoach.com/Breakthrough
• Mark on LinkedIn
• Mark on Twitter: @MarkWhitby
• Mark on Facebook
• Mark on Instagram: @RecruitmentCoach

• TRR #6  Habits of a Million-Dollar Biller, with Rich Rosen

Subscribe to The Resilient Recruiter

Imagine starting a recruitment business at the age of 54, having never worked in the recruiting industry before, and becoming a “big biller” within 5 years. 

In this episode of the Resilient Recruiter, you’ll meet Irishman Paul Taaffe, founder and CEO of FINANCE People Solutions based in Frankfurt, Germany.  Prior to starting his business in 2014, he was either a CFO or CRO for US global blue-chip companies such as Pepsi Cola, Nike, Lear Corporation, and Dell.

I asked Paul to come on the show and discuss his extraordinary success running a boutique search firm.  Paul has doubled the business, on average, every year and last year managed to bill €4,000,000 in revenue!  That’s over $4.5M USD.  

Sure, that figure is the gross sales and includes both permanent placement and interim revenue, so the Net Fee Income will be somewhat less.  Still very impressive considering Paul is the sole fee earner, supported by a small team.  In fact, Paul has built so much momentum that he closed five deals this April despite the coronavirus pandemic.

Episode Outline and Highlights

• [4:22] History of Finance People Solutions (FPS)
• [6:37] What is Paul’s recipe for success?
• [9:00] Three aspects that help Paul to leverage relationship in recruitment.
• [14:30] How to level up from having a professional relationship to a professional friendship. 
• [19:25] Coronavirus experience: Three keys to keeping things moving forward.
• [26:16] FPS’s structure and how efficiency is integrated into each role.
• [31:18] Successful basis for acquiring new customers
• [32:00] Paul shares his advertising strategy with FINANCE Magazin. Hear his interesting narrative on how he came about with this idea.
• [41:00] How Paul engineered his five placements in April - during the coronavirus.
• [45:30] Explanation of the interim-to-perm business model.

Being an “unkompliziert” person

When it comes to building sustainable candidate relationships, Paul believes that it all comes down to personality. He is an uncomplicated (unkompliziert in German) person, and because of that, he is able to easily connect with candidates that he treats as friends.  Paul said, “Mark, I have become friends with so many of these candidates. They are not just candidates, that sounds very cold. They are friends or business friends of mine.”

Explaining his interim-to-perm business model

Paul was able to describe how his interim-to-perm business model has successfully provided solutions to a lot of his clients. This solution de-risks the hiring process for his customer. As Paul puts it, “Over the last few years, we are doing more and more interim business because it is the instant solution kind of thing.” For him, “It is like delivering quality results in a very short period of time.”

Paul Taffe Bio and Contact Info

Paul is the founder and CEO of FINANCE People Solutions (PFS) in 2014. He has been in the recruitment business since 2014, and prior to that, he was either a CFO or CRO for US global blue-chip companies such as Pepsi Cola, Nike, Lear Corporation, and Dell as well as having worked in Private Equity. He founded the PE Finance Organisation Benchmarking company, Taaffe, and Partners in 2011.

• Paul on LinkedIn
• Paul’s email: [email protected]
• FINANCE People Solutions website link

People and Resources Mentioned

FINANCE Magazin website link

• Get your FREE 30-minute strategy call: www.RecruitmentCoach.com/Breakthrough
• Mark on LinkedIn
• Mark on Twitter: @MarkWhitby
• Mark on Facebook
• Mark on Instagram: @RecruitmentCoach

Subscribe to The Resilient Recruiter

Imagine starting a recruitment business at the age of 54, having never worked in the recruiting industry before, and becoming a “big biller” within 5 years. 

In this episode of the Resilient Recruiter, you’ll meet Irishman Paul Taaffe, founder and CEO of FINANCE People Solutions based in Frankfurt, Germany.  Prior to starting his business in 2014, he was either a CFO or CRO for US global blue-chip companies such as Pepsi Cola, Nike, Lear Corporation, and Dell.

I asked Paul to come on the show and discuss his extraordinary success running a boutique search firm.  Paul has doubled the business, on average, every year and last year managed to bill €4,000,000 in revenue!  That’s over $4.5M USD.  

Sure, that figure is the gross sales and includes both permanent placement and interim revenue, so the Net Fee Income will be somewhat less.  Still very impressive considering Paul is the sole fee earner, supported by a small team.  In fact, Paul has built so much momentum that he closed five deals this April despite the coronavirus pandemic.

Episode Outline and Highlights

• [4:22] History of Finance People Solutions (FPS)
• [6:37] What is Paul’s recipe for success?
• [9:00] Three aspects that help Paul to leverage relationship in recruitment.
• [14:30] How to level up from having a professional relationship to a professional friendship. 
• [19:25] Coronavirus experience: Three keys to keeping things moving forward.
• [26:16] FPS’s structure and how efficiency is integrated into each role.
• [31:18] Successful basis for acquiring new customers
• [32:00] Paul shares his advertising strategy with FINANCE Magazin. Hear his interesting narrative on how he came about with this idea.
• [41:00] How Paul engineered his five placements in April - during the coronavirus.
• [45:30] Explanation of the interim-to-perm business model.

Being an “unkompliziert” person

When it comes to building sustainable candidate relationships, Paul believes that it all comes down to personality. He is an uncomplicated (unkompliziert in German) person, and because of that, he is able to easily connect with candidates that he treats as friends.  Paul said, “Mark, I have become friends with so many of these candidates. They are not just candidates, that sounds very cold. They are friends or business friends of mine.”

Explaining his interim-to-perm business model

Paul was able to describe how his interim-to-perm business model has successfully provided solutions to a lot of his clients. This solution de-risks the hiring process for his customer. As Paul puts it, “Over the last few years, we are doing more and more interim business because it is the instant solution kind of thing.” For him, “It is like delivering quality results in a very short period of time.”

Paul Taffe Bio and Contact Info

Paul is the founder and CEO of FINANCE People Solutions (PFS) in 2014. He has been in the recruitment business since 2014, and prior to that, he was either a CFO or CRO for US global blue-chip companies such as Pepsi Cola, Nike, Lear Corporation, and Dell as well as having worked in Private Equity. He founded the PE Finance Organisation Benchmarking company, Taaffe, and Partners in 2011.

• Paul on LinkedIn
• Paul’s email: [email protected]
• FINANCE People Solutions website link

People and Resources Mentioned

FINANCE Magazin website link

• Get your FREE 30-minute strategy call: www.RecruitmentCoach.com/Breakthrough
• Mark on LinkedIn
• Mark on Twitter: @MarkWhitby
• Mark on Facebook
• Mark on Instagram: @RecruitmentCoach

Subscribe to The Resilient Recruiter

As the market continues to be challenging due to the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic, the search and recruitment industry remains ultra-competitive. How can small boutique recruiting firms and solo recruiters compete against the large, well-known search firms who have greater resources at their disposal?  

In this episode of the Resilient Recruiter, my wonderful guest Matt Schwartz shares how he runs his retained search practice in New York City, one of the most competitive markets in the world. Matt is the President of MJS Executive Search, a small boutique search firm that he has been running for 17 years. With fees averaging to $100,000, his firm is serving Fortune 500 companies including American Express, Mastercard, and PepsiCo. How does a small boutique firm pitch against incumbent top 10 search firms, and win? Listen to this episode and find out.

Also, he shared his astounding journey on how he recovered from Covid19 and as well as the mindset and actions he had to take while recuperating, enabling him to close a very significant deal while on his sickbed.

Episode Outline and Highlights

• [1:10] Matt shares what he had to endure and how he recovered from the coronavirus.
• [4:18] How he closed a search while recuperating.
• [6:30] Proactive steps Matt took to overcome his frustration caused by the virus.
• [13:25] Matt narrates his career and transition to building his own search firm.
• [25:55] How does a very small boutique search firm win against incumbent headhunting firms?
• [27:55] What is “removing the black box” approach?
• [33:45] How to negotiate a relationship with talent acquisition partners.
• [38:23] What helped Matt’s firm to “get their foot in the door”
• [40:30] Matt shares his greatest learning and how it resulted in a drastic change.

“I was being careful but probably got it through my travels.”

Matt is based in Westchester County in New York, which was the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in the US. He described in detail the symptoms that he had to endure. “It was frustrating, a lot of days,” said Matt as he shares what was going on in his mind while recovering. Matt shared proactive steps he took to overcome that frustration and how he still took care of business. Amazingly, he was able to complete a search and earned a placement fee of $185,000.

Setting His Firm Apart from his Competitors

Operating in a highly competitive market, what sets MJS Executive Search from its well-known competitors?  As Matt puts it, “We are great at identifying people from alternative industries who are the best of the best of what they do, and bringing this mix of skills to diverse organizations.”

“Typically we are up against, one other firm, and typically its a large one.”  Being a smaller firm does not mean reducing your fees. “We are not any cheaper, at the end of the day it’s up to them to have a comfort in terms of who they feel more comfortable with” Part of Matt’s success is properly setting expectations with his clients and preparing well in giving his presentations. “I don’t treat a sales conversation as a sales conversation. I treat it as a consultative meeting. I come in prepared with great questions.”

Matt Schwartz Bio and Contact Info 

Matt Schwartz is the President of MJS Executive Search. MJS Executive Search is a leader in recruiting and placing senior level, transformational Marketing, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, User Experience, Segment Marketing and Acquisition, Digital Innovation, Employee Engagement, Corporate Communications, Media Strategy, Product Management, Product Marketing and Sales leaders for Global Fortune 500 to Entrepreneurial Start-ups. Matt has been running his own firm for 17 years. Prior to that, he was with Heidrick & Struggles International, Inc. Prior to that, he was with Heidrick & Struggles International, Inc. 

• Matt on Linkedin
• MJS Executive Search on twitter @MJSearch
• MJS Executive Search website
• MJS Executive Search on Facebook

People and Resources Mentioned

• Heidrick and Struggles on LinkedIn

Connect with Mark Whitby

• Get your FREE 30-minute strategy call: www.RecruitmentCoach.com/Breakthrough
• Mark on LinkedIn
• Mark on Twitter: @MarkWhitby
• Mark on Facebook
• Mark on Instagram: @RecruitmentCoach

Subscribe to The Resilient Recruiter

As the market continues to be challenging due to the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic, the search and recruitment industry remains ultra-competitive. How can small boutique recruiting firms and solo recruiters compete against the large, well-known search firms who have greater resources at their disposal?  

In this episode of the Resilient Recruiter, my wonderful guest Matt Schwartz shares how he runs his retained search practice in New York City, one of the most competitive markets in the world. Matt is the President of MJS Executive Search, a small boutique search firm that he has been running for 17 years. With fees averaging to $100,000, his firm is serving Fortune 500 companies including American Express, Mastercard, and PepsiCo. How does a small boutique firm pitch against incumbent top 10 search firms, and win? Listen to this episode and find out.

Also, he shared his astounding journey on how he recovered from Covid19 and as well as the mindset and actions he had to take while recuperating, enabling him to close a very significant deal while on his sickbed.

Episode Outline and Highlights

• [1:10] Matt shares what he had to endure and how he recovered from the coronavirus.
• [4:18] How he closed a search while recuperating.
• [6:30] Proactive steps Matt took to overcome his frustration caused by the virus.
• [13:25] Matt narrates his career and transition to building his own search firm.
• [25:55] How does a very small boutique search firm win against incumbent headhunting firms?
• [27:55] What is “removing the black box” approach?
• [33:45] How to negotiate a relationship with talent acquisition partners.
• [38:23] What helped Matt’s firm to “get their foot in the door”
• [40:30] Matt shares his greatest learning and how it resulted in a drastic change.

“I was being careful but probably got it through my travels.”

Matt is based in Westchester County in New York, which was the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in the US. He described in detail the symptoms that he had to endure. “It was frustrating, a lot of days,” said Matt as he shares what was going on in his mind while recovering. Matt shared proactive steps he took to overcome that frustration and how he still took care of business. Amazingly, he was able to complete a search and earned a placement fee of $185,000.

Setting His Firm Apart from his Competitors

Operating in a highly competitive market, what sets MJS Executive Search from its well-known competitors?  As Matt puts it, “We are great at identifying people from alternative industries who are the best of the best of what they do, and bringing this mix of skills to diverse organizations.”

“Typically we are up against, one other firm, and typically its a large one.”  Being a smaller firm does not mean reducing your fees. “We are not any cheaper, at the end of the day it’s up to them to have a comfort in terms of who they feel more comfortable with” Part of Matt’s success is properly setting expectations with his clients and preparing well in giving his presentations. “I don’t treat a sales conversation as a sales conversation. I treat it as a consultative meeting. I come in prepared with great questions.”

Matt Schwartz Bio and Contact Info 

Matt Schwartz is the President of MJS Executive Search. MJS Executive Search is a leader in recruiting and placing senior level, transformational Marketing, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, User Experience, Segment Marketing and Acquisition, Digital Innovation, Employee Engagement, Corporate Communications, Media Strategy, Product Management, Product Marketing and Sales leaders for Global Fortune 500 to Entrepreneurial Start-ups. Matt has been running his own firm for 17 years. Prior to that, he was with Heidrick & Struggles International, Inc. Prior to that, he was with Heidrick & Struggles International, Inc. 

• Matt on Linkedin
• MJS Executive Search on twitter @MJSearch
• MJS Executive Search website
• MJS Executive Search on Facebook

People and Resources Mentioned

• Heidrick and Struggles on LinkedIn

Connect with Mark Whitby

• Get your FREE 30-minute strategy call: www.RecruitmentCoach.com/Breakthrough
• Mark on LinkedIn
• Mark on Twitter: @MarkWhitby
• Mark on Facebook
• Mark on Instagram: @RecruitmentCoach

Subscribe to The Resilient Recruiter

As we are now navigating through one of the most challenging moments of running a recruitment business, where should we focus our time, energy and resources for maximum return in both the short and long term?

In this episode of the Resilient Recruiter, my special guest Jordan Lawrence reveals the incredibly effective marketing strategies behind the growth of his core business, Payments & Cards Network.  He breaks down how to partner with media companies, events organizers and even local governments to dominate your market niche.  

Of course, we’ll also dig into what Jordan’s doing right now to pivot his marketing during the coronavirus crisis and ensure his company is well-positioned to catch the rebound.

You’ll also hear Jordan’s valuable insights and perspective on building a success culture in different countries, hiring recruiters, keeping your team motivated and engaged, experimenting with the 4-day workweek, and embracing the “next normal.”

Jordan founded the Payments & Cards Network around 10 years ago and the business has since evolved into a Micro Niche Recruitment group called PCN Capital which is comprised of Payments & Cards Network, Digital Source, Sekura Capital and PCM (Payments & Cards Media). The three recruitment brands focus on the FinTech Space, Data Science & Cyber Security respectively and operate from offices in Atlanta, Amsterdam & Singapore.

Episode Outline and Highlights

• [3:00] How the business is dealing with the coronavirus.
• [5:55] An important key to keep your team motivated and engaged in these difficult circumstances.
• [8:20] Discussion on two areas of adjustments to “up their game”. 
• [10:15] How to reassure hesitant candidates during the coronavirus crisis - Warning: This is not a recruitment spiel.
• [13:10]  Jordan’s philosophy on building a community with media businesses.  
• [19:30] A very interesting discussion [+pointers] on how to keep a LinkedIn group relevant.
• [23:20] Will switching to a four-day workweek work for your business?
• [29:05] Jordan discusses the “new normal” for recruiting businesses.
• [32:45] Hear about Jordan’s “How to Hire Remotely with Confidence” webinar.
• [36:00] Benefits of having multinational offices versus having just one head office.
• [39:20] What led to Jordan’s partnership with a local government 

Building a Community via the Media Businesses

Jordan shared why and how he built a community through media and marketing and how it impacted his business. Dive into Jordan’s brilliant ideas on how to make marketing work for his business. For example, hear how using magazines in both physical and digital format helped his recruitment business grow exponentially. 

The Philosophy Behind a Four-Day Workweek

Will a four-day workweek fly in the recruitment industry? Hear Jordan’s perspective on how it can be a huge benefit. One way he puts it is “People before would sort of work really hard over the five days, binge on a Saturday… belly recovering on a Sunday, and stumbling to work on a Monday morning, it may not be so productive.” He added “Arguably, is there much getting done anyway on a Monday morning and a Friday afternoon? I don’t know. Now we are giving the opportunity to have a really good rest..”

Adding Value to the Ecosystem of the Niche that You are Serving

Having a multinational firm, Jordan’s success is defined by his mindset on adding value. In his words, “I think it is making yourself a part of the fabric of the industry you are trying to service rather than being seen as someone only taking and I think that’s really important.”

On having a global presence, this is what he said: “If you are serious about growing globally in a niche market, you have to be on the ground and you have to have facetime. It shows you’re there for the long haul rather than just making the sort of hit and run deal which you do see all over the place.”

He also discussed their support for the "Free a Girl" foundation which frees young girls from sexual slavery. You may refer to the link in the below section.

Jordan Lawrence Bio and Contact Info

Jordan Lawrence founded the Payments & Cards Network around 10 years ago and has since started a Micro Niche Recruitment group called PCN Capital which comprises of Payments & Cards Network, Digital Source, Sekura Capital and PCM (Payments & Cards Media) with offices in Atlanta, Amsterdam & Singapore the three brands focus on the FinTech Space, Data Science & Cyber Security respectively. Jordan also Co-Founded Volt Open Banking www.getvolt.io at the start of 2019 with FinTech industry experts sourced from his experience with PCN.

• Jordan on LinkedIn
• Jordan on Instagram 
• PCN Capital website
• PCN Capital on Youtube
• PCN Capital on Instagram
• PCN Capital on Twitter @PaymentsNet

We are hiring aggressively at the moment so if you wish to take part in our growth as well as our forward-thinking culture, 4 day week and general good vibes then reach out to our excellent Head of People and Ops Victoria Hammond (who joined us from Google incidentally) at [email protected].

People and Resources Mentioned

Free a Girl Foundation website

Christy Brown on LinkedIn

Katie Howard Cross on LinkedIn

David Stone LinkedIn

Rogier Rouppe van der Voort on LinkedIn

Cube19 website

Connect with Mark Whitby

• Get your FREE 30-minute strategy call: www.RecruitmentCoach.com/Breakthrough
• Mark on LinkedIn
• Mark on Twitter: @MarkWhitby
• Mark on Facebook
• Mark on Instagram: @RecruitmentCoach
• Mark on YouTube

Related Podcasts You Might Enjoy

• TRR #15: How Katie Howard Cross Empowers Women to Excel in Recruitment
• TRR #18: How to Build Your Business During a Recession, with Christy Brown

Subscribe to The Resilient Recruiter

As we are now navigating through one of the most challenging moments of running a recruitment business, where should we focus our time, energy and resources for maximum return in both the short and long term?

In this episode of the Resilient Recruiter, my special guest Jordan Lawrence reveals the incredibly effective marketing strategies behind the growth of his core business, Payments & Cards Network.  He breaks down how to partner with media companies, events organizers and even local governments to dominate your market niche.  

Of course, we’ll also dig into what Jordan’s doing right now to pivot his marketing during the coronavirus crisis and ensure his company is well-positioned to catch the rebound.

You’ll also hear Jordan’s valuable insights and perspective on building a success culture in different countries, hiring recruiters, keeping your team motivated and engaged, experimenting with the 4-day workweek, and embracing the “next normal.”

Jordan founded the Payments & Cards Network around 10 years ago and the business has since evolved into a Micro Niche Recruitment group called PCN Capital which is comprised of Payments & Cards Network, Digital Source, Sekura Capital and PCM (Payments & Cards Media). The three recruitment brands focus on the FinTech Space, Data Science & Cyber Security respectively and operate from offices in Atlanta, Amsterdam & Singapore.

Episode Outline and Highlights

• [3:00] How the business is dealing with the coronavirus.
• [5:55] An important key to keep your team motivated and engaged in these difficult circumstances.
• [8:20] Discussion on two areas of adjustments to “up their game”. 
• [10:15] How to reassure hesitant candidates during the coronavirus crisis - Warning: This is not a recruitment spiel.
• [13:10]  Jordan’s philosophy on building a community with media businesses.  
• [19:30] A very interesting discussion [+pointers] on how to keep a LinkedIn group relevant.
• [23:20] Will switching to a four-day workweek work for your business?
• [29:05] Jordan discusses the “new normal” for recruiting businesses.
• [32:45] Hear about Jordan’s “How to Hire Remotely with Confidence” webinar.
• [36:00] Benefits of having multinational offices versus having just one head office.
• [39:20] What led to Jordan’s partnership with a local government 

Building a Community via the Media Businesses

Jordan shared why and how he built a community through media and marketing and how it impacted his business. Dive into Jordan’s brilliant ideas on how to make marketing work for his business. For example, hear how using magazines in both physical and digital format helped his recruitment business grow exponentially. 

The Philosophy Behind a Four-Day Workweek

Will a four-day workweek fly in the recruitment industry? Hear Jordan’s perspective on how it can be a huge benefit. One way he puts it is “People before would sort of work really hard over the five days, binge on a Saturday… belly recovering on a Sunday, and stumbling to work on a Monday morning, it may not be so productive.” He added “Arguably, is there much getting done anyway on a Monday morning and a Friday afternoon? I don’t know. Now we are giving the opportunity to have a really good rest..”

Adding Value to the Ecosystem of the Niche that You are Serving

Having a multinational firm, Jordan’s success is defined by his mindset on adding value. In his words, “I think it is making yourself a part of the fabric of the industry you are trying to service rather than being seen as someone only taking and I think that’s really important.”

On having a global presence, this is what he said: “If you are serious about growing globally in a niche market, you have to be on the ground and you have to have facetime. It shows you’re there for the long haul rather than just making the sort of hit and run deal which you do see all over the place.”

He also discussed their support for the "Free a Girl" foundation which frees young girls from sexual slavery. You may refer to the link in the below section.

Jordan Lawrence Bio and Contact Info

Jordan Lawrence founded the Payments & Cards Network around 10 years ago and has since started a Micro Niche Recruitment group called PCN Capital which comprises of Payments & Cards Network, Digital Source, Sekura Capital and PCM (Payments & Cards Media) with offices in Atlanta, Amsterdam & Singapore the three brands focus on the FinTech Space, Data Science & Cyber Security respectively. Jordan also Co-Founded Volt Open Banking www.getvolt.io at the start of 2019 with FinTech industry experts sourced from his experience with PCN.

• Jordan on LinkedIn
• Jordan on Instagram 
• PCN Capital website
• PCN Capital on Youtube
• PCN Capital on Instagram
• PCN Capital on Twitter @PaymentsNet

We are hiring aggressively at the moment so if you wish to take part in our growth as well as our forward-thinking culture, 4 day week and general good vibes then reach out to our excellent Head of People and Ops Victoria Hammond (who joined us from Google incidentally) at [email protected].

People and Resources Mentioned

Free a Girl Foundation website

Christy Brown on LinkedIn

Katie Howard Cross on LinkedIn

David Stone LinkedIn

Rogier Rouppe van der Voort on LinkedIn

Cube19 website

Connect with Mark Whitby

• Get your FREE 30-minute strategy call: www.RecruitmentCoach.com/Breakthrough
• Mark on LinkedIn
• Mark on Twitter: @MarkWhitby
• Mark on Facebook
• Mark on Instagram: @RecruitmentCoach
• Mark on YouTube

Related Podcasts You Might Enjoy

• TRR #15: How Katie Howard Cross Empowers Women to Excel in Recruitment
• TRR #18: How to Build Your Business During a Recession, with Christy Brown

Subscribe to The Resilient Recruiter

A global economic slowdown due to the coronavirus has greatly affected the recruitment industry. What type of “proactive” mindset should a recruiter possess in order to avoid just being “reactive” to the situation? How do you build your business despite economic challenges? 

In this episode of the Resilient Recruiter, my special guest, Christy Brown shares her story on how she built a company in 2007, yes, you read it right, during the great recession. Listen to how creativity, technology enablement, and being agile helped her build, scale, and sell her staffing companies.

Christy is a serial entrepreneur, investor, startup advisor, mentor, founder, futurist, triathlete.  Prior to becoming a Venture Capitalist, Christy was the Executive Vice President of a Fortune 100 human capital management software company where she led the business transformation and client success organizations globally. Christy has scaled three service-based companies focused on digital marketing, human capital, and security consulting.

Episode Outline and Highlights

• [3:00] A former IRONMAN competitor, Christy shared how her competing translates to business.
• [6:00] Christy’s staffing journey. 
• [8:40] What it was like to start a staffing firm during the recession.
• [10:00] Christy’s two learnings that lead to improvement and innovation.
• [12:00] Christy’s business model that brought significant success in winning new clients.
• [15:00] Four factors that led to Christy’s start-up success.
• [22:45] A monthly meeting with all your placed candidates? Listen to why Christy did it.
• [27:30] Convincing clients to hire remotely - Christy mentioned least two elements 
• [30:00] What Christy believes is the number one growth area in recruiting
• [35:00] Christy talks about “technology enablement” 
• [38:30] How technology will drive the future of the recruiting industry.
• [44:00] Listen to Christy’s “regret” from a founder’s perspective.
• [47:02] Two practical ideas to navigate this challenging economy
• [53:00] Christy’s view on inclusion and women empowerment 

Starting a Business During the Great Recession

Back in 2007, Christy started her own staffing firm.  It may not have been the best time to start a new business, and as she mentioned, “For me, it became a firefight.” Comparing the situation before with what we are facing now, this is how she puts it  “It was a very interesting time, we can compare it to some of the things that are happening in this current healthcare crisis today. Massive fallouts to the economy occurring, a large banking crisis that we are still coming out of.”

Despite the situation, Christy focused on the opportunity being presented to build her business. Christy laid out her mistakes and learnings, her business model, and the factors that led to her start-up success.

Technology Will Drive the Future of the Recruiting Industry

Christy gave her take on “technology enablement” and how technology will drive the future of the recruiting industry. As she puts it, “I think technology enablement and recruiting is probably the number one growth area that I look even from an investment lens. It is one of those things that has to grow, it has to accelerate, and we have to influence it.”

Listen to her philosophy on how utilizing technology will help recruiters stay relevant.

Inclusion and Woman Empowerment

One of the biggest challenges Christy faced is, “Sometimes, being the only female in the room of technologists.” Hear her meaningful thoughts about inclusion and women empowerment in a corporate setting. 

Christy Brown Bio and Contact Info

Christy has held a number of executive leadership roles over the past 20 years but in 2019, became the Managing Executive Partner of a venture capital firm focused on pairing venture capital with shared services in a studio environment to scale rapidly with services to support early-stage startups.  Prior to assuming the executive investment role, Christy was the Executive Vice President at a Fortune 100 human capital management software company where she leads the business transformation & client success organization globally. Christy is a serial entrepreneur and founder and has scaled three service-based companies focused on digital marketing, human capital and security consulting which she exited across a 12-year interval.  Following the last exit, she became a consummate innovator and aligned to multiple startups incubators as a mentor and advisor.  She also serves as a board member across the Atlanta ecosystem including the Entrepreneur's Organization, Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce, American Cancer Society,  Technology Association of Georgia and various advisor and board roles across early and series stage startups in technology.   

• Christy’s website
• Christy on LinkedIn
• Christy on Twitter @downtown_CB
• Tone Networks website
• Launchpad2x on LinkedIn

People and Resources Mentioned

• IRONMAN website
• AJ Anderson on LinkedIn
• Lee Charles on LinkedIn
• Kat Cole on LinkedIn
• Jordan Lawrence on LinkedIn

Connect with Mark Whitby

• Get your FREE 30-minute strategy call: www.RecruitmentCoach.com/Breakthrough
• Mark on LinkedIn
• Mark on Twitter: @MarkWhitby
• Mark on Facebook
• Mark on Instagram: @RecruitmentCoach
• Mark on YouTube

Subscribe to The Resilient Recruiter

A global economic slowdown due to the coronavirus has greatly affected the recruitment industry. What type of “proactive” mindset should a recruiter possess in order to avoid just being “reactive” to the situation? How do you build your business despite economic challenges? 

In this episode of the Resilient Recruiter, my special guest, Christy Brown shares her story on how she built a company in 2007, yes, you read it right, during the great recession. Listen to how creativity, technology enablement, and being agile helped her build, scale, and sell her staffing companies.

Christy is a serial entrepreneur, investor, startup advisor, mentor, founder, futurist, triathlete.  Prior to becoming a Venture Capitalist, Christy was the Executive Vice President of a Fortune 100 human capital management software company where she led the business transformation and client success organizations globally. Christy has scaled three service-based companies focused on digital marketing, human capital, and security consulting.

Episode Outline and Highlights

• [3:00] A former IRONMAN competitor, Christy shared how her competing translates to business.
• [6:00] Christy’s staffing journey. 
• [8:40] What it was like to start a staffing firm during the recession.
• [10:00] Christy’s two learnings that lead to improvement and innovation.
• [12:00] Christy’s business model that brought significant success in winning new clients.
• [15:00] Four factors that led to Christy’s start-up success.
• [22:45] A monthly meeting with all your placed candidates? Listen to why Christy did it.
• [27:30] Convincing clients to hire remotely - Christy mentioned least two elements 
• [30:00] What Christy believes is the number one growth area in recruiting
• [35:00] Christy talks about “technology enablement” 
• [38:30] How technology will drive the future of the recruiting industry.
• [44:00] Listen to Christy’s “regret” from a founder’s perspective.
• [47:02] Two practical ideas to navigate this challenging economy
• [53:00] Christy’s view on inclusion and women empowerment 

Starting a Business During the Great Recession

Back in 2007, Christy started her own staffing firm.  It may not have been the best time to start a new business, and as she mentioned, “For me, it became a firefight.” Comparing the situation before with what we are facing now, this is how she puts it  “It was a very interesting time, we can compare it to some of the things that are happening in this current healthcare crisis today. Massive fallouts to the economy occurring, a large banking crisis that we are still coming out of.”

Despite the situation, Christy focused on the opportunity being presented to build her business. Christy laid out her mistakes and learnings, her business model, and the factors that led to her start-up success.

Technology Will Drive the Future of the Recruiting Industry

Christy gave her take on “technology enablement” and how technology will drive the future of the recruiting industry. As she puts it, “I think technology enablement and recruiting is probably the number one growth area that I look even from an investment lens. It is one of those things that has to grow, it has to accelerate, and we have to influence it.”

Listen to her philosophy on how utilizing technology will help recruiters stay relevant.

Inclusion and Woman Empowerment

One of the biggest challenges Christy faced is, “Sometimes, being the only female in the room of technologists.” Hear her meaningful thoughts about inclusion and women empowerment in a corporate setting. 

Christy Brown Bio and Contact Info

Christy has held a number of executive leadership roles over the past 20 years but in 2019, became the Managing Executive Partner of a venture capital firm focused on pairing venture capital with shared services in a studio environment to scale rapidly with services to support early-stage startups.  Prior to assuming the executive investment role, Christy was the Executive Vice President at a Fortune 100 human capital management software company where she leads the business transformation & client success organization globally. Christy is a serial entrepreneur and founder and has scaled three service-based companies focused on digital marketing, human capital and security consulting which she exited across a 12-year interval.  Following the last exit, she became a consummate innovator and aligned to multiple startups incubators as a mentor and advisor.  She also serves as a board member across the Atlanta ecosystem including the Entrepreneur's Organization, Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce, American Cancer Society,  Technology Association of Georgia and various advisor and board roles across early and series stage startups in technology.   

• Christy’s website
• Christy on LinkedIn
• Christy on Twitter @downtown_CB
• Tone Networks website
• Launchpad2x on LinkedIn

People and Resources Mentioned

• IRONMAN website
• AJ Anderson on LinkedIn
• Lee Charles on LinkedIn
• Kat Cole on LinkedIn
• Jordan Lawrence on LinkedIn

Connect with Mark Whitby

• Get your FREE 30-minute strategy call: www.RecruitmentCoach.com/Breakthrough
• Mark on LinkedIn
• Mark on Twitter: @MarkWhitby
• Mark on Facebook
• Mark on Instagram: @RecruitmentCoach
• Mark on YouTube

Subscribe to The Resilient Recruiter

With many countries in “lockdown” in a bid to stop the spread of coronavirus, businesses have been forced to adopt a remote work model.  If you own a recruitment business, managing recruiters remotely presents some significant challenges.  How do you keep your team members motivated and engaged?  How can you ensure people are productive without physically being there to supervise them? 

In this episode of The Resilient Recruiter my very special guest, Ann Zaslow-Rethaber joins me to share her insights on running a successful team based on 20+ years of experience managing remote recruiters.

Ann has been a recruiter since 1996 and she is the President of the International Search Consultants (ISC), a global executive recruitment firm. Ann launched ISC in 1999 her company has become one of the most reputable search firms in the United States, earning more recommendations on LinkedIn than any third party recruitment agency in the country. 

Episode Outline and Highlights

[2:30] Ann talks about visiting Mark in Scotland and shares her philosophy of investing in experiences and relationships instead of collecting “things.” 

[5:17] Why Ann considers the Pandemic situation a “golden opportunity.” 

[14:47] Two business principles to help you and your remote team stay on top of things.

[22:52] How to hold your remote team accountable -- Ann explains two significant factors.

[28:52] Praise vs Criticism: which is better for increasing your team’s performance?

[35:17] A very powerful approach to help managers create accountability. 

[41:43] Three things that Ann would have done differently if she knew then what she knows today.

[45:43] Ann’s story -- from flight attendant to top producing recruiter; how being a working mother forced her to become super-productive

Successful Remote Working Even Prior to the Pandemic

Ann was already set-up for remote working prior to the coronavirus pandemic. If you want to listen to her strategy and how she achieved $142,000 in billing in one month, you may want to listen to our previous interview - look for the link below under People and Resources. 

The Importance of Investing in a Great Working Relationship

With the current difficult situation we are facing with the Pandemic, there is a tendency for some recruiters to become radio silent with their clients. On the contrary, now is the time to be close and to stay in contact with clients. Ann is doing just that. She believes that now is the golden opportunity to walk the talk. She ensured to have her team message their clients, with the focus on saying  “I'm just touching base, and letting you know that we’re here.” Ann also shared her thoughts on why “time is the most valuable thing that any of us have.”

As Ann puts it, “Just human compassion. You don’t always have to make money off a relationship, you can just have the working relationship because you like the person and you want to check on them. I think it’s a golden opportunity to walk that walk.”

Overcoming Remote Working Challenges

Remote working is now becoming more and more common. “The negatives in the past have always been synergy and making people accountable.” as Ann recalled. However, with the current technology available, working virtually is actually resulting in a lot of good results. Ann said, “There are so many benefits from working virtually and not requiring people to get in cars or to get in planes to drive from one place to the other.”

Would it be possible to manage a virtual team as if you are managing people in the same location? Ann stated, “Twice a week meetings, daily meetings, touching base, anything that you can do live just about you can do online with this amazing technology that we all have.”

Learning from the Past

You’ll enjoy Ann’s story on how she went from being a flight attendant to becoming a top biller in the recruitment industry. Also, hear her insights on three things that she considers she would have done differently when building her business if she knew then what she knows now. 

Connect with Ann Zaslow-Rethaber:

• Ann on LinkedIn
• Ann on Twitter @annzaslow
• International Search Consultants (ISC) website
• International Search Consultants (ISC) on LinkedIn
• International Search Consultants (ISC) on Facebook
• International Search Consultants (ISC) on Twitter @iscjobs

People and Resources Mentioned:

• JobAdder on LinkedIn
• GeekSquad on LinkedIn
• Case Study: Recruiting Firm Owner Achieves New Personal Best, Billing $142,000 in One Month, by Mark Whitby.
• The Ideal Praise-to-Criticism Ratio, Harvard Business Review. Article Link.

• Get your FREE 30-minute strategy call: www.RecruitmentCoach.com/Breakthrough
• Mark on LinkedIn
• Mark on Twitter: @MarkWhitby
• Mark on Facebook
• Mark on Instagram: @RecruitmentCoach
• Mark on YouTube

Subscribe to The Resilient Recruiter