Staffing Blog

CASE STUDY: Consultative Approach - The B&B Difference

Wednesday, May 7, 2014  by julie

SITUATION - The business model for a Connecticut OEM had shifted from a vertical manufacturer to more reliance on contract manufacturing and assembly operation with a more demanding supply chain element. Information systems and technology were underutilized and dated. 

ACTIONS - The CEO and CFO initiated a call to B&B to potentially recruit a Project Manager to work for the IT Director. B&B led discussions with the executive team, including the IT Director, to best understand recent evolution, organization structure, business model, personnel, current processes, needs, challenges, and goals. The conversation was interactive, candid and open. The Company viewed IT as under producing rather than as a strategic resource to partner on business evolution. B&B was offered the exclusive to search for a Systems Manager and turned it down. B&B reached out to the CEO and made the recommendation that the biggest road block to success was the IT Director and if IT was to be a true business partner, then new leadership was required.  After this conversation, we were retained to source a new IT Director.

RESULTS - B&B established a search process with milestones of delivery; identified and introduced four highly qualified candidates; and had a new IT Director aboard within 90 days. The end result is a more interactive IT function that is providing value-based intelligence to both internal and external customers, and active participants in the business planning process. 

That is the B & B Difference

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Join Our Team - Executive Recruiter/Consultant

Tuesday, April 29, 2014  by julie

If you like people, business, & incentives read on. If you are good at strategy, negotiations, games, or sports, read on. If you are organized, self-motivated, excel at multi-tasking, and have strong project management skills, read on.

Our search team consists of former accounting, engineering, human resource, IT, marketing and sales professionals who enjoy consulting with business leaders and being a catalyst in the identification and hiring of talent that support client companies strategy and vision. This is an innovative, rewarding and highly challenging role requiring strong interpersonal and business skills. To be successful, one must be willing to learn about the client’s business model and understand the culture, organization, products or services, market channels, customers, management style, business trends, impending challenges and opportunities, and so on. Learn how to identify, source, evaluate and present selected professional profiles that are ideal for a client’s search. To accomplish this, we are highly visible to both our clients and candidates.

Examples of recent placements are:

• IT Manager for a privately equity (PE) infused precision manufacturer
• Supply Chain Planner for a global B2C company
• CFO of a privately held consumer products distributor
• VP Engineering for a PE owned motion controls industry
• Marketing Director for a global medical products business
• Demand Planning Manager for B2B engineering services provider
• Financial Analyst for a global financial software leader
• Senior Quality Engineer for PE infused medical device industry
• VP Sales for diesel engine valve manufacturer
• Human Resources Director for PE infused consumer products company
• Strategic Pricing Director for a B2B building products business
• Manufacturing Director for a PE supported injection molder
  
  Please Send Resume to Edward B. Bradstreet, President ebb@bohan-bradstreet.com

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Celebrating 27 Years of Successful Professional Search & Recruitment

Tuesday, April 15, 2014  by julie

We just celebrated 27 years of successful professional search recruitment! Check out our approach and we know it works.

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New B & B Fun Fact

Tuesday, April 8, 2014  by julie

FUN FACTS:
We were recently selected to lead three Chief Financial Officer (CFO) executive searches; one with a private-held consumer products company located in Connecticut, one with a privately-held global manufacturer of industrial products located in Connecticut, and one with a private-equity infused precision machine component manufacturer located in Illinois.  Our team presented to the board of directors for each company and consulted on competitive compensation, an insightful interviewing process, and efficiencies on the search and selection process, including the development of a scorecard to measure each prospective candidate.  

In 2013, we averaged 42 calendar days to complete a senior staff/executive level search (signed client contract date to candidate acceptance date); 68% of our placements in 2013 were for executive level searches (base salary greater than $100,000).  Our process is very consultative and comprehensive.  The better we know the client, the more efficient we can complete the search.

Since the start of 2014, we have been selected to support senior staff and executive searches with 7 companies that we have not worked with in our 27 year history.  How can we help your company meet business goals?

When reviewing our 2012 and 2013 senior staff to executive level placements, 36% were in the Accounting and Finance discipline, 21% in the Marketing and Sales discipline, 19% in the Engineering, Operations, and Supply Chain discipline, 14% in the Information Systems/Technology discipline, and 10% in the Human Resources discipline.   Our consultants bring over 150 years of applied business experience in multiple functional disciplines and business sectors; they average 18 years of applied business experience prior to joining B&B.  How can we help you and/or your company meet personal or business goals?

—In an independent customer satisfaction survey (Open Ratings – Past Performance Evaluation Survey (Dun & Bradstreet Company), we ranked top quintile when compared to other national search firms. Click here to read more.

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Talent Management

Wednesday, April 2, 2014  by julie

A key challenge for any company is finding and keeping employees who make an impact. It is imperative for a company to have a well-through talent management process in place. One approach may to designate talent into categories like “High Potential”, “Promotable”, and “Key/Expert Resource”. 

Below are some suggested definitions.

High Potential
Individuals with a history of exceptional/highly effective performance andthe potential and aspiration to move to considerably more complex leadership positions within accelerated timeframes.

Promotable
Individuals with a history of exceptional/highly effective performance, who have the ability for advancement,but may not have the same career projection as a High Potential.

Key/Expert Resource
Individuals with a history of exceptional/highly effective performance with subject-matter expertise of great value to the organization. Not likely to move to more senior leadership positions outside of their current function or business.

When evaluating talent, we suggest the categories be based on the following core components:

• Cognitive Skills
  • Conceptual or strategic thinking
  • Intellect, cognitive ability
  • Ability to deal with complexity/ambiguity
• Personality
  • Interpersonal skills, sociability
  • Dominance
  • Maturity/stability/resilience
  • Character/integrity/authenticity
  • Courage
• Learning Agility
  • Adaptability, flexibility and nimbleness
  • Learning orientation
  • Self-awareness
  • Openness to feedback
• Motivation
  • Drive, energy and engagement
  • Aspiration, ambition and an organizational commitment
  • Results orientation, appropriate risk-taking
• Leadership Skills
  • Leadership capabilities, inspiring passion, managing and empowering people
  • Building a talented team, developing others
  • Influencing, challenging the status quo, change management
• Performance
  • Track record of exceeding performance expectations
  • Leadership experiences

Succession planning is critical in today’s business environment. You should be ‘ahead of the curve’ so your talent bench is healthy and robust, and in place to support your business objectives. 

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