WCA is the only communications search firm in the country whose founder and president (yours truly) brings to each engagement the perspective of more than 30 years’ success in the communications search arena, a pre-search business career in corporate communications and agency public relations, and formal training as a management consultant. I personally lead every search that WCA undertakes. We take a “no surprises” approach to search and our record speaks for itself:

• We present a slate of “benchmark candidates” 25 to 30 business days from beginning a search
• One of these individuals has been hired into the position we’re recruiting more that 80 percent of the time
• Nearly 98 percent of these individuals have remained in the position for which they were recruited 18 months (or more) after joining our clients
• According to available LinkedIn data, they remained with their positions (some were promoted) an average of 6.8 years with many staying more than 15 years.

Absolutely.

I believe corporate communications and public relations search clients (as well as the engagement itself) can benefit from the perspective of an individual who, in addition to a strong track record in communications search, has worked in their profession, possesses an “in the trenches” understanding of what they do, appreciates the business environment in which they operate, and based on his body of experience has developed a bias for linking communications strategy with organizational success.

To briefly elaborate on the “communications” piece, my experience in this arena included the management of annual reports, executive speechwriting, marketing communications, special events, media relations, and planning and implementation of communications programs that tangibly “moved the needle.” Employers/clients included McKesson, The Golden Gate Bridge, Burson-Marsteller, Booz Allen & Hamilton, the Federal Reserve Bank of Mexico, and Merrill Lynch. This was a time of public relations/communications “generalists” and I found that I particularly enjoyed helping clients solve business challenges with communications solutions, learning about new industries and businesses, and constantly developing new skills. This forms the foundation of my search work.

Finally, candidates know that the individual who brings them into the recruiting process has a first-hand understanding of their background, skills, and experience. And most important, how these might be leveraged into their next career opportunity.

I received training as a management consultant at Booz Allen Hamilton in preparation for assuming a marketing and communications management role in the firm’s Technology Management Group. The Managing Partner of the group believed I could best represent it in the marketplace if I understood, first hand, the firm’s consulting “product.” So I went through the same rigorous ‘boot camp’ as every newly-hired consultant.

My class included new MBAs from such institutions as Harvard, Columbia, University of Chicago, and Stanford (as well as seasoned business professionals and one MD). I was immersed (20/7) in an intensive program: Theory and Practice of Management Consulting. This was a formalized process-based approach to business problem-solving that the firm had developed, and fine-tuned over time, to analyze and solve a variety of business challenges faced by clients globally (Think Six Sigma.). I subsequently leveraged this process in my PR work and found that it is even more applicable in the search field. It was a career-building experience that I’m happy to discuss in greater depth with anyone interested.

Ours is pretty simple and has five guiding principles:

• “Excellence is habit-forming.” Although we weren’t there, Aristotle reportedly first floated this idea around 340 B.C. when he said: “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” That was one of our “start-up” benchmarks and it’s what we shoot for in every engagement we undertake.
• Search is a “team sport.” An ongoing collaboration between the search firm and the client, based on mutual understanding of objectives and expectations formed at the beginning of an engagement and on honest and timely communication throughout the search process.
• At the foundation of any successful engagement is a solid grasp of the business of our clients; the industries in which they operate and the markets they serve; their strategic objectives; the competitive marketplace issues that they face; and linkages between communications strategy and organizational success.
• On the communications front we need to know, at the very least, the internal and external communications challenges the organization faces; the role the successful candidate will assume in the organization. And finally, the deliverables: The criteria against which that individual’s success will be measured in six months, a year, five years.
• Our long-term growth will be determined by the degree to which we contribute to the success of our clients and to the careers of the professionals we help bring into their organizations.

These ideas inform every engagement we undertake.

Our model is to present a slate of “benchmark” candidates to clients within twenty to thirty business days after beginning an assignment. While we may present additional candidates subsequent to the benchmark presentation, one of the benchmarks has usually received and accepted the offer.
We always discuss timing issues before the search begins and this timeframe can be compressed to address particularly urgent situations.

We’re asked this frequently and the answer is: “As soon as possible, consistent with identifying and recruiting the right candidate.”  As noted elsewhere we present an initial slate of candidates from between 20 to 30 days from beginning an engagement—and one of these is usually the successful candidate.  But such unpredictable issues as travel schedules, conflicting calendars, and holidays might affect the process after we present candidates.  We discuss any particular matters of urgency with before we begin a search and, if possible, adjust our process accordingly.

Nope.

The WCA search process is based on a constantly evolving consulting model that has been used successfully in a broad variety of industries and functions. On occasion, in fact, we’ve consulted with clients to help them develop Position Descriptions “from scratch” for new business they were in the process of creating and then went on to successfully recruit for those positions.

First, we should point out that this has happened only twice in 30 years.

But in the rare event that it should happen again, we will attempt to replace, on an expenses-only basis, any candidate who leaves a client’s employ within a year of the start date. This guarantee will not apply if the departure is caused by such unexpected events as mergers, acquisitions, downsizing, or changes in management.

An obvious answer would be, “A great client and outstanding candidates…and closure.”

But here are some other considerations:

• The “buy-in” by all partners at the beginning of an engagement that we’re involved in a collaborative effort requiring close coordination between the client and the search firm
• Mutual understanding of expectations
• Thorough search firm understanding of the client culture, its businesses, competitive issues, potential communications strategy/business strategy linkages, the role the candidate will be expected to assume in the organization, and the criteria against which her or his success will be measured in the first six months, the first year, eighteen months, and the longer- term.
• A timetable for “deliverables”
• Clear and honest communications throughout the search process — formal (regular reports) and informal (as needed). The operative phrase is “no surprises.”

And finally, results. Here are some of our search metrics.