When I started JMA back in late 2013, I honestly had no idea how things would pan out. Looking back, other than the obvious difference of having to run a business as well as place top talent, the single biggest – and most enjoyable – change has been moving from being a local to a global headhunter. Below, I share some of the rollercoaster ride, and what I’ve learnt along the way.
Pre-JMA
Before setting up JMA, I spent 13 years happily building up experience in certain sub-sectors of consumer industries in the UK. Starting a blank page of a dot-to-dot puzzle in 2000, with time and dedication to the craft, I’d managed to create a filled-in, technicolour picture.
Sure, 10% of the searches I led had some sort of international dimension, but most of my time was spent interviewing UK candidates for UK businesses – mostly located in the Southeast of England! Even though this lack of breadth meant my job became a little repetitive at times, the upside was that the candidate pool was finite and I knew it intimately, so there was a good “product-market fit”.
When I was asked to serve UK clients overseas, or overseas clients looking to hire internationally, it was of course do-able, but out of the ordinary. Such searches represented another country in more ways than one, and the learning I gained from them was always wonderful.
JMA Onwards
Within weeks of hanging out JMA’s shingle, we were retained by one of the UK’s best-known FTSE 100 companies to find them a Head of Retail. More of the same, I thought. Despite (ahem) not yet having any colleagues, a database or even a stable internet connection, my existing market knowledge led our client to hire someone I’d known for many years. (Funnily enough, they’re still there, having received multiple promotions.)
From then onward, a burgeoning, far more international client base delivered curve ball after curve ball. Over the next two years alone, we were called upon to – and did – place senior executives in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Asia Pacific and North America. I don’t mind admitting that going so far out of my former comfort zone was at times a white-knuckle ride, but the learning curve was as tremendous as it was steep – and we placed some great talent.
Along the way, two important things happened: within three years, former client Sarah Beauerle joined JMA to lead our operations in the Americas, and we hired a team in the US, Canada, the UK and Europe to power the delivery engine.
Fast forward to today: cross-border search is our bread and butter, we’ve placed candidates of more than 20 nationalities to over 30 countries, and we provide clients with a global solution for their talent needs.
Challenges Overcome
I’ll not lie: achieving what we have has been far more difficult and labour intensive than focusing on a single market ever would have been. This is because it requires:
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Tapping into the best talent in any country or region instantly, as effectively as a top local firm
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Becoming experts in global, regional and local companies in every consumer sub-sector, and often beyond
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Deploying resource and seamlessly managing candidate, client and team logistics across time zones on a daily basis
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Constantly explaining to people why a UK-based, yet globally dispersed micro-boutique search firm was doing this at all!
I’m proud to say that clients, particularly our multinational clients, appreciate our global perspective, coverage and one-team approach. I’m also delighted that the vast majority of our placements have excelled, with many being promoted multiple times.
Learning
What are the top things I’ve learned about doing things this way?
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It requires a system: no longer being able to rely on a relatively limited candidate pool based mostly in one market requires a rigorous system staffed by a talented, highly drilled team
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It requires expertise: being an expert in one market requires knowing who the best talent is; working globally every day requires building serious expertise in how to find it quickly
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It’s hugely enriching: serving clients, speaking to candidates and collaborating with colleagues across borders every day has been more rewarding than I could ever have imagined, and what makes my and my colleagues’ job so enjoyable
From San Francisco to Sydney
From its inception, JMA has been global in almost every aspect. Sourcing and placing talent from San Francisco to Sydney is in our DNA, and we need to be globally minded, curious and industrious to do it.
Whether you’re a client, candidate, colleague or one of our many cheerers-on, I’d like to thank you for making JMA’s global journey possible. Repaying your trust has been an inspiring challenge, a formidable education and a huge privilege rolled into one.