SkyWater Blog

Regional Executive Search Firms Have an Undeniable Edge in  Executive Recruiting

Finding the right person for any executive role is a recruiting challenge every organization eventually needs to take. Historically, Fortune 500 companies have hired multi-national search firms to fill executive roles. The logic behind this seems to make sense: large positions can only be filled by large firms right? Think again. In the last few years, we have seen a trend emerge where companies are interested in a more intimate and focused search approach than what a large national recruiting firm can offer. 

As we start 2022, there are a lot of dynamics in the market.

As leaders throughout the Twin Cities investment community are well aware, the competition for investment management and executive talent has grown increasingly fierce over the past two years. In response to the growing demand for executive recruiting expertise in this area, SkyWaterSearch Partners is pleased to announce the launch of our new Financial Services Practice area, to be led by Julie Amende.

This time last year, millions of Americans had lost their jobs. Millions more remained employed but fearful of what the future might hold. For employers, it was an equally strange and unpredictable time. Hiring managers routinely saw competitive offers rebuffed by candidates who might have been tempted but were ultimately unwilling to risk leaving the relative stability of their current positions.

Working from home has been a wildly varied experience for Twin Cities attorneys since the onset of COVID. For some, it’s been a time of newfound efficiencies and a welcome break from daily commutes. But for others, it has been an exhausting moment of truth. Not surprisingly, these very different pandemic experiences can be neatly organized along gender lines.

A trend is emerging among mid-market, publicly traded companies that we'd like to share: The perfect candidate profile for a Chief Financial Officer is shifting. I'll explain who we're being asked to find, why, and how this impacts you...

While the events of the past eighteen months have driven major disruptions to hiring and staffing processes throughout the business world, few leadership roles have been as impacted as that of the CFO. Today, as organizational leaders continue to sort through the lessons learned from this challenging and unprecedented time, there is growing recognition of the importance and influence of the CFO position.

It goes without saying that 2020 was tremendously unique year. Through it all, we've done our best to broadcast the industry trends that we have been able to observe through our access to the job market in the industries we serve. Recently, we shared the single biggest hiring mistake we've seen in 2020, which speaks to a trend we saw of companies freezing their hiring of key leadership roles out of caution. 

In the eight years since SkyWater Search Partners first opened our doors, we have partnered with law firms and corporate legal departments to match highly talented attorneys with exceptional career opportunities throughout the Twin Cities and Upper Midwest. In response to growing client demand, we recently made a strategic decision to expand our legal practice and bring in a leader with the experience and insights to oversee that growth.

SkyWater Search Partners has been recognized by Forbes Magazine as a Top Executive Recruiting Firm in its 2020 ranking of America’s Best Executive Recruiting Firms. Compiled by analytics firm Statista, this year’s Forbes rankings were based on a survey of more than 18,000 participants. While thousands of firms across the country were considered for inclusion, SkyWater Search Partners was one of only 200 firms that made the list, including only 3 in Minnesota.

Whether you’re an experienced telecommuter, or this is the first time you’ve ever set up a virtual work station, the truth is: nobody has worked from home like this before.

Over the past few weeks, we’ve been tapping into our favorite resources, gathering up some of the best tips we can find on how to survive – and thrive – during quarantine-forced telecommuting. We’ve found a lot of solid advice out there from very seasoned, highly successful professionals who have been doing this for years. These are people who know all the tricks for staying productive, engaged, and happy as full-time telecommuters.