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In need of a Vice President of Development, Beech Acres Parenting Center used the Executive Search services of Smith Beers Yunker & Company. Looking back on the experience, Beech Acres President and CEO Jim Mason comments on what he calls the “Smith Beers Yunker difference. It was all very customer driven and personalized,” he says, “not a canned approach.”
“They met with our leadership staff and got a clear understanding of our organizational culture, our fundraising history and our current challenges,” says Jim Mason. “Then they used a very effective survey method to help us create a profile of the kind of development officer who would best fit into our culture. Candidates were evaluated according to this profile and, as a result, the candidates that were presented to us were exact matches for our needs.”
Commenting further on the process, Chief Operating Officer Diane Jordan-Grizzard observes that the approach taken by Smith Beers Yunker enabled Beech Acres leaders to “really pinpoint our true needs and gave us confidence in selecting the person who would best fill those needs. Jim Yunker also provided a lot of insight into the development field and development trends overall, so we could further understand the role this new person would play in our strategic planning for the future.”
Speaking from the perspective of the winning candidate, Jay Fridy expresses appreciation for the respectful and timely communication he received from Smith Beers Yunker throughout the selection process. “When you’re being considered for a new position,” he says, “any lack of communication breeds anxiety. I found the timeliness of communication from Jim Yunker to be not only rare, but also incredibly valuable as it kept me informed of where they were in the decision-making process. I think this approach shows great respect for candidates and a high level of professionalism on the part of Smith Beers Yunker. Also, the insight Jim gave me into the Beech Acres culture was helpful in my decision to accept the position. The more I learned, the more excited I got, so there was no question this was the right move for me.”
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