Diversified Search Group Appoints Co-Head of Board and Governance Practice
October 2, 2023 – Diversified Search Group (DSG), a leading search firm backed by private equity firm ShoreView Industries, has named Lauren E. Smith as co-head of its board and governance practice. She will be expected to help expand the firm’s impact in the boardroom. Ms. Smith will share leadership of the practice with Veronica Biggins.
“Lauren’s passion for how our firm can make a difference in the boardroom is infectious. I am thrilled to have her join Veronica Biggins, who founded our practice, and is a widely recognized and highly regarded leader in the industry,” said Aileen Alexander, CEO. “Working together in this growing area will enable us to expand our reach to have an impact in even more corporate boardrooms.”
“Lauren has been instrumental in contributing to the growth of our board practice over the last decade,” said Judith von Seldeneck, founder and chair of Diversified Search. “She is known for her strong relationships with both clients and candidates and her insightful engagement with boards. We are excited to have her step into this leadership role.”
Ms. Smith has earned a national reputation for her work in the boardroom with the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) and was again named to the NACD Directorship 100 as a top governance professional. She is the current chair, nominating and governance, and past president, NACD Florida Chapter and a NACD certified director. Ms. Smith joined Diversified Search Group in 2008 as managing director and has recruited senior executives from a broad range of industries for C-suite and boardroom positions. She conducts senior-level executive search assignments for clients ranging from high-growth early-stage organizations to multinational corporations, specializing in working with companies that are growing and/or transforming into new markets and businesses.
Ms. Smith has placed executives and/or board members at clients such as Apple, Citrix, Comfort Systems, DHL, Kaplan Inc., Novell, Office Depot, Polyconcept, Ryder, Sheridan Healthcare, Tupperware, and Winn-Dixie. In addition, she has co-led board searches for a number of Fortune 500 boards, including Jacobs Engineering Corp. Fifth Third Bank, and Navient Corp. Ms. Smith started her search career in 2000, where she helped design and execute Egon Zehnder’s first board assessments. Before entering the executive search industry, she held marketing and strategy leadership roles at two Fortune 50 companies Westinghouse Electric Corporation and Motorola Inc.
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“So many companies are transforming to face today’s dynamic world and the changing technology landscape – the right board and board structure can help them do so more effectively,” said Ms. Smith. “Our firm is uniquely positioned to help companies to build strategic asset boards with multi-dimensional diversity and I am looking forward to co-leading the growth of our board practice.”
Family of Recruiting Firms
Diversified Search Group is a family of recruiting firms serving specialized sectors. The firm was founded almost five decades ago by Ms. von Seldeneck for the express purpose of placing diverse candidates in client organizations. It is today the largest U.S. female-owned and founded firm in the executive recruitment industry. It is comprised of a combination of specialty practices with deep industry expertise under industry recognized brands, including Alta Associates, BioQuest, Koya Partners, Grant Cooper, and Storbeck Search.
Diversified Search Group recently named Megan Shattuck as global managing partner of its corporate business. Drawing on over 25 years of experience in media, journalism, and advising Fortune 500 public and private company CEOs and boards, she will lead Diversified Search Group’s global corporate business across executive search, board advisory and governance, corporate affairs, client development, and the expansion of products and partnerships contributing to the growth of the firm. Ms. Shattuck, who will be based in New York, joins as a member of the executive management team and will work closely with Ms. Alexander.
Ms. Shattuck has a track record of advising leadership teams with advice across performance, culture, and talent advisory. She has conducted hundreds of board director and executive search assignments representing a range of industries spanning Fortune 10 to pre-IPO. She has expertise in company transformation, board advisory, corporate governance, corporate affairs, and reputational risk management.
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Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief; Dale M. Zupsansky, Managing Editor; and Stephen Sawicki, Managing Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media
