Odgers Berndtson Acquires HR Specialist Charleston Partners
February 22, 2016 – Odgers Berndtson has acquired Charleston Partners, an executive search and talent advisory firm that exclusively recruits HR professionals and advises on human capital management issues. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Francis Luisi, founding principal of Charleston Partners, will lead the Odgers Berndtson U.S. HR practice and will work from the firm’s New York and Houston offices.
Mr. Luisi has a long history recruiting human resource and talent management executives, ranging from chief human resource officers (CHROs) to broad-based senior level HR business partners and functional specialists. He has placed global human resource talent at multinational companies in North America, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Asia Pacific and throughout the emerging markets.
Mr. Luisi has conducted a number of CHRO and senior level assignments within global energy, media, non-profit, healthcare, consumer products, and the financial services industry sectors.
“This acquisition and new relationship for us strongly bolsters Odgers Berndtson’s global HR recruiting expertise,” said Steve Potter, managing partner for Odgers’ U.S. operations. “Fran understands the power that his numerous relationships can have on a multi-practice firm such as ours. His connections span every business at the highest levels and his unparalleled experience will greatly enhance our success in recruiting across all of our practices,” he added.
“Odgers Berndtson is one of the few sophisticated strategic boutique search firms with a global platform that touches every market and industry sector,” said Mr. Luisi. “And the firm embraces an entrepreneurial culture. That attracted me.”
Mr. Luisi said top drawer HR execs are in great demand today. “There’s tremendous opportunity,” he said. “As organizations and the function itself goes through transformation and change, progressive and sophisticated HR executives are in need.” He said it all comes from the strong human capital agenda that boards and CEOs of many companies now have in place.
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Demand for C-level HR executives is indeed rising, according to other recruiters and talent acquisition specialists working in the function, as upbeat U.S. hiring forecasts point to a growing sense of urgency within the HR community to prepare and plan for potential talent shortages.
Recent hiring trends show that a full one-third of companies polled said their organizations were hiring for HR positions, including CHRO. This number is up from 20 percent just 18 months ago.
This research concurs with findings from Hunt Scanlon CHRO surveys which indicate that as large companies bring their more significant executive recruiting work in-house, there is a developing need for top-flight CHROs who can oversee the entire corporate personnel continuum, from top to bottom.
Contributed by Dale M. Zupsansky, Managing Editor, Hunt Scanlon Media
