Vaco Appoints President
April 7, 2023 – Brentwood, TN-headquartered recruiting firm Vaco has appointed Kevin Witt as president. Mr. Witt joined Vaco in 2004 from his previous role as a senior manager in Ernst & Young’s tax consulting practice. He has held a variety of leadership positions throughout the nearly 20 years he has been with Vaco. Mr. Witt most recently was chief operating officer.
Vaco also named Sid Mitchener to the newly created position of executive VP of strategy and operations. In addition, Vaco promoted Kyle Allen to the newly created position of executive VP of sales and recruiting.
Mr. Mitchener joined Vaco in 2004, starting as a managing partner in its Raleigh, NC office. He was promoted over the years to more senior roles, the most recent being senior VP and executive partner.
Mr. Allen started with Vaco in 2012 after serving as an auditor at Ernst & Young and managing director of executive recruiting at Crowe Horwath. He was named partner of the Vaco’s Nashville office in 2016 and later became senior executive partner and VP in 2021.
Founded in 2002 by Jerry Bostelman, Jay Hollomon, and Mr. Waller, Vaco provides boutique-level service with global reach in executive search, consulting, permanent placement, and strategic staffing. Its areas of expertise include accounting, finance, technology, healthcare IT, operations, administration, and managed services. The firm operates more than 35 offices, with 780-plus employees and 4,300 consultants worldwide.
Leadership Appointments Rising at Recruiting Firms
Top leadership appointments, of men and women, have been gaining traction at executive search firms over the past year. Here’s a look at several examples taken from the Hunt Scanlon Media archives:
Executive search firm Gilman Partners has appointed Angel Beets as chief executive officer and Marci Pfeifer as chief operating officer. Tom Gilman, who has served as CEO since purchasing the firm in 2004, will take the role of chairman. “I’m very proud of what we’ve accomplished over the last 19 years,” said Mr. Gilman. “We have a great team that is known and well-respected in the business community, and consistently acts in our clients’ best interests to strengthen leadership teams and elevate the talent in our communities. I’m most proud of the client and community relationships we have built and our role as a trusted confidant on talent related matters. It’s time to let Angel and Marci lead us to the next level.”
Boyden has named Chad Hesters as its president and CEO, effective immediately. He succeeds Trina Gordon, who retires after 12 years as CEO, three years as chair, and more than 30 years as a managing partner at the firm. “Our global search for a leader to succeed our highly successful retiring CEO, Trina Gordon, has led us to another global executive, Chad Hesters,” said Craig Stevens, chair. “He has worked in over 20 countries and brings a comprehensive track record leading a complex leadership advisory business. His hallmark is a keen understanding of strategy while remaining close to clients and their evolving needs.” “I would like to pay tribute to Trina Gordon for her inspirational, values-driven leadership,” said Mr. Stevens. “As the first female CEO of a global executive search firm, Trina blazed the way for women leaders in our industry. While other professional services firms have taken a top-down corporate approach to strategy.”
Oak Brook, IL-based search firm WittKieffer has named Christina Boiler as its chief operating officer. “Christina is well known for inspiring organizations to achieve excellence and meaningful change,” said Andrew Chastain, president and CEO of WittKieffer. “She brings a unique, diverse skill-set developed through previous senior leadership roles while possessing an eager willingness to explore new opportunities and embrace strategies that will ultimately help us to serve our clients better. Her expertise will be invaluable to WittKieffer. We couldn’t be more thrilled to have her join our firm’s leadership team.” Ms. Boiler has more than 15 years of leadership experience across operations, strategy, business development, and finance in market-leading consulting organizations. She was previously a partner and led the North American global mobility business for the global consulting firm Mercer.
ChampionScott Partners (CSP), which specializes in senior-level appointments for technology and technology-enabled companies, has appointed Doug Kaplan as managing director and president. “We’re thrilled Doug is joining ChampionScott Partners,” said Geoff Champion, CEO. “Having had the pleasure of supporting his success as a candidate and client, we’re confident that he’ll add great value to our team. Doug joins a team of professionals who’ve led businesses as CEOs, served on boards and as senior executives led transformative growth initiatives globally. Our valued added IP and advisory expertise in support of our clients has never been stronger.” Mr. Kaplan has worked with ChampionScott Partners for 20 years as a client and candidate. He joins CSP as a top leader for SaaS / PaaS / IaaS solutions in the Industry 4.0 / IoT industries, compliance, professional training and certification and creative and digital staffing segments.
Global search firm H.I. Executive Consulting (HIEC) has named Stacey Mainiero as its CEO, based in New York. “It gives me great pleasure to welcome Stacey to HIEC during an exciting period for the firm,” said chairman Michael Bornhaeusser. We are a fast-growing organization focused on delivering transformational leaders for our digital focused clients and Stacey’s skills and experience will prove invaluable as HIEC enters the next phase of its growth acceleration journey with expansion into new markets and territories. I wish Stacey every success in her new role.”
Russell Reynolds Associates appointed Constantine Alexandrakis, currently head of the firm’s Americas region, as its new CEO succeeding Clarke Murphy, who will remain with the firm, transitioning back to full-time client work. “Constantine is a demonstrated leader who has an inspiring vision,” said Mr. Murphy. “With his global orientation, collaborative leadership, inclusive mindset, and passion for the business, I am confident that he will lead this organization forward with tremendous success. I am proud to be a part of the firm’s legacy and am looking forward to continuing to work with Constantine as he positions us for the future.” Mr. Alexandrakis served on the firm’s executive committee between 2015 and 2018 and in 2018 was appointed head of the Americas – including the U.S., Canada, and Latin America – overseeing the firm’s growth and expansion in the region.
Related: Vaco Acquires BVOH
Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief; Dale M. Zupsansky, Managing Editor; and Stephen Sawicki, Managing Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media
