Tell me about yourself — what got you into this work, and how long have you been doing it?
A phone call. In my early twenties, living in Baltimore, chasing what was my fantasy job then — selling stereo equipment! I’d been an audiophile since my early teens, and spent three and a half years working with customers from all over North America. Everything from mainstream Pioneer receivers and Technics turntables to luxury brands like Ohm, Infinity, Lux, and Nakamichi.
One day I’m on the phone with an audiophile in New York City, and something about him is different. I’m curious enough to ask what he does. “I’m a headhunter.” What’s that? And he gives me the most starry-eyed description of that profession I’ve ever heard — even now: “I jet around the country, meeting top executives, discussing new opportunities with them.” My instant reaction was pure Liz Lemon: I want to go to there.
When I moved to Dallas a couple of years later, that’s the job I looked for — and landed, at Management Recruiters International. What I didn’t realize was that MRI was contingency recruiting, not the high-level work my customer had described. And I struggled. Twelve-hour days were common and I couldn’t break through. The mindset was alien to me, and I didn’t like some of the less-than-above-board techniques the business ran on back then.
I realized I needed more of something and turned to self-awareness seminars and communications courses for help. One of my best decisions ever — within a week I made my first placement, inception to close in five days flat. By year’s end I’d earned a trip to Acapulco for top performers.
MRI’s management training class confirmed a growing concern: despite my success with them, we simply weren’t a match. “Why don’t you start your own practice?” asked my girlfriend at the time. And so — despite my inner panic — I hung out my own shingle.
Within two or three years I’d moved from contingency to exclusives to retained search. Everything since then has been retained search or contract engagements, with one corporate chapter building the Talent Acquisition function for PCI.
Do you have a specialty?
Initially, tech. IT specialists and managers, software developers. Over time the focus narrowed to CIOs and CTOs.
But after the dotcom bust, I began to wonder: was my value vertical-specific, or the craft itself? I suspected the latter. So I put it to the test. First retail, as I had a background in that. No problem. Then hospitality — a leading family dining chain needed a new Director of Strategy, a field in which I had no experience whatsoever. Within a few weeks I’d built a solid network, identified the leaders in that space, made contact, and submitted the top three. What struck me was how they cared far more about who I was — my experience, character, and professionalism — than whether I’d spent twenty years in their vertical.
And the pattern held. Inside Sales Specialists at PCI: same result. Director of Government Relations: same. Transportation: same again.
I may hit a wall someday. I just haven’t found a reason to expect one.
At present, tech remains our primary focus. But we’re definitely open to helping the right leadership team in other spaces. Specialization in recruiting is a double-edged sword. At first glance, an existing network may (understandably) look like an advantage. But an experienced recruiting firm with a narrow focus also has a long list of off-limits prospects — candidates with client companies are untouchable.
For DR&C, “Who” is more important than “What.”
What differentiates you?
Honestly? There’s simply something different about me — and people, especially the most successful ones, seem to recognize it and respond in kind. Even when they’re not in the market.
Part of it is simple: I don’t lie to them. I treat everyone the way I’d want to be treated if the shoe were on the other foot. And I read people uncommonly fast, with a high degree of accuracy. Emerson had it right: “A man cannot utter two or three sentences, without disclosing to intelligent ears precisely where he stands in life and thought.”
Another piece of the puzzle is preparation. For new clients, our prep is painstaking — I’m a believer in the axe-sharpening line attributed to Lincoln. To truly operate as an extension of you, we need to see who you are and understand where you live, metaphorically speaking. Your character. Your culture. Your tribe. Who belongs with you?
Remember how we made friends in school? No one was interviewed. We just hung around each other, finding our future besties by instinct. Even as kids — one could almost say especially as kids — we recognized kindred spirits. We knew who was in and who was out. Recruiting, hiring, and dating have a lot in common: either “it” is there, or it isn’t.
For candidates and prospects: no volcano pitches, aka spewing. We’d rather simply learn what makes you tick. The work you’re proudest of. Your priorities for your future. What opportunities make sense to at least look at, relative to those? Does it feel like both sides — you and my client — might be the same tribe?
Put another way, it’s a clean relationship — I will level with you, and expect the same in return.
None of this describes everything. But true matches are made on character, ambitions, values, track records — and intuition.
Some successes? And lessons from failures?
Let’s start with the successes — although the failures may be more illuminating. At least, they have been for me.
The first was a well-funded software startup with a team of exceptional and experienced leaders. Their culture? Two words: adults only. I have to admit I laughed when I heard it — talk about the epitome of succinct — but I knew immediately I could work with it.
The mission: attract and land world-class talent to ensure a successful IPO. The result: the best two developers from a major competitor, the leading support wiz from another, a couple of other top performers with national reputations — and the cherry on top, the “untouchable” number one person in their space, who once aboard spearheaded a new product line. Now street ready, their successful IPO exceeded expectations.
In the corporate world, I led the creation and development of the Talent Acquisition function for a leading publishing and marketing firm. We turned around an underperforming sales team that comprised 80% of our headcount, hiring over 400 new associates. A 50% jump in annual revenue — $12M to $18M in four years — positioned us to acquire our top competitor, for a combined value of $30M. And we topped the Best Places to Work lists at both the local and state levels. Before leaving, I recruited a successor to ensure leadership continuity.
As previously alluded, learning from my failures required some serious introspection.
And it was, in fact, what spawned A Trillion Dollars of Good.
I came to realize I was the poster boy for a Warren Buffett chestnut:
“The difference between successful people and really successful people is that really successful people say no to almost everything.”
I realized my failures all shared a common trait: I should never have said yes. So I learned the hard way a simple truth I was in self-denial about for way too long: no, I cannot help staff or build any enterprise. Ones on the right track, with the right culture, and above all the right leadership, we usually did very well for. Others? Not so much. Too many sinking ships I mistook for being one David Reff & Company assist from success.
Do you only take on big projects, or are you open to shorter engagements in between? Also, how do you charge for your work?
Simply put: I enjoy helping highly intelligent and capable leaders achieve their dreams. The bigger the dream, the more fun the mission. I also thrive on challenge — a walking cliché in that regard, but it couldn’t be more true. As Walt Disney put it, “It’s kind of fun to do the impossible.”
That said — yes, we’re generally available for shorter engagements, or one-offs, as time permits. As long as I’m reasonably confident we can help move the needle. Also, a single project or pilot search doubles as a solid proof of concept for what the future could hold.
Financially, our model flexes based on the type and duration of the project. Typically, on a retained, contract, or fractional basis. Straight cash, or a blend of cash and equity. If you’re serious, let’s talk — more often than not, something can be worked out.