Case studies and client testimonials

Case study:           Finance Director - Manufacturing Company in Renewable Energy

A private equity backed company in the renewable energy sector with multiple manufacturing sites around the world was looking for a Finance Director for their global maintenance services division to play a key role in strategic planning and in defining their mission and goals.

The process was coordinated by the division’s Director HR, who provided a thorough job profile, facilitated meetings with the division’s General Manager and Group CFO for additional input on the position, and played a key role in setting up interviews with the preferred candidates. The interview process was made difficult by international travel demands of the decision makers involved.

After in-depth meetings with the Director HR and hiring managers concerning the job profile, it took two weeks to introduce the perfect candidate. After three rounds of interviews with the decision making team as well as with four more future colleagues, the position was offered with a unanimous buy-in from all. The employment contract was signed five weeks after the candidate’s first meeting.

Client testimonial (Director Human Resources):

“Due to the good working relationship on financial recruitment, I invited Bastiaan Fontein to pitch for this executive level position. During this meeting, it didn’t take long before I was convinced that I didn’t need to look elsewhere. From my perspective, this was not a straight forward job profile, due to the complexity of the company situation. Bastiaan put time and effort into learning what we needed and showed a full understanding of the way the company was organized, the company’s culture, the company’s situation and the implications for the position. Subsequently, he was able to deliver which he did swiftly. The first candidate was introduced after a couple of weeks and we ended up appointing him. We didn’t need to see other candidates as this person seemed to be the perfect match and has proved he is.”

 

Case study: Finance & IT Director - Global Leader in Building Products

Multibillion premium listed manufacturing company in building products was looking for one of their European divisions with some 1,350 employees and 30 locations in Europe, for a Finance & IT Director with a track record in change management and IT project management within a manufacturing and listed multinational company.

The initial brief was provided by the company’s Director Organisational Development, who provided information about the history, current situation, strategy and outlook of the company and vacant position, including but not limited to the culture of the company and its focus on growth. The additional brief was given by the hiring manager, the Managing Director, who was looking for a sparring partner.

In the third week after the kick-off, a shortlist of candidates was introduced. After a string of well-planned interviews with the client, references were taken from previous managers on the preferred candidate, and an agreement on the terms of employment was established four weeks after the client and candidate first met.

Client testimonial (Director HR & Organisational Development):

“During the process I have noticed that the approach of Bastiaan Fontein is characterised by a high level of efficiency. We had personal contact on a regular basis and there was a lot of attention for the desired personality of the candidate. Of course, the functional qualities of the candidate are important, but equally important is the chemistry of the candidate with the various team members: you hire for attitude, you train for skills. We were very impressed when Bastiaan needed relatively little time to find the perfect candidate.”