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Heads: Business Lessons from an Executive Search Pioneer
The behind-the-scenes story of how a headhunting pioneer helped shape an industry
Born in Greenwich, Connecticut, Reynolds graduated from Philips Exeter and Yale before joining the U.S. Air Force as a navigator-bombardier in a B-36. After his stint in the military, Reynolds returned to J.P. Morgan as a lending officer, where he learned the lessons and began making the connections that would drive his long and illustrious career.
Reynolds's first foray into the executive recruiting industry he helped influence was with the New York search firm William H. Clark Associates. He quickly displayed his talents as a recruiter, and three short years later, on October 2, 1969, he founded Russell Reynolds Associates (RRA). That's when the executive search business changed--for the better. Until then, the general feeling among business professionals was that executive search firms simply took advantage of easy access to corporate money without delivering real value to clients. With smart, forward-looking, disciplined marketing, Reynolds helped establish executive search professionals as important elements in the smooth running of American business--all while opening new offices around the world.
Filled with cameo appearances by some of the twentieth-century's greatest business titans, "Heads "is the fascinating story not only of how RRA became one of the world's most influential executive search firms but also of how one man transformed an industry.
Born in Greenwich, Connecticut, Reynolds graduated from Philips Exeter and Yale before joining the U.S. Air Force as a navigator-bombardier in a B-36. After his stint in the military, Reynolds returned to J.P. Morgan as a lending officer, where he learned the lessons and began making the connections that would drive his long and illustrious career.
Reynolds's first foray into the executive recruiting industry he helped influence was with the New York search firm William H. Clark Associates. He quickly displayed his talents as a recruiter, and three short years later, on October 2, 1969, he founded Russell Reynolds Associates (RRA). That's when the executive search business changed--for the better. Until then, the general feeling among business professionals was that executive search firms simply took advantage of easy access to corporate money without delivering real value to clients. With smart, forward-looking, disciplined marketing, Reynolds helped establish executive search professionals as important elements in the smooth running of American business--all while opening new offices around the world.
Filled with cameo appearances by some of the twentieth-century's greatest business titans, "Heads "is the fascinating story not only of how RRA became one of the world's most influential executive search firms but also of how one man transformed an industry.
- GenresBusiness
224 pages, Hardcover
First published May 21, 2012
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January 25, 2016The Real satisfaction in life comes from trying to do a simple thing well and keeping at it. Born in Connecticut, Reynolds worked in the US air force before joining J. P. Morgan. His experience led him to set up an Executive Search company Russell Reynolds and Associates in 1969 and he shares his learnings in the book on how the face of this industry changed.
When you give bright young people a chance, there is no limit to which they can go. Leaders are bound by their past decision and actions. An executive's business performance: the sum of what he/she creates reflect basic values which are a common denominator of executive search as well as everyday life.
Life's drawings are as important now as they have ever been. We are born with certain talents. To develop them to the fullest, in a balanced way, is the key to the equilibrium we seek in whatever we do. Success is measured everyday, not at the end of a lifetime.
If you want to succeed in life and in business, you should commit yourself to those people, organizations and institutions that appeal to you and you respect. You will not always be pleased, you will often be disappointed. But if you made the right decision to begin with, you will be more than vindicated over a period of time.
When you give bright young people a chance, there is no limit to which they can go. Leaders are bound by their past decision and actions. An executive's business performance: the sum of what he/she creates reflect basic values which are a common denominator of executive search as well as everyday life.
Life's drawings are as important now as they have ever been. We are born with certain talents. To develop them to the fullest, in a balanced way, is the key to the equilibrium we seek in whatever we do. Success is measured everyday, not at the end of a lifetime.
If you want to succeed in life and in business, you should commit yourself to those people, organizations and institutions that appeal to you and you respect. You will not always be pleased, you will often be disappointed. But if you made the right decision to begin with, you will be more than vindicated over a period of time.
January 20, 2016
The book is more memoir than business lessons, and it leaves the distinct impression that success in executive search is all about your family connections, school chums, and social standing.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews