Case Study:
Capital Group
When connecting with Maxwell Stephens I felt a renewed sense of confidence and positivity. They clearly understood my background, experience and skill set and immediately set to task. A matter of a few weeks later Peter secured me an interview for a great role that was the right level and matched my experience etc. I would absolutely recommend Maxwell Stephens and specifically Peter. I would definitely use them again.
Background
Founded in 1931, the Capital Group is one of the world’s largest and most trusted investment management companies and home to the American Funds.
They are truly a global organisation, managing more than US$1.8 trillion in assets, and our 7,500 associates across 31 offices make our clients their first priority every day.
Capital Group approached Maxwell Stephens to support in the recruitment of an Office Services Senior Manager. We undertook this high level executive search and selection on an exclusive retained basis meaning that Maxwell Stephens acted as the sole recruiter on this assignment.
The Position
As a Senior Manager of Office Services based in London, the post holder is responsible for Capital Group’s physical work environment and associate services supporting Capital’s businesses, culture and core values.
The successful candidate would oversee the facility operations and office related services for the London office, comprised of over 400 associates occupying 103,000 square feet of high end office space in central London.
Budget management was a key consideration for the post, as the Senior Manager position would be required to manage a significant £3 million budget. Working with a team of eleven associates, the post holder provides services and oversees planning, development and management of processes, procedures and best practices.
They also have responsibility for the implementation of appropriate service levels based on cultural alignment, cost analysis of options, business needs, and in-depth knowledge of current groups and future projects across the Capital organisation.
The Senior Manager of Office Services acts as the main Capital Group contact with the building landlord and the landlord’s managing agent, with responsibility for coordinating operations with the landlord to insure a high quality office environment is provided and maintained. In addition they also consult with site leadership to assess, recommend and take action on urgent and/or highly visible business events (e.g., safety and security response issues, business continuity events, crisis management, large events etc.)
The Candidate
Due to the seniority of the role, as well as the high corporate level the post holder would be operating in, it was vital that candidates have the ability to influence senior business leaders on strategic business matters, requiring a highly articulate, confident professional with natural gravitas.
The significant people management involved in the role required candidates to be experienced in operational leadership with team leadership responsibilities, ideally in a building management related field.
An ability to collaborate, develop / maintain relationships, plan processes and coordinate work among a diverse group of external third parties is paramount for the role. This includes relationships with vendors, landlords, consultants and regulatory authorities, as well as internal business functions (legal, risk and compliance, purchasing, etc.)
Capital Group have a clear corporate culture and a defined shared values that include absolute integrity, respect and collaboration, and they needed a professional who would fit in with this culture and the organisation team of smart and highly driven people
They were looking for a candidate to bring energy and unique perspective to Capital and be part of a team that genuinely cares about helping them succeed.
I worked recently with Maxwell Stephen after leaving a company where I had been employed for 20 years. I have to say that returning to the recruitment process after such a long time away was daunting and significantly different, especially with so much focus on using social media for direct “faceless” applications. When connecting with Maxwell Stephens, on a more traditional agency route and speaking with Peter, I felt a renewed sense of confidence and positivity around securing a new opportunity.
They clearly understood my background, experience and skill set and immediately set to task. A matter of a few weeks later they secured me an interview for a great role that was the right level and matched my experience etc. They kept me informed throughout the process; provided a great brief (in addition to the job specification), and always followed up in a timely manner. I would absolutely recommend Maxwell Stephens. I would definitely use them again.