Satellite Executive Matchmaker Service Takes Off

[Satellite News 08-22-08] Global Satcom Connections founder C.J. Foster and her partner John Dugan say their organization, which matches executives with employment, was created because of high demand.
    “When I pitched the idea to executives, the amount of response I got was incredible,” said Foster. “I did not just test the market. I spoke to executives at conferences. Every single person that I floated the idea by said that they needed this kind of service.”
    Foster and Dugan’s company, which introduced itself to the industry on Aug. 20, is based on separating themselves from the practice of headhunting and taking on the philosophy of a matchmaker. In other words, they work to find specific types of employees and work closely with their clients to make sure they achieve the perfect fit. Satellite News news editor Jeffrey Hill spoke with Foster and Dugan about their new service and hiring trends the two have seen since creating Global Satcom Connections.

Foster: I look at headhunting as some of the terminology that’s been around since I got into corporate businesses. Headhunting firms will take 10, 15 or 20 resumes and just start shooting them out and hopefully they will have something that catches the interest of the hiring manager. The way I am approaching this is by matching a company with a specific personality. I have been in this business for 20 years and know it very well. I know the history of these companies and who has moved up the ladder and who are their top sales people and so on. Our service is tailored specifically to the satellite industry.

Dugan: The term ‘headhunter’ has various interpretations. Anyone could throw a shingle out their door and call themselves a headhunter for the satellite industry. I would like to think Global Satcom Connections is the positive side of headhunting. C.J. has a unique knowledge of these contacts within these business areas and targeted markets. It is a distinct advantage for her.

Dugan: Very well. We have already made matches with executives and we look to form long-term relationships with companies that are happy with our service.

Foster: We are also planning in advance for companies looking down the road at positions they will want to fill. Long-term cooperation and commitments are definitely starting to form with us. It seems now that every time I finish a match for a company, they are handing me their next search.

Foster: Right now, what I am seeing is the demand for experienced, successful sales managers or directors with a track record. A lot of companies are now looking to move their company into the next level of sales. They have been at a certain level for a few years and they need to get to that next level if they’re going to grow at all. In our current economic climate, with all of the mergers, acquisitions and companies falling by the wayside, a sales manager is becoming the number one position I am seeing in demand right now.

Foster: A lot of them are retired and that surprises me. I am working with a company right now to find a good sales manager for them and their three best matches are all ex-CEOs. They are retired and they are going back to what they love best, which is sales. This is what companies are looking for – people with long, long track records and a history.

Foster: Right now what I am finding is that younger people have a good chance in companies where they are known. It is a case where somebody went to school with someone’s father – that type of thing. The new sales people come out of college after they have grown up with their fathers and mothers running these companies with a taste for the industry. I can name off several people who look at resumes and say ‘oh, they are related to so and so at this company.’
    Younger executives are also brought in when companies need synergy – as long as they have somebody that can be their mentor. The larger companies are doing that right now.