Jen Gaster had an existing relationship with the Global People Director at Reiss having previously placed Vanessa as HR Director. Developing trust meant the consultant / candidate relationship quickly became a consultant / client relationship and Jen was retained to hire the Head of People at Reiss, reporting to Vanessa.
The unique challenges of the role meant not only did they require significant retail experience, but also senior stakeholder management and People Team leadership skills, exceptional execution in operational delivery and strategic influencing, with a restless ambition and pace to drive change to further elevate the People proposition within a premium brand. This made the role a challenging one to fill, and although many were interested, not all were relevant.
Jen worked exclusively on a retained search basis, and within a few weeks, presented the candidate shortlist. During the process, the brief needed to evolve to match the changing business requirements and candidates were reconsidered as a consequence. The successful candidate was offered, managed through the counter-offer scenario and started with a reduced notice period. Jen’s ability to listen to requirements, validate them, and present exceptional shortlists ensures that the final appointment is challenging due to the high calibre of candidates.
Vanessa’s testimonial highlights Jen’s expertise stating, “The whole process was exceptional. Having worked with Jen as a previous candidate, I can vouch for the incredible experience she gave – and now as a client, the experience was equally outstanding. Jen was Super-efficient, ensured great communication throughout and provided us with an amazing candidate that was secured!”
