Diversity Leadership Councils

Maureen Alphonse-Charles

Maureen brings strategic executive search leadership and client management with significant expertise across sectors and functions. Maureen is a pioneer in diversity, equity, and inclusion work. With over 20 years of experience, Maureen has led complex executive search, consulting, finance, development, and operations efforts for a variety of institutions.

Werner Boel

Werner Boel, senior partner, brings over two decades of experience in international law, health law, business venture consulting and leadership recruitment to his executive search practice at WittKieffer. Werner serves as the firm’s Legal and Compliance Practice leader. His dynamic multicultural background and broad global experience provides clients with unmatched expertise, particularly in recruiting health and education general counsel, senior legal officers, chief compliance officers, chief risk officers, law school deans and leaders of aligned professional societies and associations. Werner’s practice has special emphasis on recruiting top executives to build the scope and influence of in-house legal departments on behalf of healthcare, higher education and not-for-profit organizations. Werner assists clients in evaluating the new breed of senior legal executives who play a lead role in developing emerging business models, assessing and managing risk, shaping public policy and building stronger government and legislative relations. Prior to joining WittKieffer, he worked as an International Legal Coordinator for Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP providing immigration advice to Fortune 500 clients. He also worked closely with Belgian and U.S.-based companies promoting overseas business ventures in Belgium and Europe as the Executive Director of The Belgian American Chamber of Commerce in the United States, Inc. Earlier in his career, Werner served as principal of a management recruiting and consulting firm, catering to both domestic and international clients. Werner was born and raised in Belgium, where he obtained most of his formal legal education and training. He is fluent in English, Dutch and French, and conversational in German and Italian.

Janice Ellig

As the head of the Ellig Group, Janice is dedicated to increasing the placement of women and diverse candidates on corporate boards and in C-suites by 2025. Janice joined the legacy firm in 2000 and became Co-Chief Executive Officer in its transition to Chadick Ellig in 2007; she assumed sole ownership of the company as the Ellig Group in 2017 with a new focus on Reimagining Search. Prior to her career in executive search, Janice spent 20 years in corporate America at Pfizer, Citi and Ambac Financial Group, an IPO from Citibank, where she was responsible for Marketing, Human Resources, and Administration. Heralded by Bloomberg Businessweek as one of “The World’s Most Influential Headhunters,” Janice is often consulted for her expertise and her commitment to gender parity, inclusion, and diversity. She frequently appears at speaking engagements and as a media guest, and she has penned multiple articles for outlets such as Directors & Boards, Directorship, Corporate Director, The Huffington Post, and Forbes.com. Janice also co-authored two books: Driving The Career Highway and What Every Successful Woman Knows, acknowledged by Bloomberg Businessweek as “the best of its genre.” A tirelessly active member of the industry and champion of her causes, Janice is Founder of the Women’s Forum of New York’s Corporate Board Initiative and its signature event, Breakfast of Corporate Champions. Since 2011, Janice continues to spearhead this event to honor companies committed to board diversity and to encourage CEOs to sponsor board-ready women for the Women’s Forum database. (LINK: www.womensforumny.org). Janice is personally committed to several NFP organizations: Board Director of the National YMCA and Past Chair of the YMCA Board of Greater New York; Trustee of the Actors Fund and Committee For Economic Development (CED); Incoming Chair, University of Iowa Foundation; Women’s Forum of New York Past President and Chair of the Corporate Board Initiative; member of the Steering Committee, US 30% Club and The Economic Club of New York. In recognition for her many philanthropic activities, Janice received the University of Iowa Distinguished Alumni Award in 2011 and the Association of Executive Search Consultants (AESC) Eleanor Raynolds Award for Volunteerism in 2008. Named one of the “21 Leaders for the 21st Century” by Women’s eNews, she was also a recipient of the Channel 21 Award In Excellence for her contribution to “Excellence in the Economic Development for Women.”

Louis Montgomery Jr.

Louis Montgomery Jr. leads JM Search’s Human Resources and Diversity Officer Executive Search Practice. To date, 75% of his placements are women, and 50% are people of color.  He has almost a decade of Executive Search experience. He has successfully placed Board Members, Human Resource, and Diversity/ Inclusion Leaders in Private Equity-Backed and Publicly Traded organizations in various sectors, including Industrial, Consumer, Healthcare/ Life Sciences, Financial and Professional Services, Technology, Non-Profits, Higher Education, and Trade Associations.​ Prior to moving into Executive Search, Louis had more than 25 years of experience as a Human Resources Practitioner and Diversity Leader with several major Fortune 100 firms, including IBM, Celanese Corporation, Frito Lay, Kraft Foods, Altria, AES, and Serco North America. He is an Author and Thought Leader in Human Resources and Diversity/ Inclusion.  Some of his publications include A Years’ Worth of Inspiration, and several thought leadership articles, including Why Your Next Board Member Should Be an HR Executive, Starbucks Battle Against Bias, and What Did You Call Me? Towards a More Perfect Union, and Next Generation Diversity Officers. ​He has been quoted in numerous publications, including The New York Times, Washington Post, Human Resources Executive, Black Enterprise, and American Banker. ​Louis earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Industrial and Labor Relations (ILR) from Cornell University. While there, he was a varsity letter winner in football and track; and achieved all Conference and All East Honors in Track.​ He is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., the Cornell University ILR Alumni Association Board of Directors, and the Christian Brothers College High School Hall of Fame. ​He is an avid golfer, No Limit Texas Hold ‘em player, and coaches youth baseball. He, his wife Deidre, and two sons live in Howard County, Maryland.

Heather Phelps

Heather Phelps is the Managing Partner responsible for Executive Search and Leadership Development. She leads the design, resourcing and execution of human capital initiatives across Canada. Heather is a human resource strategist who works closely with clients to understand their strategic goals and business objectives in recruitment and leadership development. As Managing Partner of Phelps Executive Search and Leadership Development, Heather provides counsel to the C-Suite, Senior Executives, Boards and Human Resource leaders. Heather’s process is as rigorous as her strategies are successful. Specializing in national executive level recruitment, she has accumulated deep understanding of key business drivers and competencies relevant to both the public and private sectors. Heather has a passion for talent spotting and leadership building. She continues to pioneer innovative approaches to recruitment that reflect the needs of today’s complex recruitment world. From proprietary competency development to keen strategic insight, she is regarded for her thorough and confidential approach. She is a champion of diversity and inclusion and is recognized for her support of Indigenous leadership across Canada. She holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA), an Honours Bachelor of Business Administration, and is a Certified Personnel Consultant (CPC). She is certified as an Executive Resourcing Consultant for the Public Service Commission and is certified to administer and interpret several psychometric/leadership profiles.

Tina Shah Paikeday

Tina Shah Paikeday leads the firm’s global Diversity & Inclusion advisory services as a senior member of the Leadership & Succession team. Her recent work has included the recruitment of Chief Diversity Officers, the development of inclusive leaders and inclusive culture transformation. In this capacity, she has advised global diversity and inclusion councils and executive leadership teams on the development of operating models for the formation and governance of D&I functions, data informed approaches to developing impactful D&I strategies and recommended action steps and programs to achieve D&I goals. Based in San Francisco, she advises public, private and nonprofit clients around the world. Tina has 25 years of industry experience. She joined Russell Reynolds Associates from the Talent Advisory Board, a boutique research and management consulting firm she founded. As a Managing Director, Tina advised clients on managing a diverse workforce. Earlier, she was a Senior Director at the Corporate Executive Board and was instrumental in building the Corporate Leadership Council Solutions people analytics business. Tina started her career at McKinsey & Company and has worked in sales and marketing at Procter & Gamble and The Clorox Company. Tina was also CEO of zBox Company, a venture-backed, tech-based appliance producer whose product line was later acquired by Whirlpool. Tina received a BS in commerce, with honors, from the University of Virginia and an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business. She has also completed doctoral-level coursework and is researching mindfulness and executive decision-making. Tina has lectured on organizational behavior, strategy and leadership at the Haas School of Business at the University of California, the Stanford Graduate School of Business and the University of Virginia. Tina was formerly a Charter Member of The Indus Entrepreneurs, the founding National Chair of the Board of the Network of Indian Professionals and founder and former President of the Bay Area Chapter, as well as founder and former Chair of the Board of Indus Women Leaders.

Bill Stratton

Bill is a Managing Director in the Washington D.C. office and has been recently appointed to represent the firm on the AESC’s North America Leadership Council. Bill brings more than two decades of executive search experience to the Stanton Chase organization. His knowledge and experience include consumer products & services, healthcare, industrial and diversity. Prior to joining Stanton Chase, Bill was Partner at a boutique executive search firm based in Chicago, IL and led numerous search engagements and diversity initiatives for large multinational companies. He also led the firm’s international engagements supporting clients in the UK, Canada, Caribbean and Central America. In addition, Bill served on the University of Illinois Alumni Association Board of Directors for 10 years and became it’s “Chairman of the Board” representing alumni worldwide. He is active in the tech start-up field and is passionate about mentoring young men of color through programs such as Project Visible Man and the Black Male Leadership Academy. Bill holds a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Organizational Psychology from the University of Illinois Champaign - Urbana.

Ryna Young

Ryna Young is Partner and Head of Diversity at Odgers Berndtson Canada. She is our Canadian ambassador for diversity and inclusion in the external market and serves as an internal champion to ensure that we are attracting and developing key diverse talent within our firm.

Ryna has a proven track record of nearly 25 years of experience in recruitment and search, both in Executive Search and Interim. She has successfully placed board members and other senior leaders within a number of functions, including operations, human resources, IT, sales, finance, and accounting across the public and private sectors. She is known for her ability to build strong relationships and become a trusted advisor, which has allowed her continued success. Ryna has had the opportunity of living in 4 continents, allowing her to bring a global approach to her craft.

Her clients often seek her out when addressing major change initiatives, capacity and/or skills gaps. She is known for her ability to build strong relationships and become a trusted advisor, which has allowed her continued success. With a hands-on approach, a solutions-driven mindset and a good sense of humor, Ryna will deliver. Ryna has also taken on various leadership roles throughout her career and has built strong teams of driven, results-oriented search professionals. She strives for excellence and her passion for building and working collaboratively allows for a focused approach. With her experience as a leader, she understands the importance of achieving goals while managing risk and supporting strategic business

Tatyana Araujo de Freitas

Tatyana Araujo de Freitas is a member of Russell Reynolds Associates Technology Sector. Based in São Paulo, Tatyana has cultivated strong client relationships during her more than seven years with our firm. She joined us after working at Agilium Worldwide, where she led executive search projects for Brazilian companies in the industrial, consumer goods, medical devices and financial services markets. Previously, Tatyana was a senior associate at another leading global search firm, where she led searches for consumer goods and life sciences companies. She also served as an executive director with Interbrand and was a brand manager with General Electric, where she was responsible for managing new product development, product launches and market feasibility analysis. Tatyana began her career with Proctor & Gamble. Tatyana received her BS in chemical engineering from Escola Politécnica da Universidade de São Paulo and her Post Graduation in business administration from Fundação Getúlio Vargas. Tatyana is fluent in Portuguese, English and Spanish.

Cecilia Besa

Bachelor’s Degree of Business Administration from the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile. Her early career began in commercial and marketing areas in the financial and industrial sector, both in Chile and Brazil. Since 1999 she is working in human resources consulting, compensation studies, primarily relating to the executive role. In 2005, starts getting involved in executive search services and opinion studies. Cecilia is the Founding Partner of TestaNova, focusing on customers´ needs throughout an integral service and shared business vision. Extensive expertise across a variety of sectors and industries, mainly in strategic consulting, goods industry, retail, financial sector, telecommunications, among diverse functional areas within companies.

Cristina Bomchil

Cristina Bomchil founded Valuar in 1973 and is its current Executive Director. She leads the Executive Search team and personally conducts senior management searches. She leads the practice of Leadership Consulting and advises leaders of national and international companies, developing her practice in Argentina, Uruguay and Chile. She is strongly committed to gender diversity, particularly in the Board of Directors, and participates in organizations such as WCD (Woman Corporate Directors), Marianne (Association of Franco-Argentine Women) and FAME (Argentine Forum of Executive Women). She was a member of the Board for the Americas of the AESC (Association of Executive Search & Leadrship Consultants) from where she ensures the best practices in the sector, and was a member of the Board of Directors of the University of San Andrés for several periods.

Ornella Bono

Ornella Bono is the co-founder of Humanitas/ Cornerstone Santiago and has been a partner since 2002. She is deeply experienced in CEO and C-Suite searches for industrial sectors, such as construction and real-estate, among others. In the public sector, she oversees civil service processes (Top Public Management) and other State-owned companies. Her other areas of expertise include compensation studies, strategic advisory to companies and boards and environmental issues.

Pilar Brogeras

Pilar Brogeras is a Managing Director for the Stanton Chase Mexico City office and Regional Vice President for Latin America for Stanton Chase International. Her enthusiasm and passion for all that she does distinguish her in this business. Her clarity, determination, and customer focus help her in generating results that ensure clients always find the most qualified talent available on the market. Throughout her career as a consultant, she has collaborated directly in different sectors, in particular pharmaceutical, financial services, and manufacturing. She has also led projects for general management, marketing, finance, manufacturing, and human resources, among others. In 2017, she received the “The Future of the Profession” Award from the Association of Executive Search and Leadership Consulting. During her years at Stanton Chase, she has had a coordinating role for the development of Stanton Chase’s global strategy, innovating with the development of new internal processes, external and marketing materials. The results of this work have been recognized by the firm worldwide. Pilar has an MBA in senior management from Anahuac University (Mexico), an International Master’s in leadership from EADA Business School (Spain), and a degree in communication from Universidad Iberoamericana (Mexico). She is certified by Cornell University in Executive Search and Leadership Consulting and has a diploma in Human Resources from the UIA (Mexico). Pilar is a graduate of Santander W50: Preparing Our Women Board Members of Tomorrow program, which partners with UCLA Anderson Executive Education. Before starting her career in executive search, she worked at Cohn & Wolf and later at Accival, CitiBanamex Brokerage House, in strategic planning and marketing.

Rodrigo Foz Forte

Rodrigo Foz Forte is an entrepreneur, consultant and executive with over 20 years of experience in consulting firms, having founded, developed and led two of the most important executive search and development operations in Brazil. Founding partner of EXEC and with a career in the Human Resources area since 2001, Rodrigo was one of the first executives to work with specialized recruitment in Brazil, having, throughout his career, led several hiring, compensation, training and development projects for national companies and multinationals that are reference in their sectors, always in the role of advising their clients and executives involved. Rodrigo holds a degree in Law from PUC/SP and a post-graduate degree in Business Administration from FGV/SP, as well as a training course in Coaching from ICI - Integrated Coaching Institute since 2009 and as a Board Member from IBGC - Brazilian Institute of Governance Corporate. He is also a member of the Board in the US and leader in Brazil of the most important association in the world of top executive selection and leadership development consultancies, the AESC – Association of Executive Search and Leadership Consultants, founded in 1959 and headquartered in NY.

Thais Mariz

Since joining Heidrick & Struggles as an associate in 2006, Thaís continues to specialize in the agribusiness, pulp & paper, and chemicals sectors, recruiting CEOs and C-Suite executives in positions including supply chain, HR, finance, and sales. She started her professional career at Carrier, where she worked in marketing for the industrial and commercial refrigeration system segments. Thaís started her professional career as a marketing trainee for Springer Carrier, and after her experience servicing the company as a vendor, she was invited to rejoin the company. A native Portuguese and English speaker, she is also fluent in Spanish.

Alejandro Masco

Throughout his professional career, Alejandro has played a leading role in the constant search for innovation applied to the identification and development of global talent. He worked for companies such as Citibank, Walmart, Blockbuster, Exxel Group, L’Oréal and Oxford Partners in Argentina, Europe and the United States. He holds a degree in Psychology from the Salvador University and is the author of the books Between Generations, Do not Stay Out of the Future (Ed.Temas, 2013) and The 7 Capital Myths (Ed.Temas, 2015).

Sandra Olive

Sandra is a specialist in management and organizational behavior having worked in Headhunting and Leadership Consulting for over 15 years. Sandra first served at Korn Ferry for 5 years and in 2009 joined Bäcker Advisory, now Bäcker & Partners where she specializes in Executive Search for Senior Management and Leadership Consulting in the local and Latin American market. She is also a specialist in Competency Assessments and interpretation of Hogan Assessments for Senior Managers and in advising senior executives on career plans and professional development. She is a Chair at Vistage where she leads the first women only group in Latin America. She is Advisory Board Member at FAME (Argentine Forum of Executive Women) and is Member of the Employment Community at Adhra (Argentine Human Resources Association). Sandra was born in the United States, where she completed her schooling. She is bilingual in English and Spanish and has a degree in Systems from Universidad de Belgrano. She completed a Human Resources Graduate Course at Universidad Torcuato Di Tella, is certified in Hogan Assessments, certified in Denison Culture & Leadership and holds 2 Coaching Certifications. One from Conscious Business Coaching (Fred Kofman) and the other from the NeuroLeadership Institute (Brain Based Coaching).

Anna Luiza M. Osser

Anna Luiza M. Osser, bachelor’s degree in business administration at FAAP (Brazil), and also in hotel services at the École Les Roches in Crans-Montana, in Switzerland, has an MBA in Human Resources from USP, is fluent in English and has excellent command of Spanish. Over the last few years she has studied and actively participated in forums and seminars regarding family organizations. She is qualified to apply the MBTI and Birkman instruments. She has seven years of experience in management consulting, working in companies like The Mac Group, Accenture and MoRoCo Consultores in Brazil and abroad. During three years she acted as an international Private Banking financial consultant at Merrill Lynch. Her Executive Search work started in 1997, and she spent the first four years at Spencer Stuart as a senior associate. In the fifteen years in which she has worked in the Executive Search area, she has conducted several executive search projects for CEO, CIO, CFO, board member, director and manager positions in different industries for national and multinational companies in Brazil and abroad.

Adriana Prates

With more than 25 years of experience in working with executives, Adriana has developed innovative methodologies that have helped people and organizations work out how to balance with integrity career, expectations, and values. She is recognized as a master of the art of identifying practical and applicable solutions to highly complex corporate challenges. Adriana is an AESC advisor on the board responsible for the Americas, whose head office is in New York. Adriana is also a member of the AESC Council of the Americas. She is a business psychologist, a postgraduate in People Management – HR Business from Fundação Getúlio Vargas; and she is a Councillor for Administration certified by IBGC – Instituto Brasileiro de Governança Corporativa (Brazilian Institute of Corporate Governance). A pioneer in Brazil in executive coaching, she started in the 90s, receiving certification from renowned institutions in Brazil and the United States. She was trained by the respected American guru Lee Ellis, being the only LBDNA (Leadership Behavior DNA) licensed advisor in Brazil. Seen as one of the most influential Specialist in executive search in Brazil, Adriana has been referenced in important articles about corporate and executive life in the biggest media outlets in the country. Adriana has published many articles in the mainstream media of Brazil and the rest of the world. She is the co-author of three books, “Pontes do Psicodrama”; “Vivência – Uma Aprendizagem Efetiva” and “Aprender e Transformar”, all bestsellers. Since 2010, she has been a juror in the “Executivo de Valor” award, which is an event coordinated by the “Valor Econômico” newspaper, and is the main award for leadership in the national market.

Marcelo Ribeiro

22 years of experience in Human Resources, working at both global organizations and HR Consulting firms.

Responsible for the leading of local and regional teams and HR initiatives, focusing on OD, Inclusion and Diversity, Endomarketing, Engagement and Compensation.

Certified ontological coach by Newfield Network in Santiago/Chile. Area of study that seeks to accompany and understand individuals in their learning process, to increase the power of action and to expand the interpretations that the student has of himself.

As a consultant focused on Transformation, Inclusion and Diversity, where led experiences, lectures and talks, all focused to expand self-awareness and build collective missions.

Founder of @respeitotododia, aiming to bring more information and influence about inclusion, diversity and empthy. Plus, along with other partners, RTD has facilitated groups of discussion with men in order to increase self-awareness and minimize the toxic masculinity by using Memoh methodoloy.

Fluent in English and Spanish, with Portuguese as mother tongue.

Ximena Rodriguez

SommerGroup is a company specializing in Headhunting, Assessment and Consulting comprised of a specialized multidisciplinary team of professionals. Led by its partners: Rodolfo Sommer, Sebastián Pedraza, Ximena Rodríguez and José Tomás Guridi. With more than 25 years in the industry, SommerGroup has acquired the know-how that allows us to know the job market well, and to work together closely with our clients which enable us a deeper understanding of their unique needs and culture.

Isabel Suarez

Isabel joined Signium in January 2021. Previously, she was a Principal at Heidrick & Struggles Mexico, responsible for relaunching the Services and Technology practice where she recruited Executive positions in Mexico US and Latin America for Hardware, Software, Service, Consulting, Telecommunication, Internet and related industry companies. She has more than 25 years of experience with global technology companies. He was CHRO for SAP Mexico, where he was responsible for developing and executing projects aligned to customer needs and business strategy supporting leaders in key topics such as talent management, leadership development, diversity, employee engagement, recruitment, compensation and benefits, among others. She implemented the process of digital transformation of human resources Isabel had a long career at IBM in multiple regional and local roles, holding positions such as Strategy Executive, Human Resources Executive, Education and Development Manager, Diversity and Talent Manager, Marketing Manager, Channel Sales and Brand Manager, among others. Isabel has a bachelor’s degree in computer science from Universidad Anáhuac; she completed the senior management program at IPADE.

Silvana Zenere

Based in Spencer Stuart's Buenos Aires office, Silvana Zenere leads the Human Resources Practice in Latin America. She is also a member of the Leadership Advisory Services Practice in LATAM where she advises clients and organizations to reach successful leadership capabilities with focus on culture transformation, coaching, onboarding and team effectiveness. Silvana has previously contributed to multiple executive searches for important multinational companies throughout Latin America, including major corporations in the consumer and healthcare sectors. Prior to joining Spencer Stuart in 2000, Silvana spent 8 years in HSBC Group working in the private bank field where she served as a senior advisor. Later, she executed roles in the Human Resources area for HSBC's banking, healthcare and insurance operations in Argentina. In 2018 she became a certified professional coach by the Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching. Silvana graduated from the Universidad de Buenos Aires, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in business administration.

Holly Addison

Holly partners with clients globally to source and retain exceptional, distinctive senior leadership talent across Technology, Telecoms, Media, Retail, Consumer Goods, Hospitality and Leisure sectors. Specialising in commercial, marketing, strategy and digital functions, with a focus on business transformation, CEO succession, board effectiveness and value creation, she helps build diverse boards and senior leadership teams to create more inclusive cultures. She is the Co-Founder of Plan B Mentoring and Balance The Board Ltd. - a mentoring platform that supports diverse talent breaking through to Board level.

Michaëla Berglund

Michaëla is CEO, co-founder and Senior Partner of Michael Berglund Executive Search.

Jennifer Borrer

Jennifer is the founder and Managing Partner at Borrer Executive Search. Committed to strengthening leadership through the positions we place, Jennifer’s vision was to build a firm where recruitment is focused on people and on managing each mandate with the highest degree of ethics, respect and transparency. Building upon a career within global organisations, Jennifer’s experience is in working across all sides of the talent acquisition triangle: within external firms, RPO consulting and in-house HR Leadership. Previously, she worked for Hays PLC, Hays RMS the Recruitment Process Outsourcing Consulting practice; publicly listed Intrawest Inc as Head of HR EMEA, and earlier in her career within financial services as an institutional equity broker. A native Montrealer, her experience spans five continents. She has been based in the UK, France, Switzerland and Australia and has recruited across Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia for past 20 years where she has partnered global companies to attract, assess and integrate select talent. Jennifer leads the firm’s Global Operations Practice covering end-to-end supply chain and procurement across multiple industries with a focus on the Consumer Goods sector. Since 2009, she is also a recognized Career Strategist supporting global top ranked business schools, including IMD, with career design mentoring. Jennifer holds a Corporate Finance Degree from Concordia University and an HR Certificate from Cornell. She holds Canadian, Australian and Swiss nationalities and is fluent in English and French.

Oana Ciornei

Oana Ciornei is the Managing Partner of Amrop Romania and a Member of Amrops' Global Board. She is a trusted advisor in leadership and senior management appointments, board composition, strategic restructuring and talent acquisition programs. Oana is a core member of Amrop's global Digital Practice. Oana joined the organization in 2010 when her firm became Amrop in Romania. She oversees the strategic direction and operations of Amrop in Romania and serves as Senior Consultant for the following practices: Digital, Consumer and Industrial. She is a member of Amrop's global Digital Practice. She also led Amrop University, a global initiative designed to support broad professional development across the organization. Oana has a 14-year track record in executive search and has senior FMCG management experience. She assisted and advised leading companies on leadership and senior management appointments, strategic restructuring and talent acquisition programs. Her former career gives her real-life sensitivity to many aspects of the performance requirements of the role. Her expertise includes multi-cultural leadership, linking business strategy to individual and organizational objectives, talent management and international project management. She is a certified SHL assessor, MBTI practitioner and she completed several executive development programs at IMD Lausanne. Oana holds a Bachelor Degree in Computers Science from the West University of Timisoara, Romania.

Julius Cordell

Strategic HR leader with extensive global experience in driving true business impact through collaborative business partnering. A highly effective HR practitioner for transformational change, HR business alignment, and M&As. Extensive experience in highly matrixed organisations, private and public sector, and highly unionised workforces. Holder of a Master of Business Administration (specialising in HR), a Master of Psychology, and Chartered Fellow of CIPD.

Helen Di Mauro

Helen Di Mauro has led energy sector recruitment for over 15 years working with a range of international clients following a career in commercial advisory with two of the world’s leading energy consultancies. She graduated from Oxford University in Russian and French and has an MA in International Relations from Boston University. Her 10 years in energy consulting were spent, initially with CERA in the USA, where she co-managed the FSU practice, and then with Wood Mackenzie in Europe, where she led the Gas and Power Consulting Group. Helen has recruited a range of senior leaders for the renewables sector, and retains an expertise in senior management and technical appointments in the Oil & Gas sector. Additionally, she has developed a strong reputation with clients in delivering a consistently diverse candidate slate and expertise in functional leaderships roles in Operations, Commercial, Legal and HR. Helen has served on the IIC Partners Board of Directors.

Eleri Dodsworth

Eleri Dodsworth is a Partner at the London office of Stanton Chase. Eleri is a passionate advocate of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging, and she strongly believes in helping her clients build diverse leadership teams. She views diversity and inclusion as business imperatives that ultimately drive business performance. Eleri places C-suite leaders, divisional directors, and non-executive directors for FTSE-listed companies as well as private equity, family, and privately owned businesses She specializes within the industrial sector with a further functional focus on strategic HR and diversity leadership positions across all sectors. Eleri embarked on her career in global executive search and leadership consulting in 1999 by joining a boutique search firm where she spent three years before moving to an international FTSE 250 company. During the next eight years, she was responsible for managing a large, high-performing team before promotion to Associate Director within the executive search practice, where she specialized in appointing Chief Financial Officers. Eleri was subsequently approached to join the Odgers Berndtson Group LLP in 2010, where she respectively held the roles of Search Consultant and Head of Client Development for the next 10 years. During this time, she successfully project-managed a range of leadership appointments across multiple sectors and geographies and was responsible for conducting client audits and developing and maintaining key relationships within the firm. Eleri holds a B.A. degree in English Literature and Language from the University of Hull and is an experienced coach and mentor. She is a champion for female leadership and gender equality and is proud to be a member of UN Women, HeForShe, and the 30% Club. Eleri is an active supporter of race equality within employment, and she continues to work to raise awareness and understanding of neurodiversity within the workplace.

Laura Fabbro

Laura joined Eric Salmon & Partners in 1999. She initially specialised in the industrial and private equity sectors, mainly on top management positions at national and international levels. She then focused on Leadership Advisory Services, working with clients on talent management issues and conducting management appraisals and succession planning projects across a variety of business sectors. Laura is an Italian national. She holds a degree in Communication Sciences from IULM University and is a Certified Professional Coach (ICF).

Jennifer Flock

Jennifer leads the DE&I capability in Europe at Russell Reynolds Associates and is based in Paris. She has more than two decades of experience enhancing performance, growth, and innovation in global Fortune 500 companies. She’s designed and led complex, large-scale transformation initiatives linked to globalization, demographic changes, future of work, sustainability, post-merger integration, shifting business models, and innovative technologies. Jennifer brings a global perspective, having worked with clients across numerous industries, including professional services, consumer, energy, transportation, health care, industrial, financial services, technology, and mining. Jennifer joined us from another leading search firm where she co-led their DE&I practice for four years. Earlier in her career, she served as an executive committee member of the global travel management division of TUI, responsible for transformation and strategic business planning. She started her career as a strategy consultant at Deloitte. Jennifer earned an MBA in finance from the Wharton School, an MA in international studies from the University of Pennsylvania, a Master’s degree from the Université de Paris III, and a BA from Oberlin College.

Shami Iqbal

Based in London, Shami Iqbal leads the firm’s Legal, Compliance & Regulatory Practice in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. A former lawyer with more than 15 years of search and assessment experience, Shami works with public and private companies across all sectors on the talent and leadership needs within their legal, compliance, corporate secretarial and government affairs functions. Shami is also a leading member of the Professional & IT Services Practice in the U.K. and works with a variety of legal and consulting firms to assist with their lateral partner and business management hiring needs. Prior to joining Spencer Stuart, Shami led the legal, compliance and government affairs practice at another global search firm, and also co-led its EMEA financial services infrastructure practice. Previously, he led the global legal and compliance practice at a boutique financial services firm in London. Before his career in executive search, Shami was a sports lawyer at a leading London law firm. Shami graduated with a law degree from King's College London and completed his studies at The College of Law. He is fluent in Urdu.

Laetitia Jerabek

Laetitia Jerabek hires financial services leaders for companies in the consumer payment, retail, SME financial services and FinTech industries. Based in London, Laetitia works with Plc, private equity and venture-backed businesses, including fast-growing challenger banks. She has worked with various retail banking organizations on the assessment and development of internal talent.

Laetitia has a superb track record of making successful hires for positions such as chief risk officers, chief operating officers and corporate affairs and marketing, as well as high-profile non-executive appointments. Prior to joining Russell Reynolds Associates, Laetitia worked for another global search firm, where she served as the EMEA market leader focused on executive search assignments in the consumer and commercial banking spaces. Earlier in her career, Laetitia worked in-house at TSB Bank, focusing on executive recruitment and talent planning. She also worked in international sales and marketing roles.

A strong advocate for diversity, Laetitia is also Global Co-President of the Russell Reynolds Women’s Inclusion Network.

Laetitia received her BA in modern history & international relations from Reading University.

Susana Pérez de Vries

Susana Pérez de Vries is a Principal of the leadership consulting area. Her specialty is the design and implementation of international programmes. Susana has wide-ranging experience in projects with an international scope and multicultural teams, with a focus on the incorporation of cultural, generational and gender dimensions that ensure the adaptation of key collectives. She has designed and coordinated transformation projects with high organisational impact, such as talent evaluation and identification systems, development programmes for high potential employees, leadership models, process revisions, culture change management and the design of career plans. Her business experience and people development focus have led her to accompany executives in the definition of human resource policies as well as processes involving their own professional development. In the latter field she is an expert in the development of high performance teams and relationship skills, in addition to being an executive coach for individuals or teams.

Neha Rajdev

Provision of industry insight and market intelligence to support consultants in their understanding of client needs and the wider market. Global resource for analytical, data-driven intelligence to support strategic planning and business development initiatives. Joined Coulter Partners in 2016 after a fourteen-year tenure at international executive search firm, Russell Reynolds Associates. A sound understanding of, and experience in, the entire executive search process across several sectors including Technology, Life Sciences and Not-for-Profit. Neha holds a BA (Hons.) from University College London and a Postgraduate in International Business from the London School of Economics.

Nick Robeson

Nick Robeson is recognised as a leading figure in the executive search industry with a 20-year track record. He has built successful businesses in both Ireland and the United Kingdom. His reputation has been built on advising C-suite executives on how to identify top talent and get the very best out of their teams. Nick recruits high-calibre executives, board members and interim executives who add value and bring about transformation. His extensive network is built on long-term strategic partnerships.

Julia Scheffer

With a philosophy of “Have Passports, Will Travel”, Julia is an avid traveller and truly believes that her role at AltoPartners was designed especially for her! Julia is the Global Sales & Marketing Director for AltoPartners where she is the global brand custodian and communications/marketing lead for the alliance. With over a decade spent working across multiple communications disciplines and industries, Julia brings a wealth of strategic corporate insight and experience in stakeholder communications, media relations, brand communications, crisis communications, reputation management and digital communication strategies. Julia has worked on landmark South African M&A deals and has been involved in a number of corporate financial calendar activities, stock exchange listings, as well as positioning campaigns for leading blue chip listed companies. Julia has also worked on change management and internal communications campaigns within companies in the mining, financial services and government sectors. Honing her skills in integrated communications, Julia worked as a strategist in the media and television industry, with specific focus on clients in the retail, financial services and industrial sectors. Julia specifically chose to work in the television industry to add to her “storytelling” skills and appropriately tell a corporate story in a relevant and compelling way. Back in PR, Julia took up a senior position at well-known full-service PR agency with a mandate that included strategic counsel across the client base, new business development and the operational and strategic activities within the agency. Her tenure afforded her the opportunity to further develop her skills at brand communications and broaden the spectrum of her communications and management skills. Julia holds her MA in Corporate Communications.

Vidhu Sood-Nicholls

Vidhu Sood-Nicholls joined Saxton Bampfylde’s consulting team in September 2021 and brings an impressive track record of operating at senior level over the last 15 years across the non-profit and corporate sectors. Vidhu has most recently worked as Director of Fundraising at Teach First. Vidhu started her professional career as a teacher on the prestigious Leadership Development Programme with Teach First. Before that she held several roles in the corporate arm of Barclays Bank. She uses her cross-sector experience to find successful leaders in different contexts. Vidhu is passionate about addressing social inequalities and was attracted to Saxton Bampfylde because she is mildly obsessed with finding leaders who will accelerate the pace and impact of the organisations they lead. She served on the board of Teach First and is a trustee for Hopscotch Women’s Centre. Vidhu studied Law at Bristol University, before completing her MSc in International Development from the University of Bath.

Susanne Thorning-Lund

Susanne Thorning-Lund is a senior member of our firm’s Chair & Board Practice, specialising in non-executive appointments as well as CEO searches in her areas of focus. Based in London, she has supported boards in the UK and internationally on board evolution and on the appointment of chairs and independent non-executive directors since 2003. Having advised FTSE 100 and Fortune 500 large corporations, ambitious start-ups, multi-generational family-businesses and private equity-based companies, across sectors and cultures, in the process, Susanne has gained particular expertise in guiding entrepreneurial and family-owned companies through sustainable board succession planning, on which she leads for Odgers Berndtson. Susanne joined Odgers Berndtson in 1997. Previously, she worked with a boutique strategy consultancy, providing businesses with advice on market dynamics across a range of industrial sectors. She has a degree in International Economics and Modern Languages from Copenhagen Business School and an MA in International Relations from the University of Kent. Supporting our clients on developing balanced, diverse and effective boards, Susanne is an active member of our firm’s Diversity Steering Council.

Luis Truchado

Luis is a Senior International Executive Search and Leadership Consultant (Assessment) for the Board, CXO's, Heads of Division, BU's, etc. He has been recognized as Iberoamerican and European Consultant and he treasures an extensive network at Board and senior level in dozens of organizations. His career in executive search started in 1992 when he founded Euromedica in Madrid. Previously, he worked for NOVARTIS and GSK in Marketing roles and he was International Chief Commercial Officer for the API’s manufacturer Cesquisa (CEPSA group).

Helen Tudor

Helen focuses on Partner level Executive Search in management consultancy and Professional services, specialising in Financial services, Government & Defence, Telco, Consumer and Retail sectors. She covers Strategy, Operations Transformation, Technology & Digital, Organisation Design, Human Capital, Talent and leadership. She works with the Big 4 consultancies, strategy houses, systems integrators and challenger consultancies. Helen has extensive UK and European experience. She covers Partner, VP and Director level positions, as well team acquisitions or team builds. Before joining SH, Helen was Managing Partner of BLA Search, a specialist management consultancy head-hunter, having joined as a consultant and then moved into partnership and ownership. She started her career in a global recruitment company in managerial roles. Helen holds a BA in English Literature from the University of Manchester.

Sonal Agrawal

With over 25 years of search experience, Sonal serves clients in Private Equity, Conglomerates, Financial Services for Board, CEO and CXO searches. She also anchors the Board and Diversity practice for the firm. Sonal co-founded and serves on the global board for AltoPartners, the leading global partnership of executive search and leadership consulting firms across the Americas, EMEA and APAC, and of the AESC (the global association for executive search and leadership consulting), as well as on the boards of Accord, ABC Consultants, and has held roles at YPO (Young Presidents Organization - a peer network of 25,000+ global leaders in 100+ nations). She is also on the FICCI Diversity & Inclusion task force and has previously served on the boards of Watson Wyatt India and other listed board. Sonal has been named by the Economic Times as one of the Top 10 Headhunters in India, by Businessweek, USA as one of the 150 Most Influential Headhunters in the World and by Business Today magazine as one of the Next 30 Most Powerful Women in business in India. She wrote a monthly column on career issues in the Mint (erstwhile affiliate of the Wall Street Journal in India) and remains a frequent advocate and speaker on leadership, gender and diversity, and doing business in India. Born in East Africa and raised in Kolkata, Sonal read for a B.Sc. in Economics at St Xavier’s College Calcutta, and then completed her MBA from the London Business School, UK.

Reet Bhambhani

Reet is part of the Leadership team at EMA Partners in India and she manages the Banking & Financial Services Practice for the firm. She has over a decade of experience in Executive Search and has been part of the India practice since its inception. Prior to her career move into executive search, she worked with a leading Securities & Broking organisation in India. EMA Partners works with some of the leading names in the financial services sector and has built an enviable track record of appointing over 300 leaders with marquee clients across Banking, Financial Services, Insurance and Private Equity. Reet has been instrumental in building the practice over the years and today is one of the most recognised consultants in the sector. Reet has been closely tracking the evolution of the sector and has played an influential role in creating new-age teams in the Digital and Fintech space. She also leads the Diversity Practice for the firm in India and has been at the forefront of several diversity hiring initiatives across sectors. Reet has also been vocal about some of the challenges impacting women in the workforce in business and social media. Reet holds a Bachelor’s degree in Management Studies from Mumbai University and a post-graduate degree in Business Management from the Institute for Technology & Management.

Mala Chawla

Mala is a Managing Partner and shareholder with Stanton Chase India. She is a trained Civil Engineer, and she puts her Engineering degree to best use by understanding and resolving leadership challenges of Manufacturing & Industrial companies. She is a consultant with great integrity, deep knowledge, and a vast international network. She has been a trusted advisor to her clients for over a decade. Mala started her career selling welding and glass solutions. She became a recruiter in 2004 working for Adecco India, part of one of the world’s largest recruitment outfits. She later had a 12-year stint at the ABC Consultants group, where she became the star search consultant that she continues to be today. She worked in the Delhi, Kolkata & Mumbai offices of ABC, winning numerous performance awards. She later moved to their headhunting arm called Chairman’s High Circle (CHC) and later participated in CXO appointments. When CHC became Stanton Chase, she became a part of the network and was later handpicked by the global board of Stanton Chase to be a partner and shareholder in India. Mala is known for her eye to client needs and candidate fit. She is a fantastic listener and interpreter of situations. Mala grew up in the hills of Himachal and now lives in Mumbai with her husband and two children. She is fond of movies and food.

Caroline Dever

As Managing Partner, Caroline leads the Education and Public Sector practices in Australia. She has extensive experience on a national and international basis and has led executive assignments at the CEO, vice chancellor and senior executive level. Caroline also has considerable experience in the appointment of chairpersons and non-executive directors in the public and private sectors. Prior to her executive search career, Caroline spent 12 years in corporate affairs consulting to government and corporate clients on organisational reputation, media relations and customer engagement strategies. Earlier, she worked in public relations in the arts industry. Caroline was previously president of a large inner-city sporting organisation and co-chair of a contemporary dance organisation. Caroline holds a Bachelor of Arts (Media) from La Trobe University and a Graduate Diploma in Public Relations from RMIT.

Sherry Ding

Based in Shanghai, Sherry Ding is a core member of the Spencer Stuart’s Consumer and Private Equity practices, and also leads the firm’s Financial Officer Practice efforts in China. She provides senior executive search and leadership advisory services to multinational companies in Asia, as well as local Chinese enterprises. Throughout her 10 years at Spencer Stuart, Sherry has served a large number of clients in consumer goods, retail, hospitality, education, industrial, investment and professional services sectors. Prior to joining Spencer Stuart, Sherry was a Principal at A.T. Kearney, where she led the strategy and organization practice and co-led the consumer goods and retail practice of the firm's Greater China office. She also worked for The Boston Consulting Group and Bank of Communications. Throughout her career, Sherry has served a wide range of clients, including multinational and local companies, as well as government bodies in areas including strategy formulation, organization design and leadership assessment and development. As an expert in strategy, organization and human resources topics, Sherry has been quoted in leading media such as The Wall Street Journal Asia, BBC news, CNBC and China Daily. She also has published articles in leading magazines including Harvard Business Review (Chinese), Sino-Foreign Management and China Entrepreneur. Born in China, Sherry also had lived and worked in the United States and Singapore. She holds a Bachelor of Economics from Fudan University and an M.B.A. from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. She is an ICF certified executive coach and speaks Mandarin Chinese and English.

Karen Fifer

Karen Fifer is a partner in the Consumer Markets Practice and is based in the Sydney office. She previously served as global managing partner for the Consumer Markets Practice, global sector leader for Retail and partner-in-charge of the Hong Kong office. Karen is an accomplished consultant with three decades of experience in executive search and leadership advisory, which has earned her a strong reputation among decision-makers and executives in the industry. She has completed hundreds of C-suite searches for both listed and private companies, multinationals, private equity-backed companies and start-ups, representing some of the world’s most recognized and up-and-coming brands in the Consumer Packaged Goods, Retail & Luxury, Hospitality and Entertainment sectors. Karen regularly interacts with senior executives locally and regionally, allowing her to bring deep insights to her clients on the leadership and cultural challenges that are unique to Australia and Asia. She is particularly adept at conducting complex, cross-border searches for Presidents, Country Managers and Functional Leaders. In today’s flat and digitally connected world, Karen also puts a strong focus on ensuring that executives have the technological acumen to accelerate transformational change and enhance customer engagement. As a senior leader at Heidrick & Struggles, Karen has represented the firm at several prominent events, including the World Economic Forum and Fortune’s Most Powerful Women. Strongly committed to inclusion & diversity, Karen leads the firm’s Women’s Employee Resource Group for Asia Pacific. She is a recipient of the firm’s Asia Pacific Partnership Spirit Award.

Shoon Lim

Shoon Lim partners with clients as they develop and grow DEI strategies to enhance business performance. Based in Singapore, she has a proven track record of blending her business experience with DEI advisory to transform organizational culture.

Previously, Shoon was the Global Diversity & Inclusion Manager at Givaudan. In that role, she established the firm’s DEI strategy, plans, and operating frameworks to enable strategic growth. Before that, Shoon worked on DEI at a variety of global organizations – including Shell and Microsoft­ – and soon became known as a trusted expert in this rapidly evolving and dynamic practice. She started her career in business roles spanning operations, branding, business transformation, and change management.

Emily Woodward

Emily is a consultant in the Hong Kong office where she supports clients in all industry sectors with a focus on Finance, Legal, Risk and Compliance leadership. She began her executive search and leadership consulting career over twenty years ago in London before relocating to Asia twelve years ago. She has worked with clients across multiple industries including financial services, retail, industrial, media and professional services, particularly in relation to their Legal, Compliance and Finance leadership requirements regionally and globally. Prior to joining Leathwaite, Emily spent fourteen years with Spencer Stuart both in London and Hong Kong where she was a member of the Greater China Financial Services and CFO practices as well as leading their regional Legal and Compliance practice. She spent her early career with The Miles Partnership and Whitehead Mann.

Nairouz Bader

Dr. Nairouz Bader serves her clients in the recruiting of Board of Directors, Chairmen, Chief Executive Officers, Division and Subsidiary Presidents and Vice Presidents. This broad base of commercial and business experience has covered markets in North America, Europe, the Middle East and North Africa.

Nairouz serves the Association of Executive Search Consultants (AESC) as a board member and the Middle East and North Africa representative. She also serves on the AESC Board Committee for Emerging Markets. She served the Rotary organization as a board director, the Universal American School as a NED, and she is the (Official OSEC Expert) Human Resources international expert, certified by OSEC, Switzerland

Suvidha Kitchloo

Suvi Kitchloo is a principal in Heidrick & Struggles’ Dubai office and a member of the global Industrial Practice. Her expertise includes multinationals and local organizations as well as private equity-backed entities in the energy and infrastructure, utilities, EPC, renewables, metals, mining, and petrochemical sectors.

Suvi advises clients on senior leadership roles across the Middle East and North Africa. She has more than 10 years of professional experience in executive search appointing executives in energy, chemicals, and new energies clients. She has helped clients find CEOs, regional MDs, finance, human resource, operations, technology and business development executives across the Industrial sector. Additionally, she has partnered on engagements supporting nationalization of key roles across Middle East.

Suvi worked with two global international executive search firms in India and the Middle East before joining Heidrick & Struggles.

Anna Martin

Biography coming soon.

Richa Mittal

I’m a Knowledge/Research Analyst at the Middle East office of a global Executive Search Consultancy. I attempt at delivering results using research skills and analytic thinking. This, coupled with my guilty pleasure of investigation, makes life interesting every day.

Mina Paul

Mina Paul leads senior executive searches and advisory assignments across a wide range of sectors, leveraging her more than a decade of experience to provide clients with tailored solutions. Based in Dubai, Mina works with companies of various sizes and geographies, serving as a trusted advisor to both regional and multinational institutions. These include companies in the consumer products and services space, including consumer digital, retail, luxury, leisure and hospitality, among others. She also has experience in the technology, industrial, healthcare and government space. During her career, Mina has specialized in change management, stakeholder alignment and transformational initiatives. Prior to joining Russell Reynolds Associates, she worked for another leading international search firm, where she was director of enhanced search for the EMEA region. During this time, she was part of a global change management team and responsible for the roll-out of strategic initiatives. Mina also held search and research director roles in Dubai and completed approximately 300 successful appointments. She began her career in Human Resources at Canal+ and later worked with the French Ministry of Employment.

Mina holds a bachelor’s degree in language interpretation and translation from Marc Bloch University in Strasbourg and two master’s degrees from the Sorbonne University in Paris, in European affairs, and business and international commerce. She also holds executive leadership certificates from Cornell University and INSEAD. Mina is fluent in French and English.

INSEAD Business Strategy and Financial Performance- Certificate Cornell Strategic HR leadership- Certificate

Samantha Robinson

Samantha first started her executive search career as a Research Associate with InterSearch Australia in 1997 and 20 years later is very proud to be elected to the Board of Directors in 2017. She is a veteran of InterSearch after developing her global leadership career from the ground up with InterSearch Worldwide. She is currently the Managing Director of InterSearch Middle East, where she has been based for the last 16 years, building and expanding the IWW credibility and reputation across multiple geographies and variety of industry sectors.

Under Samantha’s leadership, InterSearch Middle East has expanded its geographical footprint with three countries: United Arab Emirates (UAE), Sultanate of Oman and Saudi Arabia. Her multi-cultural team, which she built from scratch, shares her passion for quality of delivery, speed of execution and supporting a global diversity agenda to attract top talent worldwide.

She has a unique combination of emerging and mature market recruitment experience across Europe, Middle East, Africa & APAC. Samantha has worked internally with the HR teams of Merrill Lynch & BP International in London, as well as Standard Chartered Bank in Dubai, UAE. Given her sector specialization, she is also the Global Practice Group Leader of Financial Services & Banking.

Sam holds a Bachelor of Science, major in Psychology, from University of Melbourne in Australia. InterSearch Middle East is honored to be certified as a member of the global Association of Executive Search Consultants (AESC).

Sergio Vega

Sergio Vega is the Head of Research with Odgers Berndtson based in the UAE and specialises in Board level and Senior Executive searches within the Middle East. His search career began with Odgers Berndtson in 2011.

Sergio has extensive experience leading international searches with greater emphasis in: Government, Education, Healthcare, Life Sciences, Telecommunications, Consumer and Industrial Sectors. He leads the research team, responsible for the delivery of search mandates across the region, and implements quality improvements to the research function.

Previously, he advised clients on strategies within a number of global professional services firms. Sergio holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration and Management from Pompeu Fabra University in Spain.