There are trends in business that represent long overdue, positive and permanent change. Diversity, equity and inclusion (“DEI”) is one such area.

Business leadership has a strong influence over corporate culture, and a responsibility to create a culture that fosters business success—and yes, builds shareholder value. Numerous studies have proven that organizations with a genuine and ongoing commitment to DEI are more successful than those who make only token efforts, or worse, no efforts at all.

The importance of DEI in your organization can be measured in many ways, but for CEOs answerable to their boards for quarterly results, the bottom line may be the starkest measure of all. If a company lags in DEI, it will lag in competitiveness.

Understanding that DEI isn’t a catchphrase, a trend, or a fad is critical to launching and maintaining a successful DEI program within an organization. The first step is to gain an understanding of what DEI is, and what each of the terms represented in the acronym mean.

What Is DEI?

As noted above, DEI stands for diversity, equity and inclusion. These are related, but different, concepts. Each element of this trifecta must be present for a modern business to reach its greatest potential.

Diversity refers to representation. It means that the organization reflects the composition of the larger community and society as a whole, and at all levels. Persons of different races, genders (including sexual orientations), ethnic backgrounds and national origins, ages and physical and intellectual abilities are present in the organization.

Equity is about fairness. Everyone in the organization must know that they receive the same opportunities as everyone else, based on their skills, knowledge and contributions—and not on their identity. Studies have shown how hiring managers treat candidates with identical qualifications differently based on things like sex and perceived race or national origin. Between a male and female candidate with comparable resumes, hiring managers more often not only prefer the male candidate, but also tend to offer a higher salary.

Other studies have shown that a candidate’s name can influence decisions about whether to interview or hire them. Candidates with names that seem to correspond with underrepresented groups are more often passed over in favor of candidates with Dick-and-Jane types of names. A genuine DEI effort recognizes the dangers of both over and unconscious bias and works hard to address those dangers.

Inclusion is about comfort and value. It’s not enough to simply have a percentage of your workforce that can be identified as “diverse.” Inclusion requires that all persons in the organization are valued, and that the organization actively seeks and gives weight to the different perspectives and contributions available from a diverse workforce.

Inclusion also requires vertical diversity, meaning that an organization composed of 50% “diverse” employees, but only 2% diverse managers, is failing at DEI efforts.

Achieving a balance of diversity, equity and inclusion requires an authentic and ongoing commitment, as well as committed leadership that understands the importance of DEI to the organization.

The Benefits of DEI

• Revenue: Research from both McKinsey and Deloitte confirms that companies with strong and active diversity and inclusion efforts are significantly more successful than those without such strategies. Companies with effective DEI programs have a 35% greater chance of exceeding their average returns, and a 31% increase in overall business performance.
• Recruitment: Organizations that are known to have successful and ongoing DEI efforts attract a wider pool of candidates for open positions, giving them greater access to talent, especially among millennials. Generation Z, the children of millennials, are the most diverse generation in US history and are likely to push not just for diversity, but also for racial justice, according to Forbes. And with the remote work revolution, companies now have a truly global candidate pool from which to select the most qualified and creative candidates.
• Retention: Companies that implement DEI efforts are also more successful at retaining employees. Workers who feel heard, seen and valued are happier and more engaged, and less likely to jump ship to a more welcoming organization.
• Innovation: Diverse organizations are more innovative. A broader perspective that is more inclusive of different types of people is more likely to come up with new ideas that appeal to an increasingly diverse customer base.

Who Is Responsible for Achieving DEI?

While corporate leaders set the tone for DEI efforts, success is everyone’s responsibility. Companies that incorporate DEI into performance evaluations emphasize how important DEI is to the organization.

A common but often fatal mistake is to look around a non-diverse organization and saddle the few employees who are identifiably “diverse” with the responsibility of creating and implementing DEI efforts. This kind of tokenism is demoralizing to the people assigned to the task, and is unlikely to succeed when it appears the effort has been delegated in a way that allows everyone not on the DEI committee to shirk the responsibility of participating in DEI efforts.

Forward-thinking companies with their eye on the bottom line know that DEI is too important a function to “set and forget.” The first step in assuming the necessary level of responsibility for DEI in an organization is for leadership to demonstrate their commitment and require participation across the organization.

As Deloitte’s research shows, leadership matters—and middle managers matter a lot. The “bread” on the top and bottom of the DEI sandwich may be fully on board, but if the “filling” in the middle isn’t committed, or doesn’t understand how to participate, the effort will undoubtedly fail.

Whether your company is launching or trying to jump-start DEI efforts, working with a professional diversity and inclusion executive search firm can help. These professionals can help identify and recruit an exceptional pool of candidates to lead ongoing DEI efforts that keep everyone in your organization involved and engaged. Contact Battalia Winston when you need to fill a DEI leadership position or recruit a diverse pool of candidates for other critical management roles across your business.

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Stronger sales leadership is needed as companies grow. Organizations need to think about hiring a leader who can drive the process.

More Leads Than You Can Handle

There’s nothing more painful for a sales-driven organization than to leave leads undeveloped. If your sales team can’t keep up with contacting and cultivating existing leads while having a backed-up queue, you need to hire more help.

You need a sales executive team experienced in managing expansion in a measured way. An accomplished sales leader will develop and implement a strategy for the growth of your company and at the same time help to develop the sales organization

Consistent Delivery of Products and Services

Your sales team takes satisfaction in seeing their customers receive the goods and services they sell them. If your business is easily fulfilling orders and completing projects on time, you may have the breathing room you need to expand.

Look for an executive leader who can inspire a sales team to take on new challenges while ensuring that the lines of communication with fulfillment teams are solid and clear. Your expansion will falter if your organization can’t deliver what your sales team promised. Back-ups and missed deadlines demoralize sales staff, making them wonder why they’re working so hard if your company can’t follow through. Worse, it can lose the new customers your team worked so hard to onboard.

New Product Launch

Innovative products and expanded services require support. Your sales team must have a thorough understanding of the product or service, its benefits and the needs your new offering will meet for both existing and new customers.

Your expanded sales executive team must have a high-altitude view of operations, marketing and strategic planning to make it all run smoothly. You also must give your new executive time to assess your expansion plan to ensure that everything will work effectively.

Battalia Winston has sales executive recruiters who understand the profile of a successful senior sales executive. Our network will enable you to select from an outstanding candidate pool of experienced, high-level sales executives that can help your company move to the next level of growth.

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When a company is looking to fill a senior manufacturing position, the characteristics comprising what to look for in industrial and manufacturing executives become critical to an operation’s very survival.

Innovation

Manufacturing leaders must bring the energy and vision necessary to drive innovation. They establish an expectation and hold teams accountable for finding new and better ways to do things, whether that’s refining a design, revamping a process, or flattening hierarchies so cross-functional teams have more freedom to work together.

Communication

Tell teams what you’re going to do, do it and then tell them what you did. Clarity and consistency in communication are essential in the increasingly complex manufacturing and industrial landscape. All teams across organizations of any size must understand the guiding principles and goals that should direct their every effort.

Inspiration

Communicating clearly is one thing, but doing it in a way that inspires workers at every level of the organization to give their best is a gift that great manufacturing leaders display. When considering what to look for in industrial and manufacturing executives, include the ability to inspire loyalty and commitment to the organization’s goals. Potential leaders should be able to express a vision for the organization that generates enthusiasm and creativity across the company.

Trustworthiness, Transparency, & Honesty

No one loves a snake. Untrustworthy leaders can do fatal damage to organizations, undermining trust, setting teams against each other and generating suspicion and infighting among middle managers and other executives. Checking reputations for trustworthiness, honesty and transparent behavior is a critical step when considering candidates for executive positions.

Experienced manufacturing executive recruiters can dig deep and make discreet, confidential inquiries with key people in their well-developed network to get a sense of a candidate’s effect on the organizations they’ve worked with and how they present themselves. Search professionals help you see whether “what you see is what you get,” or if you’re looking at a brilliant disguise.

Decisiveness

Now more than ever, manufacturing executives must make difficult decisions. These may include shutting down plants, revamping product lines and “turning the ocean liner around,” transforming it into a swift cutter that can dodge storms and zip ahead of others in the race toward market dominance.

Technical Enthusiasm

Manufacturing and industrial executives must be knowledgeable and enthusiastic about technical innovations When interviewing a candidate ask them to demonstrate how they have modernized technology to Keep their organization on the cutting edge.

When your company needs a new industrial or manufacturing leader, consider working with Battalia Winston. We’ll join your search team, adding our experience, expertise and deep research capability to bring you outstanding candidates who will move your company forward, even in the toughest times.

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Harrington Hoists, Inc., a $250 million subsidiary of Kito Group Company, which is the largest producer of chain and wire rope hoists in the world with $600 million in revenues is located in Manheim, PA and Corona, CA.

 Mr. Livingston has over 15 years of financial management experience including Big 4 public accounting background. For the first 10 years of his career, Mr. Livingston worked for E&Y and Harsco, a $3 billion global industry company.

Prior to accepting this Corporate Controller role, Mr. Livingston was the VP of Finance / Controller at Cooper-Booth Wholesale, a $500 million wholesale distributor, where he led a team of 7, engaged in collections, A/R, A/P, payroll, G/GL, accounting and reporting services. He also served as Finance Manager at Rentokil North America, a $500 million + pest control service company, for seven years, managing the annual budgets and the monthly forecasts for 200 branches and cost centers.

Mr. Livingston earned an MBA from Pennsylvania State University and an undergraduate degree in Accounting and Economics at Shippensburg University where he graduated Magna Cum Laude. He has an active C.P.A. license, is a Member of American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and a Certified Information Systems Auditor.

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1. Determine Recruitment Challenges During Due Diligence 
   Begin by evaluating the company’s existing talent acquisition practices and talent pool. How were the existing executives recruited? Or did they come from within the company? What percentage of leaders and employees already lived in the city before they joined the company? Has the company had success recruiting from outside the town before? What is the average length of tenure – and is there any relationship between length of tenure and the employees’ point of origin (i.e. Can the company retain employees that it’s recruited from other cities?)? Does the company tend to retain executives (i.e. more experienced employees) but fail to retain newer or younger employees, or vice-versa?Exploring these questions will provide PE firms with a thorough understanding of potential recruiting challenges before they acquire the company, so that they can be fully prepared as soon as the deal is closed.
2. Identify Talent Needs at the Executive LevelIf the acquisition will result in a merger of two companies, the PE firm will need to quickly evaluate the leadership of the merged companies, retaining the best employees and managing any downsizing in a manner that will minimize the impact on employee morale. More importantly, they’ll need to retain the talent that will not only run the company at the time of the merger, but that will be able to manage the business as it continues on its path of rapid growth. Experience working with mergers/acquisitions within the industry should be a high-priority need. Once gaps are identified, the PE firm will need to evaluate the best way to fill that position, keeping the recruitment challenges they’ve already uncovered in mind. Is an outside hire—potentially one from another city—the right choice, or is an inside hire a better option? Armed with an understanding of the company’s recruiting history, the PE firm should be able to make an educated decision here.
3. Target the Right Candidates with the Right Message 
   Recruiting top talent to smaller cities is all about developing the right candidate profile and fully understanding the needs of the candidates in the pipeline. First, it’s important to understand that some candidates will simply not be interested in leaving a bustling metropolitan area for a small city; don’t waste too much time on those candidates. On the other hand, boomerangs—candidates who attended college or grew up in a small town and may want to return to one—are smart targets, as are candidates from mid-sized cities.It’s also important to fully understand any of the candidates’ personal circumstances and family needs that might affect their willingness to relocate—have their children gone off to college recently? Are they burned out from big city living? Do they want to be closer to family on the opposite coast? All of these factors can turn an unlikely candidate into a good fit.
   Once the right candidate profile is identified, the people in communication with the candidates—HR managers, recruiters, headhunters—must be educated on how to sell the value of the city. They should not only tout the value of the city (its attractions, history, high standard of living, etc.) but should also tailor their pitch to each candidate’s needs. For example, an empty-nester looking to leave Manhattan might be particularly interested in the light traffic and walkability of the town while a younger boomerang candidate might be interested in the lively town center or nightlife.

 
PE firms that are acquiring companies in small cities should be prepared for recruiting challenges. But despite the obstacles that come with attracting big-time execs to small-town life, a thoughtful strategy can lead to success.

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