Media headhunters’ view: marginal differences of publishing in a recession
In a tough trading environment, the difference between success and failure is marginal. Let’s assume that 5% makes all the difference. This means publishers squeezing 5% more out of their budgets; sales directors improving their profitable revenues by 5%; and editors getting 5% extra creativity out of a budget reduced by 5%. The same principle applies for the events and research sectors – indeed, for any business.
But how does a company achieve this? Well, it requires a senior team which is flexible, dedicated, and leads by example. And that means hiring the right people for publishing in a recession and, where necessary, replacing the wrong ones.
The three media headhunters who head up Martin Tripp Associates have between them over twenty years’ experience in recruiting senior players for the business-to-business sector – whether for publishers, research companies, or events organisers. We have placed directors and managers who have turned business around, overseen start-ups or downsizing, and taken tough decisions that have been crucial to the long term success of our clients. Our editors, producers, and analysts have achieved similar results.
It’s not rocket science: we use old-fashioned search methodologies, as well as innovative approaches of our own. We make sure that we cover the markets and speak to every potential candidate for our customers. If that means talking to 200 people on a search, so be it. We interview the qualified candidates face-to-face and we advise our clients of the strengths and weaknesses of shortlisted candidates. We guide the clients through the rest of the interview process, often suggesting additional tests and challenges that might be set. Only in this way can we guarantee success. And we do give a guarantee.
Martin Tripp Associates is a London-based executive search consultancy. While we are best-known for our work in the TMT (technology, media, and telecoms) space, we have also worked with some of the world’s biggest brands on challenging senior positions. Feel free to contact us to discuss any of the issues raised in this blog.