Sometimes you’re in the right place at the right time meeting the right people.

At Warbird, our consultants are our most valuable assets. Without consultants, we would not exist. This is why developing a professional relationship with a project consultant is vital for everyone in the company, but particularly key for recruiters.

The recruiter/consultant relationship is the glue that holds a consulting company together. There is ample time and effort that is put in to building a base of credibility and trust between the recruiter and project consultant.

Gretchen, a Warbird recruiter for Accounting Advisory, and David, Project Consultant, have known each other for almost 20 years. Gretchen and David met while they were working together as project contractors in 1997. In 2002, Gretchen joined Callaway Partners as a recruiter and began recruiting for the HealthSouth project in 2003 that grew to over 300 consultants. She remembered David and thought he would be a great fit for the job. He joined Callaway Partners as a project consultant in the third wave to go to HealthSouth. [Sidebar: Gretchen was also Mike Draa’s recruiter!] After David rolled off the HealthSouth project three years later, he continued to work for Callaway and Huron on several projects. Over the years, Gretchen and David went their separate ways from Huron. David’s resume was kept in the database through the transition to Warbird; he was recently found to be a great fit for a current project, and almost 20 years later he continues his consulting career with Warbird. Through multiple job changes and taking time off from work, Gretchen and David now are working at the same company once again.

Key Takeaways from Gretchen

  • Always be growing your professional network
  • Find a common ground with people and build up to credibility and trust
  • When you leave an organization, leave it well – no matter how short or long you’re there
  • Wherever you go, treat people well because you never know how they will connect to your future

This story is just one example of how relationships become legendary over time. Our mission at Warbird is to serve and become known for legendary client relationships. We should try to exceed this and make all of our professional relationships legendary.