$5B Medical Device Manufacturer
THE ROLE
VP, HR (division CHRO, Global Supply Chain)
THE CHALLENGE
When the Zip Code Shrinks the Talent Pool: Filling Critical HR Roles in a Competitive Market
A multi-billion dollar medical device manufacturer faced a major talent roadblock: they needed two senior HR leaders—a divisional CHRO for a $250M business unit and a global head of HR for their Supply Chain organization.
But both roles required candidates to be based at headquarters in a region with a cost of living 80%+ above the national average.
The challenge wasn’t just location. The client needed dynamic, enterprise-ready HR leaders with the agility to support transformation, scale, and global complexity—attracting that level of talent under tight geographic and cost constraints was proving extremely difficult.
Internal efforts fell short, and the stakes were too high to compromise on leadership quality.
Our Approach
Each leader required a highly-unique skill set. The divisional CHRO would need to create and implement a new human capital strategy for the operating unit while also modernizing the business and building a talent acquisition narrative.
The functional HR leader would need to define the appropriate organizational design for a growing workforce and design a global engagement strategy. Each required 15+ years of experience operating in highly-regulated environments, preferably within the medical device world.
THE RESULT
Each search required distinct longlists, each exceeding 250 potential candidates. Our team ultimately identified a strong candidate coming out of A&D and Energy, with strong LATAM experience alongside US HR leadership for the functional HR leader.
The divisional CHRO came out of Deep Tech and healthcare services.
Both leaders brought strong business acumen to the table and ultimately relocated to the HQ location.
Both leaders are still in place today.
“Your approach to this search gave us ultimate confidence that we found the right candidate. The time you spent to understand our culture and ensure each candidate exemplifies that is exceptional.”
— Head of Talent Acquisition
