Petra Herman
It all starts with listening carefully
Having worked in executive search for nearly 20 years, it is clear to me that listening is the most important part of this profession. And it’s not just about listening to what someone says, but also – and especially – about being aware of how they say it. The essence of our profession is bringing people together and creating a connection: a connection between the client and the candidate.
I laid the foundations for my career with a degree in Communications and I worked at two communications consultancies in my early career. It quickly became clear to me that I got much more satisfaction from in depth discussions with individuals than from coming up with brand strategies.
For this reason, I started working as a consultant at a recruitment agency in 1996. Twelve years later, in October 2008 (the week the financial crisis officially started), my then colleague Francine Rutgers and I started our own consultancy firm: Herman Rutgers. A great deal of dedication and drive has gone into putting Herman Rutgers on the map over the past few years. Now, I have managed to build up a valuable and very extensive network that benefits not just me, but my colleagues and clients as well.
In my day-to-day work, I combine my professional expertise with my intuition: for me that is the best of both worlds. Add two great colleagues and my own personal search for the perfect career is satisfied.
