The recent appointment of a chief operating officer at global resourcing and talent management provider Alexander Mann Solutions (AMS) will allow its co-founder and chief executive Rosaleen Blair (right) to focus on being both “the voice of clients” and of AMS’s own staff, Blair has told Recruiter.

Blair also said she has no plans to exit the business. John Collington was appointed as COO in August. However, Blair said it was “nothing dramatic” but just the latest in a series of senior hires to strengthen the management team. It followed those of Isabelle Hung, global head of AMS talent acquisition; Adam Lawrence, global head of sourcing; Amy Bush, global client relationship director — talent acquisition; and Sonja Stockton as global head of emerging talent, consulting, among others.

Collington’s appointment allows her to focus less on operations, Blair said, and more on “listening to what clients need and where they see things going in the future”. This was “critically important”, she said, “and something I believe CEOs in business should own”. “I want to own that and be that voice, bringing it back into the organisation,” she added.

Blair said she also planned to spend more time listening to staff, “making this company a place where they can do their best work”. Continuing to grow AMS’s talent pipeline and retaining the best people in the industry were also priorities, she said. “We need to stay focused on this so we have a great learning experience, so that staff continue to grow and build careers with us.” Hiring a diverse workforce “to mirror the organisations” AMS works with is also on her agenda, she added. 

Asked when she planned to exit the business, Blair said: “I have a passion and a love for the business, and I would like to think I have a few more years left at least. “I think a lot of entrepreneurs hold companies back, they get to the point where the company outgrows them. I would never want to be the person to do that.”

… no exit plans for Graphite

Graphite Capital, the private equity firm that backed the management buyout of global resourcing and talent management provider Alexander Mann Solutions (AMS) from Advent International in 2007, is “not under any pressure” to exit the business, according to a senior partner at the firm.

Mike Tilbury, part of the team that backed the £100m management buyout, told Recruiter that the company was “very happy with the position we have”.

“[CEO] Rosaleen Blair and her team are still working very hard towards the goals they originally have set themselves and we are really pleased with their progress. The business is doing what we hoped it would — to become a bigger and more valuable business.”

Graphite Capital typically looks to exit after five years, but Tilbury said: “From our exit horizon as a private equity investor, we are opportunistic. Naturally, we want to get a good return from our investment in AMS.”