“I was approached by Julie Preston at Douglas Stuart Ltd., in regards a Health and Safety Business Partner role, one of several messages that I had received from various companies and/or recruiters via LinkedIn.

Unfortunately, a lot of these approaches fail to materialise, but this one was different, Julie was in contact regularly with information and updates about the role.

I was not really looking for anything new at the time as I was quite content where I was currently working, however, due to how the new opportunity was managed and presented to me I felt that this was indeed an option for me.

Over the following days Julie supported me in my application and interview process and this proved to be invaluable.

I am extremely grateful to Douglas Stuart, in particular Julie for all of the effort and support offered to me and without question would highly recommend them to anyone looking to find their next role.”

“Recruiting is not a minor matter, qualified employees who fit perfectly into the team are one of
the most important pillars of the company. We therefore searched intensively for the best
possible support for our recruiting. In the end, we commissioned Douglas Stuart Ltd. to support
our Talent Acquisition in Düsseldorf.

Especially at the beginning of the cooperation, it was important for Steven and his team to gain
a personal impression of Proman and its employees. This is not a matter of course and yet so
important and helpful in finding the “right” employees in the future.

The support provided by Steven and his team goes far beyond providing strong candidates for
our requirements. They are able to help us define role requirements, assess behavioral and
functional competencies, provide valuable market insights and generally improve our
recruitment processes.

All Douglas Stuart team members have shown real commitment and dedication to attracting
exceptional local talent to our business. They have gained a solid understanding of the specific
needs of our business, our future growth plans and our company culture.

I would be happy to recommend Douglas Stuart Ltd. to any energy company looking for a great
talent acquisition partner in Germany or beyond.”

“I was first contacted by Steven Pearson, Senior Consultant at Douglas Stuart Ltd. during our initial conversation, which was exploratory in nature, the Senior Consultant was open and straightforward. Following our first contact, I felt curious about the opportunity and wanted to learn more.

Many of the Executive Search firms that I have dealt with previously did not offer me the chance to highlight my strengths during the initial engagement, nor did they provide me with a clear description of the role, including company, strategy, and challenges.

The feedback I received after my first interview with the Senior Consultant was spot on and valuable, and I was able to gauge it based on my own reflection. He was candid, fair, and insightful. Having access to the notes of the Senior Consultant regarding my performance during the first interview was helpful.

It was a pleasure to work with Steven, I appreciated his assistance throughout this process. In addition to offering valuable feedback, he motivated me to reflect on it. Throughout the entire hiring process with his client, he provided me with guidance and was responsive.

I was extremely happy with this recruitment process and hope to stay connected with the team at Douglas Stuart Ltd.”

“After a recommendation from my colleagues in our head office we engaged Douglas Stuart Ltd. to conduct headhunting services across Germany and Czech Republic. They were given challenging briefs, but we were impressed by how they brought multiple stakeholders together to establish a common understanding of what competencies were needed in each role. In addition to providing strong shortlists for each role in a short timeframe, they also conducted ‘headroom assessments’ enabling us to consider the future potential of all shortlisted candidates.

Throughout the process I was fully updated on the progress in the form of weekly reports. The evidence provided to us throughout the searches was to an extremely high standard and the personal support the candidates received was excellent. I’d have no problems in engaging Douglas Stuart Ltd. on future searches in our Central & Eastern Europe region.”

“We used the services provided by Douglas Stuart for a global search of a FPSO Project Director for our Floating Production Solutions division.

This search for a highly qualified Project Director with FPSO experience, leadership skills and credibility across a complex stakeholder network posed a significant challenge. However we placed our trust in Douglas Stuart, given their proven track record in executing complex recruitment assignments for our company.

They demonstrated a deep understanding of the FPSO industry and were relentless in their pursuit of the right candidates for our organization. Throughout the process, they provided regular progress updates, ensuring transparency and keeping us well informed.

One aspect that stood out during this collaboration were the detailed and honest competency assessments for each candidate. This not only saved us valuable time but also ensured that we had a comprehensive understanding of each candidate’s strengths and suitability for the role.

I fully recommend Douglas Stuart as a trusted recruitment partner, and I will not hesitate to work with them again in the future.”

“Having been approached by Douglas Stuart about an opportunity in Asia for a role as Area HSSE Business Partner, I was initially sceptical.  I was extremely content in my current role having worked with that company for over 15 years, but the professionalism, passion and energy brought by the Douglas Stuart team was refreshing, their positioning of the opportunity left no doubt that it would be an exciting venture and a once in a lifetime opportunity.  James and the team at Douglas Stuart were supportive at every turn, providing answers to questions before asking.  Their knowledge of the client and the role itself was invaluable, giving me the confidence that they understood not only the opportunities, but the challenges I may personally face. 

I cannot thank James and the team enough for their patience, assistance, and encouragement in the recruitment processes, at all stages a sounding board to understand the practicality of moving from the UK to Vietnam both personally and professionally.  I fully advocate and recommend Douglas Stuart Ltd having succeeded in gaining the role and moving halfway around the world with my family, a task only made possible with their support.”

“The team at Douglas Stuart was open, friendly and systematic. They had a good structure and always provided me with up to date, immediate information. The consultants I spoke with were very good and very clear throughout the process, and the process itself had a very clean structure.” 

“Results speak louder than words, we have been able to bring on board some really talented people, with the skills and knowledge that we need to accelerate our growth of digital solutions.”

“Douglas Stuart provided me with constructive feedback and performed a comprehensive personal assessment. I would like to thank the team for keeping the process simple and keeping the human side of the process in mind throughout.” 

The team at Douglas Stuart were very proactive in their search and provided us with meaningful updates each week, packed with valuable information and market intelligence that we could use to ensure we offered the best package and pay structure possible.

Despite our heavy requirements, Douglas Stuart presented a shortlist of four strong, diverse candidates which resulted in a successful hire. In addition, Douglas Stuart provided much appreciated support after the shortlist, ensuring candidates were given constructive feedback and helped to organise international visits to our offices in Vietnam and continue to assist right through to onboarding.

 

“Overall, the team at Douglas Stuart took very good care of me as a candidate. They offered a professional feedback session after the interview process which I felt was unique. I dealt with Fay and James, both of which were extremely professional, friendly and respectful. Thank you very much.” 

“We asked the team at Douglas Stuart to review our Global Graduate Development Programme as part of our ongoing commitment to diversity and inclusion in all our recruitment and assessment activities.

Eliminating bias in our application process is a priority for us – we want to make sure we are reaching the best STEM graduates, regardless of ethnicity, gender or background. And that means continually assessing our own processes.

James and Eilidh from Douglas Stuart scrutinised our application questions, the style and use of language, and ‘proofed’ them from a bias and diversity perspective. They offered us valuable insight into what we’re already doing well and the tweaks we need to make. They were very knowledgeable about D&I best practice in recruitment and made several recommendations on assessment design and D&I sensitive decision-making. It’s been a really valuable exercise.”

“I’ve brought in Douglas Stuart to provide expert advice on what we should be doing from a recruitment and talent management perspective to realise our goals including succession planning for my Board. The insight that James and his team have provided has been excellent. It turns out that we’ve been doing a lot of things really well but there are some fundamentals that have been missed or need improving. So, Douglas Stuart are now working with our HR team on the phased introduction of a variety of different things.

Whilst all this has been going on we’ve been able to continue hiring through the 2 interim recruiters Douglas Stuart have provided, who have already helped us to improve our time-to-hire by 4 weeks and our cost-per-hire by 25%.

What’s really impressed us so far is the way that James makes sure he regularly updates us on progress and carefully monitors the added value of these initiatives against our original objectives. It gives me confidence that they are so passionate about recruiting and retaining the best people for our company.”

“We engaged Douglas Stuart after a recommendation from our HR Manager who had successfully partnered with them on several assignments for Steer Group. What set the Douglas Stuart team apart from previous search firms we had worked with was their commitment to getting ‘under the skin’ of what we do as a business and how we do it. Not only did they understand the mix of skills and competencies which are key to our work success, but they also communicated effectively our business proposition to potential candidates.
The level of candidate interest generated was very impressive, especially so given a tight and competitive candidate marketplace.
The calibre of their candidate shortlist for both Senior and Principal Consultants met our expectations, and we are now integrating a new member of staff who they identified for us.

We would have no hesitation in recommending Douglas Stuart, and are intending to work with them again in the New Year.”

“We contacted Douglas Stuart Ltd. to find us a new HSE Director for our Justice & Immigration sector after an introduction from our Group HR Director. Our whole experience with the Douglas Stuart team has been fantastic. They understood the brief, took time to speak with key stakeholders and bought into our values and leadership essentials needed for the role.

The number of engaged candidates and insight was valuable in such a niche area of our business and the calibre of the final shortlist met the brief. Once we got to final interview stage, we had three strong candidate profiles and all could have been hired into the role.

I would have no hesitation in recommending Douglas Stuart and will continue to partner with them for future requirements across Serco.”

We engaged Douglas Stuart Ltd. to assist us with finding a new Global Head of Planning following the successful completion of several assignments in our Project Management Organisation. This appointment, following an internal transfer, was critical to the evolution of our planning discipline and the integration with our ERP system.

The team at Douglas Stuart demonstrated persistence and partnership throughout this assignment, finding the right balance between candidates’ representation and customer focus. Despite the niche skillset we were looking for, we ultimately had two strong candidates who could have been hired which demonstrates the efficiency of the DS teamwork.

I am thankful for the strong candidates but also for the market intelligence and additional support provided after the shortlist. I’d happily recommend Douglas Stuart and would not hesitate to use their services again.

“…they have now recruited a variety of roles for me in the UK and Germany. Delivery quality has been exceptionally high but what sets them apart is their integrity. I can trust James and his team to carry out confidential assignments on my behalf and I know that they will always represent Parker Hannifin in a professional fashion.”

“…their expert knowledge of recruitment best-practice across a variety of sectors enabled us to design an optimal org chart for recruitment complete …. and by streamlining our PSL and bringing all agencies onto a single, consistent Service Level Agreement they helped us to achieve significant savings in external spend…”

“The insight that Douglas Stuart have provided is excellent. They quickly and professionally reviewed our approach, provided cost effective and practical solutions and removed the burden of recruitment that our management teams had felt prior to their involvement.”