A Pharmaceutical MNC needed to find an urgent replacement for their retiring General Counsel

A European-based multinational pharmaceutical company was struggling to find a qualified candidate who could succeed their retiring General Counsel. After another search firm had unsuccessfully worked on the position for around 4 months, the Client was reluctant to retain a different agency. However, the prospect of full visibility thanks to market mapping, weekly reporting and data-driven consulting convinced them to entrust Boyd & Moore Executive Search (BMES) with the search. A decision they did not regret.

The Client had high expectations for the ideal candidate. They were looking for a lawyer with experience as Head of Legal in the pharma industry with fluent English skills and a proven management track record. In addition, they needed this person quickly since the incumbent was fast approaching his retirement date.

The search was complicated further by the conflicting ideas the incumbent and the hiring manager, the CFO of the company, had regarding the profile they were looking for. While the incumbent was pushing for senior candidates from his network without any legal background, the CFO agreed with our suggestion to look for a younger lawyer who would not retire in a few years leaving the organization with the same problem.

Since the position had been out in the market for several months, we needed to thoroughly map the talent pool and expand the scope to identify fresh candidates. We introduced 9 candidates of which 3 went to the final interview stage. In the end, the Client chose a young accomplished lawyer who had spent several years in the US and had worked as Senior Legal Counsel in the healthcare space. Although he didn’t have direct experience in the pharma industry, he impressed the Client with his strong willingness and ability to learn the specifics of the industry.

“Thanks to BMES we were able to find a fantastic candidate for our General Counsel role in less than 4 months. BMES drove the process proactively and effectively, providing us with very helpful insights into our target market and the candidates they presented, as well as valuable advice regarding search strategy and direction. The Consultant’s communication was clear and professional throughout the search and his understanding of the market inspired confidence,” explained the hiring manager, who was extremely satisfied with the search as well as his final choice.

Not only the hiring manager but also the candidate was happy about our support; so much so that he reached out to us shortly after joining the company asking us to help him find a Legal Counsel for his team. We accepted the new challenge and found a qualified, high-potential candidate within 2 months.