How to Grow Through Better Hiring With Kathleen Steffey

Want to solve Branding and Lead-Gen for good for your B2B Business? Download our Completed Playbook for FREE: https://ghapodcast.com/b2b-podcasting... ******************** Kathleen Steffey is the CEO and Founder of Naviga Recruiting & Executive Search, a professional services firm she has built and led for more than two decades. Naviga helps companies solve critical talent challenges through executive search, permanent placement, and contingent workforce solutions. In this episode of The Principal Podcast, we’ll unpack how Kathleen has grown a boutique recruiting firm in a highly competitive market, built long-term client relationships, and created a reputation that keeps clients coming back. ******************** Know more about Kathleen Steffey Website Link: http://www.navigarecruiting.com Connect with Kathleen Steffey on LinkedIn LinkedIn Link:   / kathleensteffey   Apply to be a guest on The Principal Podcast: https://ghapodcast.com/application-to... ******************** Kathleen's Bio: Kathleen Steffey is the CEO and Founder of Naviga Recruiting & Executive Search, a specialized professional services firm she founded in 2002. Naviga provides executive search, direct-hire placement, and contingent workforce solutions, with particular expertise across sales, marketing, finance/accounting, and operations. The firm works with organizations ranging from startups and growth-stage businesses to mid-market and enterprise companies, private equity and venture capital-backed businesses, and global companies hiring in the U.S. Before founding Naviga, Kathleen led talent acquisition at Daleen Technologies. She helped the business scale from approximately 66 employees to more than 700 as it grew from a private software company into a publicly traded company. She later relocated to Amsterdam to lead European talent acquisition across multiple countries. More than two decades into building Naviga, the firm has accumulated 700 Google reviews while maintaining a 4.9-star rating, reinforcing its focus on quality, communication, and long-term relationships with clients and candidates. Kathleen also serves on the board of The STAR Network, helping Special Operations Forces veterans transition into civilian business careers, and holds an MS in Business Leadership from National Louis University. ******************** Show Notes: Building a professional services firm that lasts requires more than being good at the work. You need a clear position in the market, a reliable way to win clients, a team that can deliver without everything depending on the founder, and enough trust to turn individual engagements into lasting relationships. Kathleen Steffey has spent more than 30 years in talent acquisition and has led Naviga Recruiting & Executive Search since founding the firm in 2002. Naviga serves organizations ranging from startups and growth-stage businesses to private equity-backed companies, enterprises, and global businesses entering the U.S. market. In this conversation, we’ll explore the business behind Naviga: how Kathleen competes as a boutique firm against much larger players, how she markets and sells an expertise-driven service, what she has learned about retaining clients, and where she sees the biggest opportunities ahead for recruiting and professional services firms. ******************** Proposed Interview Structure: 1. You’ve spent more than 30 years in recruiting and have been building Naviga since 2002. What originally got you into the industry, and what eventually made you want to build a firm of your own? 2. What specific problem are you helping clients solve through Naviga today, and why does solving that problem matter so much to you personally? 3. Who are your ideal clients today, and within those organizations, who usually holds the decision to bring Naviga in and hire you? 4. Recruiting is an extremely competitive professional services market. How do clients typically find Naviga today, and what has worked best for you when it comes to consistently attracting new business? Current Acquisition Channels: Referral, Content Sub Question: What do you think about podcasting as a marketing and trust-building tool for recruiting and other professional services firms? 5. When a potential client comes into your world, what does the sales process look like at Naviga? How do you build enough trust for a company to hand you something as important as an executive or critical hire? 6. Once Naviga delivers for a client, how do you make sure they keep coming back? What have you learned about turning a successful first engagement into a long-term client relationship? 7. After more than two decades building Naviga, where do you find yourself most challenged right now as the founder of a professional services firm, if at all? 8. Looking ahead, where do you see the biggest opportunity for your work over the next few years?