When a local retail-focused organization wanted to shift their business model towards becoming a sorting and processing facility, they knew they would need strong leadership to help guide them. The process required both a new director and general manager who would be able to bring their experience to take on the massive undertaking of building something new. Senior recruiter Jessica Miles knew that the placements wouldn’t be simple but that with a little bit of creativity and open-communication with the client, she could get it done.

Using her expertise, Jessica looked beyond accolades and degrees and chose to focus on core strengths and skills. Instead of filtering out candidates without a degree in lean manufacturing or Six Sigma training, she took a closer look at the skills presented, specifically those that represented a strong ability to provide continuous efficient improvement. This pivot opened a larger pool of qualified candidates with great organizational skills and process-oriented thinking. This flexibility led to successfully filling both roles with candidates from both outside the industry and province; an Ontarian from the automotive industry and an Edmontonian from the oil and gas industry. While the candidates had not been in retail, their manufacturing experience was completely transferable to their new careers.