Arrivals & Departures: Recruiter grows, new face at digital shop

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Sydney & Auckland global search firm Hourigan International has appointed Natasja Barclay as managing partner and Gillian Gibson as leadership consultant in the Auckland office. (A release mix-up yesterday caused M+AD to run a very old release in error – Mark Jenner left Hourigan in April to join Interbrand NZ as managing director. And he’s still there! M+AD and Hourigan regret the error.)

Barclay joined Hourigan International as a leadership consultant in 2014 and quickly established a strong track record assisting New Zealand-based companies to attract talent with the ability to grow businesses through creative leadership.

Prior to joining Hourigan International, Barclay worked in top account management positions for several of New Zealand’s biggest advertising agencies, including Whybin\TBWA, Saatchi & Saatchi and Harvey|Cameron Christchurch. Earlier, she worked for Sheffield as a search consultant.

To further help clients “transform their business from the old world to the new world”, Hourigan International has also hired Gillian Gibson as a leadership consultant. Gibson has a strong background as an HR director of large NZ corporates in New Zealand (including Telecom). More recently, she has consulted in business coaching and leadership development for New Zealand companies.

“The most important word in business today is change,” said Barclay. “Finding the right entrepreneurial talent to drive this change is the key to our success. We look really hard for people who can make a difference, who have the right chemistry, who relentlessly pursue revenue growth with innovative and creative thinking.

“It’s no coincidence that Spark is one of our biggest clients in New Zealand – telcos tend to be at the forefront of change and we are very proud of the role our candidates have played in contributing to the Spark success story.”

Other Hourigan International NZ clients include NZME, Icebreaker, Tourism NZ and Lotto NZ.

“Natasja is a rock-star,” said Sydney-based Hourigan International ceo Anthony Hourigan. “I’m very excited to have someone of her calibre drive the business in New Zealand. She epitomizes creative leadership.

“Also, I’m absolutely rapt that Gillian has joined us. She has been a standout consultant in the market and provides new complementary services to our search work.

“Now, we can strengthen our partnerships with clients with leadership training, re-structuring advice, coaching and development and importantly, helping develop a winning culture.”

Former Colenso BBDO ceo/founding partner Roger MacDonnell is chairman of Hourigan International.

About Hourigan International
Hourigan International is quick to differentiate themselves from conventional search firms. The company believes that the pace of change is now so swift, that new methods are needed to find new kinds of leaders. They focus on executives who understand changing customer behaviours and who have the capacity to drive top-line revenue growth in increasingly challenging markets. They describe this single-minded philosophy as creative leadership. Hourigan International services include identifying and placing leaders, advising on structures, coaching and development and specific counselling on the changing role of the HR function.


Francesca Alexander joins Auckland digital shop: Former Font Recruitment digital talent agent Francesca Alexander has taken the role of head of digital at new Auckland digital agency Social Global Grind NZ.

Alexander is an American from San Francisco. Her experience includes digital strategist, digital account director ,brand strategy, eCommerce strategy, online marketing, consumer behaviour engagement, digital project management and digital marketing specialist.

She says the agency’s mission is to democratise digital literacy for small businesses. They regularly sponsor a meetup group called Women Who #AMP, which has 400+ active members.


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