Mission Statement
Co-led by Sarah McLellan and Tiana Stowers Pearson and supported by Jasminn Johnson, ADH&A’s search and recruitment services combine our shared passion for supporting mission- & values-driven organizations through important periods of transition, building diversity and inclusion into every step of a search process.
S&R Process
PARTNER & DESIGN
At the executive/leadership level, ADH&A partners with Board, Staff, and stakeholders to develop a structured, strategic, and comprehensive recruitment plan that includes industry research, salary analysis, stakeholder/community interviews, job description, “search team” structure, candidate outreach and screening, interview process design, onboarding and transition planning, and strategic post-placement coaching for both the placed candidate and search leadership.
PRIORITIZE & EMPOWER
For a successful search process, we prioritize equity and access, and to empower the search team to make confident, informed decisions. We see each search as an opportunity to build consensus and community throughout your organization and your most important stakeholders, and to center respect and humanity at each key phase of the process. Through the search process and the final candidate placement, ADH&A seeks to strengthen your organization’s long-term capacity, and to deepen participants’ professional practice both from the organization’s perspective and from the candidate’s perspective.
DIVERSIFY & FOCUS
Sarah and Tiana are a team with an intentionally diverse professional background, pairing Sarah’s extensive leadership and management experience in the nonprofit arts and Tiana’s expertise in social responsibility, social justice, and nonprofit/government administration. We are passionate about all aspects of search and recruitment - from connecting with the most promising candidates, to developing a meaningful interview format, to tackling a challenging committee meeting schedule. As a firm, ADH&A is both details-focused and human-focused, and we are excited to connect with you to hear about your organization’s unique needs.
S&R Services
The following services are included in every search and recruitment venture we undertake with our clients.
DISCOVERY
Our approach starts with a Research & Discovery phase that includes stakeholder interviews, a thorough review of key organizational documents and policies, and a collaborative deep dive into the organizations’ goals for incorporating their values into the job description and search process. ADH&A will provide salary assessment and comparable data, and assess any interim management or leadership needs.
ANALYSIS
Based on this discovery phase, we work to design a process that is responsive and informed by the organization’s culture, values, and leadership goals. We help to identify the right Board members, Staff, stakeholders, artists, and community members to serve on the Search Team, and develop a detailed timeline for the outreach, screening, interview, offer, and onboarding phases, as well as strategic post-placement coaching and support.
OUTREACH & SCREENING
ADH&A works with leadership to craft a job description and that centers your values, and “welcomes in” rather than “filters out” leading candidates. Based on the needs of the organization and the position, we design an application process that focuses on candidates’ alignment with the organizations’ mission and values, and the positions’ goals. We combine posting on local and national industry-specific listing sites with culturally specific list-servs, personal industry outreach, and confidential conversations with our networks.
SEMI/FINALISTS & REFERENCES
After screening and initial interviews, ADH&A presents the search team with detailed profiles of a strong mix of candidates who are aligned with both the skills and abilities of the position, and the diversity/access goals defined by the search team. We work with leadership to create an interview process that prioritizes diversity and disrupts bias and hierarchy.
As the search team prepares to interview semi-finalists and finalists, ADH&A will help to craft questions that help the search team understand the candidate, and help the candidate understand the organization and role. Our goal is to foster meaningful conversations that are both enlightening and enjoyable for the Search Team, and the candidates!
We provide informational materials and even-handed coaching sessions to semi-finalists and finalists, we facilitate all aspects of the interview process both virtual and in-person, and we provide values-based conversation guides for reference checks. ADH&A also facilitates timely in-person follow-up for candidates who were not selected, and interview feedback in the case of semi-finalists and finalists.
ENGAGEMENT
When the search team is ready to make an offer, ADH&A provides strategic support around contract negotiations and crafting an announcement strategy (both internal and external). Onboarding and transition as an essential aspect of our process design, and we work with the search team to scan the organization’s benefits and human resources practices, employee/staff leadership evaluation processes, lines of reporting, and existing EDI practices, to ensure that the candidate and the organization meet each other in a sweet spot of preparedness and trust.
ONBOARDING & COACHING
As a measure of our commitment to a successful placement, ADH&A’s support extends beyond the candidate’s acceptance - post-placement coaching and strategy sessions for both the candidate and Search leadership are included in our original process design. We understand that searches and transitions are high-stakes processes for all parties involved, and that those stakes remain high for the months immediately following a placement/onboarding. We work with search leadership and the successful candidate to ensure that expectations are clear, that communication lines are running smoothly, and that the team is set up to do their best work in support of your mission.
