Summary

For nearly two decades, this global reinsurance organization has relied on our team to recruit specialized professionals across information technology and finance. Its hiring needs have evolved alongside the business, ranging from technical contributors and infrastructure specialists to technology executives and reinsurance accounting leaders.

These searches required professionals with highly specialized experience who could succeed within a complex, regulated environment. Depending on the situation, it also required the flexibility to hire through direct, contract or contract-to-hire arrangements.

Our relationship with the organization began in 2007 through its CIO, who had known our Managing Director, Sheri Breitstein, in his previous role at a different major insurance company. After joining the reinsurance organization, he brought The Connors Group team in to support his technology hiring needs. That initial engagement developed into a longstanding partnership that continues to reach into leadership roles and functional areas.

Solutions

Our first search focused on recruiting a programmer analyst. Because our Managing Director had already established a relationship with the CIO, we entered the engagement with a strong understanding of his expectations and approach to building technology teams.

We began by learning how the position supported the organization and identifying the experience needed to succeed within his new environment. Our team then screened candidates against those requirements, prepared them for each client conversation and maintained close communication throughout the process.

Within approximately two months, we presented 10 qualified candidates, advanced six into the interview process and completed the placement. The selected candidate began in a contract-to-hire capacity, giving the organization an opportunity to evaluate the professional’s capabilities before making a longer-term commitment.

That successful search laid the foundation for a recruiting relationship that has continued for nearly 20 years. As new hiring needs emerged, our work expanded across infrastructure, cybersecurity, software development, product management and technology leadership.

The client also began relying on our team for finance and accounting searches. These assignments required professionals with specialized experience in areas such as ceded reinsurance accounting and global reinsurance reporting.

With each engagement, our understanding of the organization became more valuable. We learned how its teams operated, which qualifications mattered most and where hiring managers could remain flexible. This knowledge helped our recruiters look beyond the job description and evaluate candidates against the full business need.

Before beginning each search, we spoke directly with the hiring manager or HR contact to understand the position’s responsibilities, technical requirements and business priorities. We also identified less obvious considerations that could affect the search, including team dynamics, location and long-term advancement potential.

Our recruiters carefully screened candidates before making an introduction. We prepared each professional for the interview process and shared relevant information about the position, organization and hiring team. As the client provided feedback, we refined the search and adjusted our recruiting strategy.

This approach proved especially important for senior and highly specialized positions. Some searches required narrow technical expertise. Others involved difficult geographic markets where commuting challenges, limited public transportation and rising living costs reduced the available talent pool.