1. INTRODUCTION OF HORTON INTERNATIONAL
A presentation of our global and local capabilities
…how we do it?
PREPARED BY:
Zsolt Pintér Hon. Professor of Human Resources & Career
Management at the Pécs University of Sciences
Co-founder & Managing Partner
Horton Int’l. USA Hungarian Branch Office
H-1137 Budapest, Katona J. u. 3.
BUDAPEST
2. GLOBAL COVERAGE
40 Countries
45 Cities/offices
Americas
Asia Pacific
Europe
Atlanta Baltimore
Buenos Aires Chicago
Hartford Los Angeles
New York Rio de Janeiro
Sao Paolo San Francisco
Santiago de Chile Toronto
Bangkok Beijing
Bombay Hong Kong
Hanoi Jakarta
Melbourne Seoul
Shanghai Singapore
Sydney Taipei
Tokyo
Athens Barcelona Birmingham
Brussels Frankfurt Helsinki
Copenhagen Lisbon London
Madrid Milan Munich Paris
Rome Stockholm Utrecht
Zürich
CENTRAL-EASTERN EUROPE
Bratislava Budapest Kiev
Moscow Posnan Prague
Warsaw
3. MILESTONES – GLOBAL
Bob Horton establishes R. H. Horton
in the US
Geographic extension of activities
First global and European meetings
‘Horton Group International’ – the global
organisation; ‘A Member of...’ period
Establishment of strong independent local
offices with professional partners; all offices
took ‘Horton International...’ name
Horton became a highly integrated worldwide
search firm with fully global coverage and
strong local professional experience
Horton International is considered among the
top 20 global search firms by ‘Executive
Research News’, ‘Executive Search Review’
and ‘Financial Times’
We are global in our standards of excellence and our rigorous
application of the Horton International Process.
We are local in understanding our clients' needs, the local
culture, language and practices.
1978:
1980-89:
1988-91:
1989-95:
1995-98:
1998-00:
4. E X E C U T I V E
R E C R U I T E R
NEWS
ERNJULY 1994
THE WORLD’S LARGEST RETAINED EXECUTIVE SEARCH PRACTICES
(Exclusive ERN estimates)
’93 Revenues in $ millions*
1 Korn/Ferry (a)** $136.8
2 Heidrick & Struggles** 109.5
3 Spencer Stuart** 102.1
4 Egon Zehnder International (b)** 100.2
5 Russel Reynolds Associates 92.0
6 Amrop International (c) 74.2
7 Paul Ray Berndtson 60.4
8 GKR Neumann (d) 55.4
9 Ward Howell International 54.0
10 Norman Broadbent International/International Search Partnership 41.5
11 Accord Group (e) 33.1
12 TASA International 29.0
13 Transearch International (f) 28.6
14 Boyden 24.3
15 A. T. Kearney Executive Search** 23.9
16 KPMG Peat Marwick/Foster Partners 23.8
17 The Hever Group 22.4
18. Horton Group International 21.4
19. International Exec. Search Assoc. (h) 18.1
20. Penrhyn International (i) 11.4
* Exclusive ERN estimates in millions of dollars, less expenses. ** Indicate firm’s auditor verified net revenues. (a) Fiscal
year ended April 30, 1994; Figures do not include revenues from Strategic Compensation Assoc and Korn/Ferry’s
organization consulting practice, which ERN estimates at $9 million, combined. (b) Fiscal year ended Oct 31, 1993. (c)
World network includes Lamalie Amrop International in U.S. (d) Includes $2 million in revenues from affiliate Morgan &
Banks, but growth rate does not include Morgan & Banks affiliation. Also included: Bourbonnais Baker Harris/Canada and
RES GKR Neumann/South Africa. Not included: Non-search professional fee revenues totaling $52 million. (e) World
network includes Johnson Smith & Knisely Accord in U.S. (f) World network includes Martin H Bauman Assoc and Kreutz
Consulting Group in U.S. Fiscal year ended March 31, 1994. (g) World network includes Kenny Kindler Hunt & Howe in U.S.
(h) World network includes Gilbert Tweed Assoc in U.S. (i) World network includes Leon a Farley Assoc, Houze Shourds &
Montgomery and Smith & Sawyer in U.S.; Fiscal year ended June 30, 1994.
FULL REPORT AVAILABLE: Ranks World’s 20 Largest practices and 40 Largest in U.S., also notes revenue
trends, number of search consultants and researchers, billings per consultant, number of offices. Includes
analytical comments on trends, anomalies, other ups and downs. $15 postapid from Kennedy Publications by
calling 800-531-0007.
Copyright 1994 Executive Recruiter News. Reproduction without permission is strictly prohibited.
Kennedy Publications, Templeton Road, Fitzwilliam, NH 03447. 603-585-6544.
REPRINT
6. VOL. 10 NO. 2 A HUNT – SCANLON PUBLICATION MARCH 1998
THE GLOBAL 25:
AMERICA’S LEADING INTERNATIONAL SEARCH FIRMS
FIRM DIRECTOR WORLDWIDE OFFICES CONSULTANTS
ACCORD GROUP (JOHNSON SMITH & KNISELY)
100 Park Avenue, 15th
Floor, New York, NY 10017
Gary Knisely
(212) 885-9100
30 96
BOYDEN
375 Park Avenue, Suite 1509, New York, NY 10152
Sheila McLean
(212) 980-6480
63 76
EMA PARTNERS (LAUER, SBARBARO ASSOCIATES)
30 North LaSalle, Suite 4030, Chicago, IL 60602
Richard Sbarbaro
(312) 372-7050
29 112
EURAM CONSULTANTS (BATTALIA WINSTON)
300 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10022
Dale Winston
(212) 308-8080
24 38
D.E. FOSTER PARTNERS (KPMG PEAT MARWICK)
570 Lexington Avenue, 14th
Floor, New York, NY 10022
Dwight E. Foster
(212) 893-2300
40 180
GARDINER, TOWNSEND & ASSOCIATES
101 East 52nd
Street, New York, NY 10022
E. Nicholas P. Gardiner
(212) 230-1889
1 2
THE HAAS ASSOCIATES
443 West 24th
Street, New York, NY10011
Margaret Haas
(212) 741-2457
2 2
HEIDRICK & STRUGGLES
245 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10167
Gerard R. Roche
(212) 867-9876
50 285
THE HEVER GROUP (KENNY, KINDLER, THOLKE)
530 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10036
Roger M. Kenny
(212) 328-0440
27 72
HORTON INTERNATIONAL
420 Lexington Avenue, Suite 810, New York, NY 10170
Robert H. Horton
(212) 973-3780
36 119
IIC PARTNERS (SLAYTON INTERNATIONAL)
181 West Madison, Suite 4510, Chicago, IL 60602
Richard C. Slayton
(312) 456-0080
36 100
INESA PARTNERS (GILBERT TWEED ASSOCIATES)
415 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10017
Janet Tweed
(212) 758-3000
17 75
INTERNATIONAL TECHNOLOGY PARTNERS (FENWICK PARTNERS)
57 Bedford Street, Suite 101, Lexington, MA 02173
Charles Polachi, Jr.
(617) 862-3370
13 22
INTERSEARCH (CONEX INCORPORATED)
150 East 52nd
Street, 2nd
Floor, New York, NY 10022
Fred Siegel
(212) 371-3737
82 161
A.T. KEARNEY EXECUTIVE SEARCH
222 West Adams, Chicago, IL 60606
Charles W. Sweet
(312) 648-0111
33 109
KORN / FERRY INTERNATIONAL
1800 Century Park East, Suite 900, Lost Angeles, CA 90067
Michael Boxberger
(310) 552-1834
71 321
LAMALIE AMROP INTERNATIONAL / WARD HOWELL
Thanksgiving Tower, 1601 Elm Street, Dallas, TX. 75201
Robert L. Pearson
(214) 754-0019
80 298
PENRHYN INTERNATIONAL (LEON A. FARLEY ASSOCIATES)
468 Jackson Street, San Francisco, CA 94111
Leon A. Farley
(415) 989-0989
12 40
RAY & BERNDTSON
301 Commerce Street, Fort Worth, TX 76102
Paul R. Ray Jr.
(817) 334-0500
42 130
RUSSEL REYNOLDS ASSOCIATES, INC.
200 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10166
Hobson Brown Jr.
(212) 351-2000
33 180
SPENCER STUART
525 Market Street, Suite 3700, San Francisco, CA 94015
Joseph E. Griesedieck
(415) 495-4141
41 240
TASA INTERNATIONAL
750 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 1022
John McLaughlin
(212) 486-1490
32 80
TRANSEARCH INTERNATIONAL (EXECUTIVE SEARCH INTERNATIONAL)
60 Walnut Street, Wellesley, MA 02181
Les Gore
(617) 239-0303
60 161
WORLD SEARCH GROUP (THE ONSTOTT GROUP)
60 William Street, Wellesley, MA 02181
Joseph Onstott
(781) 235-3050
19 N / A
EGON ZEHNDER INTERNATIONAL
350 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10022
Victor Loewenstein
(212) 519-6000
48 204
Copyright 1998 Hunt-Scanlon Publishing Greenwich, CT (800) 477-1198
REPRINT
7. MILESTONES – HUNGARY
Andrea Tánczos and Zsolt Pintér establish the
first ES consultancy in Central-Eastern
Europe ‘Manager Contact Ltd.’
The first exclusive interview with a
‘headhunter’ (Zsolt Pintér) in the Hungarian
press by HVG
Search and selection of top executives of 14
daughter companies within the Hungarian Oil
and Gas Co. (OKGT predecessor of MOL)
Competition of the Hungarian State Property
Agency: we won among 57 personnel
consulting companies and got the
opportunity to search for executives to head
transformed state companies
Establishment of the local ‘Horton Hungary
Ltd.’ separated from ‘Manager Contact Ltd.’’
Horton International became one of the most
reputed ES consultancies in Hungary; Zsolt
Pintér is Horton’s VP Central-Eastern Europe
1989:
1990-92:
1990:
1992:
1995:
1998:
8. HVG 1990. ÁPRILIS 21. 21
VÁLASZOL EGY SZEMÉLYZETI TANÁCSADÓ
„Mindkét fél elképzeléseit
ki kell nyomozni”
HVG: Az önök cége – a hasonló
nyugati vállalkozásokkal ellentétben –
soha nem tiltakozott a fejvadász
megnevezés ellen. Cégismertetőjükben
azonban „személyzeti tanácsadás”
szerepel. Mivel foglalkoznak valójában?
P. Zs.: Magyarországon a személyzeti
munka általában a kontraszelekciót s
legfeljebb a politikai megfelelést juttatja az
emberek eszébe, míg a fejvadászatról
hajlamosak azt gondolni, hogy annak révén –
bármilyen eszközök bevetésével – végre a
megfelelő szakemberek kerülnek a megfelelő
posztokra. Mi valóban ezért dolgozunk, de ez
nem azonos a szakemberek egyik cégtől a
másikhoz való elcsábítását jelentő
fejvadászattal. Szerintem egyébként sem a
megnevezés, hanem a munka valódi tartalma
a lényeges.
HVG: Tehát nem vállalnak semmilyen
közösséget a hagyományos személyzetisek-
kel?
P. Zs.: Merőben más a mi munkánk, mint
az övék, de – azért ezt is el kell mondani –
velük szemben mások voltak az elvárások is.
Magyarországon hosszú ideig úgy tűnt – sőt,
kevés kivétellel a gyakorlat még ma is az –,
hogy érdemi munkaerő-gazdálkodásra,
minőségi munkaerő-kiválasztásra nincs
szükség. Az általános elosztási modellnek
megfelelően gyakorlatilag a munkaerőt is
szétosztották. A munkaadó és a
munkavállaló egymásnak való megfelelését
csak annyiban vizsgálták, hogy a
jelentkezőnek van-e képesítése az adott
feladat ellátására vagy nincs. Ez vezetett a
„papír a lényeg”-szemlélet eluralkodásához,
az alibi-iskolák, gyorstalpalók elszaporodá-
sához. A modern személyzeti tanácsadó
cégek – így a miénk is – viszont az adott
munkára jelentkezők alkalmasságát mérik,
pszichológiai, szakmai, egészségügyi,
alkalmassági tesztek, személyes konzultációk
alapján.
HVG: Ön szerint mérget lehet venni
arra, hogy egy személyzeti tanácsadó cég
által közvetített szakember be is válik
majdani posztján?
P. Zs.: Különbséget kell tenni
alkalmasság és beválás között. Mi például az
általunk kiközvetített személyre 100
százalékos alkalmassági
garanciát tudunk vállalni: vagyis arra, hogy
az illető az adott munkakör betöltésére
szakmailag, egészségileg és személyiségi
tulajdonságai alapján alkalmas. A beválásnál
azonban már kettőn áll a vásár: nagy szerepe
van annak a közegnek is, ahova az illető
kerül, valamint annak, hogy valóban
teljesülnek-e a munkáltató által ígért
feltételek.
HVG: Magyarországon már két nagy-
múltú nyugat-európai személyzeti cég is
kínálja a szolgáltatásait. Hogyan tudnak
labdába rúgni mellettük?
P. Zs.: Én úgy gondolom, ehhez a
munkához is szükség van a magyar állapotok
speciális ismeretére. Már csak azért is, mert
nem egyszerűen közvetíteni kell a konkrét
követelményekkel fellépő munkaadó és a
határozott ambíciókkal rendelkező munka-
vállaló között, hanem először ki kell nyo-
mozni gyakorlatilag mindkét fél elképzelése-
it is. A munkáltató általában nem tud pontos
munkaköri leírást adni, nincs kialakult
munkahelyi követelménystruktúra. Sokszor
még azt sem tudják eldönteni, milyen
nyelvtudást követelnek alkalmazottaiktól.
Csak Magyarországon lehet olyan kezdetű
hirdetést olvasni, hogy „Két idegen nyelvet
beszélő…” Első lépcsőben mi a konkrét
követelményeket kényszerítjük ki a munkál-
tatókból, azután kezdjük a keresést, majd a
kiválasztást. Magyarországon egyébként
egyedül mi vizsgáljuk speciális tesztekkel az
elméleti és gyakorlati szakmai ismereteket.
HVG: Tapasztalataik szerint általában
milyen a jelentkezők felkészültsége az
adott munkakör betöltéséhez szükséges
követelményekhez képest?
P. Zs.: A szakmai felkészültséggel általá-
ban nincs baj, annál több az önismerettel, ön-
menedzseléssel? De még ha valaki tisztában
van is saját értékeivel, legtöbbször akkor sem
tudja eladni magát. Persze ebben mi segíteni
tudunk.
HVG: Magyarországon leginkább jó
kapcsolatok kellenek ahhoz, hogy valaki el
tudja adni magát – minél jobb egy állás,
annál inkább…
P. Zs.: Biztos, hogy bizonyos állásokat
ezután is személyes ismeretség alapján
fognak betölteni, de ez mindenütt a világon
így van. Akio Morita, a SONY cég alapítója
„Made in Japan” című könyvének
kulcsmondata például így hangzik: „Sose
bízz ismeretlen ügyvezető igazgatóban!” A
cég vezetőjét a tulajdonos máshol is
általában személyes ismeretségi köréből
választja ki. Más kérdés, hogy „jobb
helyeken” ez a kör többdiplomás, több
nyelven beszélő emberekből áll. A cégek
második emberét, szakértői gárdáját azonban
már kizárólag a rátermettség alapján szokás
kiválasztani. úgy gondolom, hogy e
gyakorlat meghonosítása nem pusztán
elhatározás kérdése, hanem a magántőke
fokozatos térhódítása egyszerűen ki is fogja
kényszeríteni. A valódi tulajdonosoknak
létérdekük, hogy vállalkozásaikat a legtehet-
ségesebb szakemberek irányítsák.
HVG: Egyelőre azonban még az állami
vállalatok vannak túlsúlyban, azok pedig
elsősorban nem felvenni, hanem
elbocsátani kényszerülnek a munkaerőt.
Gondolom, ez meglehetősen kedvezőtlenül
befolyásolja a keresletet szolgáltatásaik
iránt.
P. Zs.: Bármennyire hihetetlen, az utóbbi
időben néhány cég éppen a leépítés
megalapozására kért fel bennünket. Ennek
persze legtöbbször személyes oka van: a
hosszú évek óta együtt dolgozó kollégáknak
nagyon nehéz megmondani, hogy mostantól
alkalmatlanok, s a munkájukra nincs többé
szükség. Az azonban már más dolog, ha egy
kívülálló cég objektív teszteléssel indokolja
meg az elbocsátást. Ráadásul mi ezeknek az
embereknek a legtöbb esetben azonnal
tudunk az eredményüknek megfelelő új
munkahelyet ajánlani.
HVG: A Manager Contact
kínálatában tehát több az állás, mint a
munkavállaló?
P. Zs.: Mi szinte kizárólag magasan
kvalifikált, nyelveket beszélő szakemberek,
elsősorban vezetők közvetítésével foglal-
kozunk, s irántuk egyelőre kielégíthetetlenül
nagy a kereslet.
JAKUS IBOLYA
Egyre-másra alakulnak Magyarországon is a többnyire magasan kvalifikált szakemberek
közvetítésével foglalkozó úgynevezett személyzeti tanácsadó cégek. Vajon ezen túl már
abban is reménykedhetünk, hogy az állások betöltésénél a szakértelem végre többet fog
nyomni a latban, mint a személyes ismertség – egyebek mellett ezt kérdeztük Pintér
Zsolttól (32 éves), az első kizárólag magyar érdekeltségű személyzeti tanácsadó
vállalkozás, a Manager Contact ügyvezetőjétől.
REPRINT!
HVG 1990. ÁPRILIS 21.
9. SATURDAY, 23rd
May 1992
1657
Announcement of the results
State Property Agency’s competition
for personnel consulting firms
The management of SPA considers successful the
competition for personnel consulting firms with closing
date of 15
th
April 1992. The following 21 firms of the 57
participants have been considered to occasionally give
them assignments:
1. Manager Contact (Hungarian)
2. H. Neumann International (Austrian)
3. Hill International (Austrian-Hungarian)
4. Catro-Szenzor (Austrian- Hungarian)
5. Microsystem-Carrier
6. Ernst & Young (international)
7. PSP. Siklóssy & Patrner (German-Hungarian)
8. PMC. Budapest Ltd. (Austrian-?)
9. IMC. International Man. Cons. Ltd. (German-Hungarian)
10. Price Waterhouse (international)
11. Hay Management Consultants Ltd. (Amerikan-?)
12. Dr. Pendl & Dr. Piswanger Man. Cons. Ltd. (Austrian-
Hungarian)
13. ÉTV. Construction Further Education Enterprise
14. Szelektor Manager Mediator and Cons. Bureau
(Hungarian)
15. Ergonosoft Ltd. (Hungarian)
16. Economix Co. Ltd. (Hungarian)
17. T-csoport (T-group) Partnership (Hungarian)
18. T. J. Mirko (Swiss)
19. NMC. Nijsse Man. Cons. (Dutch)
20. Menedzser Mediátor Partnership (Hungarian)
21. KGI. and Szolorg. (Hungarian)
Several of the above listed and registered firms shall be
invited for price offer in case of concrete assignments and the
management of SPA should decide only based on the
concrete offer.
GUIDELINES OF ASSESSMENT
1. Acquaintance of the situation of Hungary
2. Reputation
3. Professional methodology of selection
4. References
5. Guarantees
6. Fees, expenses
Oppinion of the Jury
Manager Contact (Hungarian)
Locally founded consulting company, one of the
firsts. Performs selection with methodology
elaborated by themselves of very high standards.
There are 1200 people in their database. They put
special emphasis on the assessment of technical-
professional knowledge and condition of health.
Applies both forms of search and recruitment.
Methodology of selection: fulfilment of high
standards of a logical process.
References: reflect higher than avarage local
acquantaince.
Fields of operation: general.
Minutes of the Jury
Budapest 9th
May 1992
„THE ANTECEDENTS
The State Property Agency announced a competition
for personnel consulting firms for the search/recruitment
and selection of:
– senior executives (company MD-s, CEO-s)
– managers
– members of the Board of Directors
– members of the Supervisory Board
– of state owned enterprises to be restructured and
privatised”
The closing date for the competition was 15
th
April
1992.”
„There were 57 participants altogether. As a result of
the preliminary selection – which has been performed
by experts invited by the SPA, Ms. dr. Katalin Fodor,
Mr. dr. György Nyilas and Mr. Ferenc Smaroglay – 21
applications reached that professional level, which was
required by the SPA from the participants.”
PRIVINFO
(“Privatisation News” officially published by the SPA),
15
th
June 1992”
REPRINT
10. Budapest Business Journal INTERVIEW 7
BUDAPEST BUSINESS JOURNAL, MARCH 25 – 31, 1996 VOLUME 4, NUMBER 17
BUDAPEST BUSINESS JOURNAL INTERVIEW 7
Hints from the guru of executive hiring
Q: What do you do?
A: There are three levels of consulting
companies: the executive search company,
recruitment consulting companies and
employment agencies. Our company is a
typical American-style executive search
company. What we do is, we are looking
for medium- and top-level executives for
big Hungarian companies and for big or
medium-sized international companies.
When we are looking, let’s say for a chief
editor, we call the Budapest Business Journal,
and we ask the Chief Editor, ‘Do you
want to change?’ And he says, ‘Oh, I
don’t know. Please call me back at home’,
or whatever. This is the so-called direct
search, a targeted search. When we are
looking for a manager or executive we
make a target list of companies, 25 to 30
companies, and we try to poach
candidates from these targeted
companies. So when my friend, for
instance, earlier deputy of human
resources for Shell Hungary, told me,
‘Zsolt, I have been contacted many times
by international headhunting companies,
so I am very good.’ I told him, ‘Karl, you
are very good. But this is not because of
your name. It’s for the company name.’
Q: What do you tell readers in the
book?
A: I’m making the final corrections
now, and as I’m reading I’m thinking,
‘This is genius!’ I must tell you very
frankly: I’ve seen many American books
about that, some German materials also,
and nothing compares if you take the
chapters in their logical process. From the
first step, whether you should change or
you shouldn’t change your work, to what
you are suited for — what are your
abilities, skills, knowledge and so forth.
After that you must think about whether
you should retrain, study something new
or not. Management school, language
school, PC school, etc. Then all this
material you must turn into a good CV.
These are the basics; 110 pages of that.
Many readers will turn it off, they’ll say,
‘No, I’m not interested in that. I’m
interested in how to put together a CV,
how to prepare for the interview and so
on.’ But it’s very important, because in
the CV you must stress your positive
points. And you should decide, ‘What am
I suitable for? What am I interested in?
Am I interested in, let’s say, law?’ but in
law you can be a lawyer, a solicitor, a
judge and so on. How do you decide it?
I give some tips. For instance, you can
go to a chamber, or you can go to a
society and ask, ‘Who is the best man in
this society of judges?’ And I go to him
and I ask, ‘Please, give me 20 minutes. I
don’t know anything about your
profession, but I’m interested. Could you
tell me something? What kind of
personality is needed in that profession?
What’s your working day like from the
morning till the evening? Why did you
choose this profession? Do you like this
profession now?’ This is very important.
Why the book is credible is that I don’t
teach from a soapbox corner at the
university. I don’t teach something
because I read it in a book. I was kicked
out of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in
1985 and I tried to get a new job. I tried
25 places, 25 advertisements and other
methodologies. I have done it. I know
how to do that. This is my experience.
Q: What trends do you see in the
Hungarian marketplace?
A: I write in the book that if you want a
job right now as a qualified person, you
cannot find one if you don’t speak
languages. This is the firs big demand.
Until 1990, in the university departments
only two or three departments were so-
called language-requiring departments.
This was foreign trade, international
affairs and transportation. Now all
faculties are filled with languages-
requiring departments. Because they have
realised that without languages you can’t
do anything.
PC skills are also very important. And
the management schools also very
important, the business schools. The
problem, if you don’t have business
school, is the following. Okay, you
finished in Cambridge. I finished in
Wharton, and we can speak and we
understand each other well, no problem.
We know the special technical
expressions and so on. And all the others
below this level, they don’t understand.
‘They are speaking Russian? Chinese?’
They don’t understand. This is the reason
I tell people they should get into business
school. Perhaps not for an MBA, but
maybe a certificate in management
studies, the lowest level. You will find the
same distinct names, the same expressions
and so on. And even the assistant will
then understand what I’m talking about.
This is very important to understand the
Western business methodology, the
Western business culture.
What I’ve observed in Hungary is that
there is a new generation, because if you
have worked 10 years or 15 years for the
so-called state-owned company, in
commerce or trade, you are accustomed
to the state-owned methodology. And if
you want to make a new sales department,
you cannot get through to these people.
They are built for that, who are now 40 or
45. This is the reason many companies
who are looking for a new sales
department say to me, ‘Zsolt, when we
will build up the department, we don’t
take old people. I mean 35- or 45-year-old
people. We will take new people. We will
train them. They are energetic, dynamic
and they know what they want.’
Q: Are people then who spent most
of their careers before 1989 doomed in
the new marketplace?
A: In my own old CV, a so-called
traditional CV, there were four lines about
where I studied. ‘I finished the Moscow
Institute of International Relations, was
honored with a Lenin certificate, and also
with a special Red Star Medal from the
Soviet Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ It was
four lines. Now, with a new situation, new
conditions, I wrote, ‘I finished a very
famous political science school abroad.’
That’s all. This is a new situation. You
must change yourself to the new situation.
For instance, I suggest to people who
turn to me and say, ‘Mr. Pintér, I was
working with the Party earlier.’ Or, ‘I was
working with the MDF earlier. What
should I do with that?’ I say, ‘Please, don’t
include that in your CV. Please tell them,
“I worked with the local administration.”
Or for the government administration.
No one will ask.’
The biggest problem for Hungarians is
that we cannot sell ourselves. For
instance, I ask an American candidate,
‘What do you know about personal
computers?’ He will tell me, ‘I’m
professional in Norton Commander. I’m
professional in Windows. I’m professional
in DOS. I’m professional in WinWord
6.0.’ He’s professional in everything! In
fact, he’s not so professional, but not bad.
You will ask the same level Hungarian
and he’ll say, ‘You know… I’m not very
bad in computers. Of course I’m not
professional, but… I know something
about DOS, Windows, WinWord, Excel,
etc.’ This is the situation. You Americans
are well prepared how to sell yourselves in
the market and it’s very important. So my
aim is to teach Hungarians also.
Q: What advice can you offer
students who are looking for their first
job, who don’t have any track record
to fall back on?
A: I suggest all university students start
to work already in their university years.
When I finished university in 1983 it was
not considered very suitable to deal with
sales. But if you are a student working in
that, and want to get a job after you
graduate, it’s good experience. For
instance, a student who has been working
for a Balaton restaurant as a waiter, he can
include that in his CV. ‘Yes, I have
working experience as a waiter.’ So
perhaps the potential employer will expect
that he already knows client service.
‘Keep smiling! Yessir! Yessir! What would
you like?’ It is important for students that
they should work, and not wait for Poppy
and Mommy to pay for everything. It is
very important to get working experience.
During the summer you can sometimes
get a job with a big company, even if it’s
cleaning. But to have the culture to find
out what is that company, what do the
people look like, what kind of materials
do they have? And to make contacts. And
perhaps afterward, those contacts, after
two years, three years, can help you.
Q: Has the concept of a career
outlived its usefulness in an age when
yesterday a person’s a waiter, today
they’re doing desktop publishing and
tomorrow they’re selling washing
machines?
A: You must be open-minded. It’s a
whole process. It’s a permanent hunting
for jobs, a permanent search for a
profession. You cannot be stabilized and
say, ‘OK, I have a profession and that’s
all.’ You must always re-qualify yourself.
The most important thing in the book is
that you shouldn’t wait for anybody to
help you. You must help yourself. The
last 40 years were built on the fact that
you were socialized for waiting for the
state, waiting for Godot. Godot will help
you. Now from the book you can read
that if you don’t do anything, you won’t
get anything.
‘In a natty bow tie and conservative black suit, Zsolt Pintér exudes a mixture of élan and reliability
that has led him to the top of Hungary’s headhunting industry. A self-described economist, diplomat
and foreign trade expert, he is Managing Partner of Horton International, a leading executive search
consultancy. His soon-to-be-released book, Zsolt Pintér: ‘How to Build a Career?’, is the
first text on career management written by a Hungarian about the Hungarian job market. Pintér is
nothing if not self-confident about himself and the book: “I’m making the final corrections now, and
as I’m reading I’m thinking, ‘This is genius!’ I must tell you very frankly: I’ve seen many American
books about that, some German materials also, and nothing compares.”
Reporter Ben Sullivan met with Pintér at his plush Katona József u. office in District 13, where
with antique weapons adorning the walls, tropical fish burbling contentedly in a large tank and a bust
of Lenin glaring from a crowded desk, Pintér expounded on the changing nature of Hungarian
employment. The following is an edited version of their conversation.
Zsolt Pintér: “I don’t teach from a soap-box corner at the university. I don’t teach something because
I read it in a book. I was kicked out of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1985 and I tried to get a
new job. I tried 25 places, 25 advertisements and other methodologies.”
BUDAPEST BUSINESS JOURNAL, MARCH 25 – 31, 1996 VOLUME 4, NUMBER 17
REPRINT
13. 1. METHODS OF SEARCH 2. METHODS OF SELECTION 3. FEE STRUCTURE 4. GLOBAL
EXPERIENCE
Direct search among targeted companies
Fresh research on every assignment
Focus on professionals who are not actively seeking new positions
Search within our in-house database
‘Good-old-boy-network’ – word of mouth
‘HAP’ = ‘Horton Assessment
Process’ – professionally elaborated
and both internationally (36 years) and
locally standardised (24 years):
includes multiple structured inter-
views and reference checking.
Fixed % of the first year’s
taxable compensation (to
include bonus or other cash
incentive, but exlude benefits
such as stock options,
company car and pension).
36 years
5. LOCAL
EXPERIENCE
6. SEARCH TIME 7. EXPENSES 8. PAYMENT CONDITIONS 9. GUARRANTEES 10. ‘OFF-LIMITS’
ARRANGEMENTS
24 years
Search period:
30 - 60 days
(from start till
the introduction
of shortlisted
candidates
No search time
limit!
Fixed % of the retainer
fee – at the beginning of
the assignment to cover
direct costs (data base
access, communication,
printing and postage-
courier charges; candidate
and consultant travel;
other incidental costs.
The fee should be paid in three equal parts:
one third at the start of the assignment as a
retainer (first installment);
one third upon the personal introduction of
3-5 shortlisted candidates (second installment);
one third on completion: immediately upon
the conclusion of an Agreement of Service
between the client and the candidate (third
installment).
12 months
replacement
guarrantee.
24 months full
protection for
anybody within
the client’s
organisation
Infinite for the
candidate placed
there
HOW TO CHOOSE A SEARCH CONSULTANT?
14. THE SEARCH PROCESS
First contacts and initial client meeting(s)
PHASE 1
1 - 2.
‘Personnel Requisition Form’ – a guide
for the Client
PHASE 2
Signing the Memorandum of Agreement
2.
3.
3 - 4.
Identify ~60 targeted companies,
incorporating client recommendations
Identify ~85 appropriate prospective
candidates within targeted companies
Client Review of targeted companies and
individuals: feedback as to which prospects
appear most and least attractive to client
Consultant gathers data: company background,
organisation, culture, management style; industry
and competition; position requirements.
PHASE 3
4.
weeks
15. THE SEARCH PROCESS CONT'D.
. 4 - 5.
6.
6 - 7.
7-8.
weeks
PHASE 4
Candidate Contact and
Initial Screening
PHASE 5
Candidate is
not interested
5 - 6.
Candidate Contact and
Initial Screening
Candidate is
not suitable
Further contacts and
follow-up referrals
Consultant evaluation
of candidates selected
PHASE 6
Candidate
rejects the
opportunity
Client does
not like the
candidate
Client makes an offer
to candidate No. 1.
Client and consultant
select the top 2 candidates
for next meeting
Candidate profiling and
introduction of top 3-4
shortlisted candidates
16. 1. THE COMPANY
Year and the short history of the foundation/transform/privatisation;
The most important milestones in the life of both the parent
company/international organization and the particular subsidiary firm;
Scope of activity, the most relevant branches;
Market position (strong points, weak points, competition, competitors;)
The business situation (turnover, financial results, cash-flow,
investments, number of employees, blue collar/white collar ratio,
employee turnover, condition of machinery/equipment etc.)
Short description of your ‘company culture’ and ‘philosophy’;
Provisions for the future (your ‘vision’, ‘mission’ and ‘your strategy’)
including the production/sales forecast, expected results, potential
competition on the market, strategic goals and marketing aims etc.)
2. PURPOSE STATEMENT
The overall reason for the appointment (e.g. development, replacement).
3. DESCRIPTION OF NEED
Job Title
Location
Reporting structure:
He/she reports to
He/she will be on the same reporting level as
He/she will have reporting directly to him/her
4. RELATIONSHIPS
The most important internal and external relations, parties.
CREATING THE ’PROFILE’
17. CREATING THE ’PROFILE’ CONT'D.
5. ACCOUNTABILITIES/RESPONSIBILITIES
The most important tasks, responsibilities; fields in which this job must
achieve results in order to fulfill its purpose! What, when, how, why etc.
should be done and what kind of management competencies should be
taken into account e.g. goalsetting, planning, controlling etc.
6. ORGANIZATION CHARTS
7. CANDIDATE PROFILE & KEY SELECTION CRITERIA
Age (ideal – acceptable)
Nationality
Sex
Language skills
Personal dimensions (ideal personality, intellectual skills and abilities)
Technical know-how, job knowledge and experience
Educational background
Breadth of professional experience
Breadth of management experience
Depth and range of technical know-how (computer skills etc.)
Other requirements
8. COMPENSATION & BENEFITS
Total yearly salary Yearly bonus (in % of the salary)
Company car Holidays
Housing Relocation assistance
Private medical cover Life cover
Private pension fund Stock option
Others
18. INDUSTRY EXPERIENCE
Automotive and components
industry/parts mfg./EMS (‘Lean
manufacturing’; ‘Six Sigma’;
‘QS 9001’)
Mass manufacturing
Energy production, energetic
services (oil-petrol and electrical
industry)
Construction industry
Telecom./mobile
Financial services
Wholesale & retail commerce
(sales & marketing)
FMCG
19. WHAT MAKES US DIFFERENT?
36 years international experience as a fully integrated global
executive search and management consulting firm.
Thorough industry and functional expertise in all markets
through 45 offices in 40 countries.
We were the first in Central-Eastern Europe and Hungary
starting Executive Search in September 1989 – unrivalled 25
years local experience and information network in Hungary.
Ideal size – large enough to ensure in depth coverage with a
global delivery capacity, yet able to function as a boutique
provider offering flexible customized service, ‘fine
needlework’ and focused reasearch expertise.
All of our consultants are not only employees, but
shareholders/partners; so we all are highly interested in the
success of projects and the highest quality of our services.
Limited ‘Off Limits’ – by design, our business is concentrated
with select relationships in a given industry in order to form key
strategic partnerships.
We have an exceptionally high rate of satisfied clients: over
85% of our firm-wide revenues are derived from repeat business
– a natural out-growth of our disciplined focus and consultative
service-oriented approach.
20. SOME OF OUR REFERENCES
Client: Delphi Automotives Hungary (GM affiliate)
Assignment: Plant Mgr., Logistics Mgr., Fin. Controller for the new greenfield factory
Referee: Mr. Steve Gillespie, Country Manager Hungary
Client: CREATON Tiles Hungary (ETEX Group Belgium)
Assignment: Plant Mgr., Manufact. Mgr., Country Mgr. for the new greenfield factory
Referee: Mr. Tibor Schmidt, Country Manager
Client: General Motors Acceptance Company (GMAC) Hungary
Assignment: CEO Hungary
Referee: Mr. Dieter L. Nicodemus, Vice President GMAC
Client: SLC Techn.gies Brussels (Aritech WorldW, later GE Security)
Assignment: Country Manager Hungary
Referee: Mr. Karel Mertens, HR Director Europe
Client: Whirlpool Hungary Ltd.
Assignment: Director Finance, VP Marketing
Referee: Mr. László Gerő, Managing Director
Client: Lidl AG (discount retail chain of German origin)
Assignment: Managing Director for the Hungarian subsidiary
Referee: Mr. P. Oskiersky, COO Europe
Client: SKF Swedish Bearing Co. Ltd.
Assignment: Financial and Logistics Director
Referee: Mr. István Kállay, Managing Director
Client: MOL Co. Ltd. (Hungarian Oil and Gas Co. Ltd.)
Assignment: CEO-s for 14 subsidiaries (e.g. TIGÁZ, DÉGÁZ, DDGÁZ etc.)
Referee: Mr. Flórián Kugler, VP Human Resources
Client: Philip Morris-Eger Tobacco Ltd.
Assignment: Setting up the whole Finance Division; various senior executives
Referee: Mr. Péter Lendvay, HR Director Hungary
Client: Guaber Co. Ltd. Bologna-Italy
Assignment: Area Manager Hungary and Central Europe
Referee: Mr. Paolo Gualandi, Owner & CEO
Client: BNP Private Equity Fund Hungary
Assignment: CEO
Referee: Mr. Jeffrey Grady, Vice President
