Forging Business Relationships
By Kevin Smith© Pasadena Star-News, January 31, 2005
Gary Kaplan is the kind of guy who gets things done.
As founder and president of Gary Kaplan & Associates, the La Canada Flintridge resident has built his company into one of the nation's premier executive recruiting firms.
The Pasadena-based company, headquartered at 201 S. Lake Ave, Suite 600, is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. Much of the firm's success comes from forging effective business relationships.
"Eight-five percent to 90 percent of the business I get is repeat business or referrals,' Kaplan said. "In this industry, you don't get repeat business or referrals unless you deliver.'
With a client roster that includes such diverse entities as Aramark Corp., Avery Dennison Corp., USC, the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County and WellPoint Inc., it's obvious that Gary Kaplan & Associates delivers - on a regular basis.
So what defines a good search?
"To a large extent, it's really just providing a crisp and effective execution for the search,' Kaplan, 65, explained. "That means being energetic - having the methodology to thoroughly research the market and having the skill set to effectively evaluate clients.'
Dennis Marchand, who works in the financial services sector, has used Kaplan & Associates on numerous occasions.
"When I was the executive director of human resources at International Rectifier I used Gary for several executive searches,' he said. "One of the things that differentiated Gary's company is the attention to detail. They go to great lengths to provide information on candidate backgrounds. And they do a really good job of finding quality candidates.'
Richard Fitch, vice president of Gary Kaplan & Associates and a former client, said he joined the Pasadena firm about a year ago, largely because of Kaplan's high standards.
"I was executive vice president of California Federal Bank, and he was sort of the preferred provider when we did executive searches,' Fitch said. "We used them because they always did what they said they would do.'
Kaplan has honed his skills over the past 30 years, embracing such divergent fields as entertainment, financial services, education, nonprofits, technology and health care.
Before starting his own company, he served as managing vice president and partner with Korn/Ferry International, where he pioneered the firm's specialized entertainment division.
He also worked in human resources management positions with Bell Laboratories (now the research and development arm of Lucent Technologies), Unisys Corp., Booz Allen Hamilton Inc., American Can Co., IU International and Crocker Bank.
But 20 years ago, Kaplan opted to strike out on his own - and he says he's never looked back.
"As a firm, we tend to be very buttoned up and intense,' Kaplan admitted. "But we take this business very seriously. We have the opportunity to have a positive impact on organizations. And if we do this right ... we can make a difference.'
Kevin Smith can be reached at (626) 962-8811, Ext. 2701, or by e- mail at kevin.smith@sgvn.com .
