October 2024: Prioritizing Wellness in the Workplace this Fall

As we transition into fall, businesses are not only thinking about ramping up hiring efforts but also focusing on something equally critical—employee wellness. With the changing seasons come new challenges for maintaining productivity, engagement, and morale in the workplace. For many organizations, this is a key opportunity to emphasize the importance of wellness initiatives to attract and retain top talent in the current competitive market.

Why Wellness Matters in Business

The link between wellness and workplace performance has never been more evident. As companies seek to build high-performing teams, prioritizing employee well-being is no longer a “nice-to-have” but a crucial element of a successful recruitment and retention strategy. Candidates today are not just looking at salary and benefits; they’re looking at how companies support their physical and mental health.

According to recent studies, employees who feel supported in their wellness journey are more likely to remain with their employer, be more engaged, and perform at a higher level. Going into fall, which can bring on stress due to factors like shorter days and heavier workloads, businesses that offer robust wellness programs can stand out as employers of choice.

Fall Wellness Challenges and Solutions

Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD): The shorter days and less sunlight in fall and winter months can trigger feelings of fatigue, anxiety, or depression in some employees. Employers can combat this by providing flexible work hours, offering natural lighting in workspaces, or allowing remote work where possible. Promoting mental health resources, such as counseling or meditation programs, can also help.

Increased Workload:?For many industries, fall marks the start of a busy season, which can lead to burnout. Encouraging work-life balance, promoting healthy time management, and ensuring employees take regular breaks are essential for maintaining productivity without sacrificing well-being.

Physical Health: With cold and flu season looming, maintaining physical health in the workplace becomes even more critical. Employers can support wellness by providing gym membership reimbursements, hosting fitness challenges, or offering healthy snacks to boost immunity.

How Wellness Programs Can Attract Top Talent

Incorporating wellness into your company’s culture is a powerful recruitment tool. Here’s why:

Employee Benefits Beyond Salary:?In today’s workforce, prospective employees are looking for companies that care about more than just profit. Offering wellness programs—whether it’s through gym memberships, mental health days, or mindfulness sessions—demonstrates that your organization values its people.

Improved Employer Brand:?A focus on wellness boosts a company’s reputation as an employer of choice. Candidates are more likely to choose a company that is known for supporting its employees' well-being.

Long-Term Retention:?Prioritizing employee wellness isn’t just about attracting talent; it’s about keeping them. By promoting a healthy work environment, companies reduce turnover, absenteeism, and the costs associated with replacing employees.

Recruiting Firms as Wellness Advocates

As an executive search and recruiting firm, we have the unique opportunity to help businesses understand the importance of wellness in their hiring strategy. When consulting with clients, emphasize the role of wellness programs in attracting top-tier talent, especially as companies prepare for the busy fall season. Encourage organizations to integrate wellness into their job descriptions and company culture narratives. Highlight examples of how wellness initiatives have increased employee satisfaction and retention in other organizations.

For companies looking to make their wellness offerings a key part of their recruitment pitch, fall is the perfect time to evaluate and expand these programs. From mental health support to fitness initiatives, candidates are more likely to be drawn to businesses that show they genuinely care about the holistic well-being of their employees.

As we move into the fall season, workplace wellness should be a top priority for companies looking to attract and retain the best talent. In an increasingly competitive job market, wellness programs are not just a perk—they are a powerful tool for recruitment and retention. By focusing on the physical, mental, and emotional well-being of employees, companies can foster a healthier, more productive workforce and position themselves as employers of choice.

Recruiting firms can play a pivotal role in advocating for these programs, ensuring businesses are prepared to meet the needs of today’s workforce and remain competitive in the evolving job market.

Open Roles?- October 2024

As DRI works across the nation on high-level roles for our clients, we are always open to speaking with professionals who are interested in the roles listed below, or who would simply like to network.

Chief Financial Officer at PE-backed Healthcare Tech and Consulting Firm

• Hiring first CFO to work with the founding team and investors
• Experience with SaaS and Professional Services revenue models
• Prior experience as CFO of a Private Equity-backed company required
• Location preference Tampa, FL, Secondary preference in East or Central region

Sales and Marketing Manager - U.S.

Our client, a leading global resins manufacturer, seeks a sales and marketing manager to build out its U.S. footprint in the healthcare packaging space.?

• Must have experience selling thermoformed medical packaging
• Ideal candidate possesses a deep understanding of the packaging value chain
• Ideal candidate has extensive contacts at brand owners, extruders and thermoformers
• Location: Remote
• Must be willing to travel

Network Operations Center (NOC) Manager position at a well-funded early-stage company in Kansas City:

• Lead NOC Operations: Oversee daily network operations, ensuring optimal performance, uptime, and reliability of network infrastructure in a fast-paced environment.
• Team Development: Recruit, train, and mentor a high-performing NOC team, fostering a culture of continuous improvement and proactive incident management.
• Incident Management: Implement and refine incident response protocols, minimizing downtime through effective troubleshooting and communication with stakeholders.
• Strategic Collaboration: Work closely with engineering and product teams to align network strategies with business goals, enhancing scalability and performance for future growth.

?

Water AMI Sales Executive

• Client Engagement: Develop and maintain strong relationships with municipal water authorities and utility companies, understanding their needs and providing tailored smart metering solutions.
• Product Knowledge: Demonstrate in-depth knowledge of smart metering technology, including AMI systems, data analytics, and IoT applications, to effectively communicate benefits to potential clients.
• Sales Strategy: Identify and pursue new business opportunities, leveraging market research and competitive analysis to craft effective sales strategies that drive revenue growth.
• Training and Support: Provide ongoing training and support to clients post-sale, ensuring successful implementation of smart metering solutions and fostering long-term customer satisfaction and retention.

?

Federal System Integrator Sales Executive:

• Market Penetration: Identify and pursue new business opportunities within federal systems integrators, leveraging deep industry knowledge to expand market presence and drive sales growth.
• Solution Expertise: Present and demonstrate mobility technology solutions that enhance operational efficiency and security, tailoring presentations to meet the specific needs of federal clients.
• Relationship Management: Build and maintain strong relationships with key stakeholders in federal agencies and systems integrators, ensuring alignment between client needs and technology offerings.
• Collaborative Selling: Collaborate with cross-functional teams, including product development and marketing, to create compelling proposals and support client engagements throughout the sales cycle.

Regional Sales Manager - North Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana

• Manufacturer of Motor Controls, Starters and VFDs
• Identify and develop new strategic accounts targeting key executives and decision makers
• Ability to take full advantage of a fast-growing territory by leveraging relationships with contacts in the industry
• Education: Bachelor’s degree – Electrical Engineering, Business, or Marketing
• Experience selling products within the Controls Industry such as Soft Starters and Low/Medium Voltage Drives
• Ability to travel 50% - Work from Home office when not traveling

Sales Representative - E Coast & Central U.S. territories?

• Our client: a dynamic material handling automation manufacturer
• Locations
• Full benefits + 401K + car allowance
• Salary: $100K base w/ $250K OTE
• Overnight travel: 50-75%
• Background in warehouse automation selling into e-commerce, food, bev., pharma
• Experience with Shuttles, &/or other fully automated warehouse solutions

Engineering Manager?

• Our client is a manufacturer of turnkey conveyors and automation systems, including sorters, bulk handling, post & parcel
• Mechanical, Electrical, Systems
• 4-5 direct reports and growing
• Design, procurement, manufacturing/assembly, testing, installation
• Position open due to growth

East Coast Sales Manager?

• Our Client: a strong packaging equipment company with a billion dollar global footprint
• Territory: East Coast- Florida to Maine with?50%+ overnight travel
• Experience selling capital equipment into food, ideally dairy, with a background in packaging or food processing
• $100-$120K base salary with uncapped commission structure

?

Sr. Business Development Manager

• Our Client: a leading systems integrator focused on food manufacturing
• Experience selling equipment, systems, or integration into food manufacturing
• Remote role, Midwest location preferred
• 50% overnight travel

Regional Sales Manager / Distribution Channel Manager

• Our Client is a leading manufacturer of linear guides and pneumatics
• This is a regional role selling to distributors and managing distributors
• Responsible for Sales forecasting / account planning
• Territory: MO, KS, IA, MN
• Experience: at least 2 years pneumatic or Linear guide related experience, veteran experience preferred
• Experience working with pneumatic/linear guide Manufacturers and/or distributors
• Bachelor degree in engineering or related major is a plus
• “Hunter” sales mentality
• Overnight Travel: 40%
• Remote home office in territory

Regional Sales Manager / Distribution Channel Manager

• Our Client is a leading manufacturer of linear guides and pneumatics
• Very strong in manufacturing, our client buys all their own materials and does everything in house
• Top 5 growing in the world with strong customer service and a huge inventory
• This is a regional role selling to distributors and managing distributors
• Responsible for Sales forecasting / account planning. Market research
• Experience: at least 2 years pneumatic or linear guide related experience, veteran experience preferred
• Experience working with pneumatic/linear guide manufacturers and/or distributors
• Bachelor's degree in engineering or related major is a plus
• “Hunter” sales mentality
• Overnight Travel: 40%
• Territory: MO, KS, IA, MN. Remote home office in territory

Key Account Manager?

• Our client is a manufacturer of motor controls, starters and VFDs
• Selling into OEM accounts
• Identify and develop new strategic accounts targeting key executives and decision makers
• Ability to take full advantage of a fast-growing territory by leveraging relationships with contacts in the industry
• Education: Bachelor’s degree – Electrical Engineering, Business, or Marketing
• Experience selling products within the controls Industry such as soft starters and low/medium voltage drives to OEM's
• Ability to travel 50%
• Location: Home office – near major airport (east of the Mississippi)

Regional Sales Manager

• Manufacturer of custom motion control products including, stepper, and servo motors and drives
• Experience maintaining accounts in the territory and continuing to grow business
• Experience selling into multiple industries including but not limited to Material Handling, Packaging, Robotics industry
• Education: Bachelor’s Degree in Industry Relevant field
• Ability to travel 50%
• Location: Midwest Territory. Remote (Home Office)

Featured Candidates?- September 2024

Below you will find a few featured candidates we have spoken with who are open to new opportunities. If you would like to get in contact with any of the candidates below, please reach out.

General Counsel or Chief Legal Officer candidate who was worked both in a firm and in-house with many startups

• A true generalist but has a background in life sciences and intellectual property
• Has mostly worked in the bio-pharma and life sciences spaces but is industry agnostic
• Located in Eastern Orange County and is licensed to practice law there and in Colorado
• Open to relocation within California or possibly some surrounding areas or a remote/hybrid situation

Senior Project Manager based in Indiana

• Product Experience: Material Handling solutions into Parcel and Post
• Led / supported Projects $2M – $80M successfully
• Reduced P&P internal MFG field quality issues by 50% in 12-month period
• Improved (OTTR) on-time delivery by 75% at key suppliers
• Overnight travel: 60%+
• Compensation: $170K base + bonus

Program manager based in Indianapolis, IN

• Product Experience:? Automation/robotics into Amazon, UPS, etc.
• Provided technical leadership for the Consulting and Integration engineering staff across three divisional offices
• Responsible for 6 direct reports
• Managed the execution of large capital automation projects with a cumulative spend between $10MM to $150MM
• Relocation:? Open
• Overnight travel: ?50-80%
• Compensation: $190K base + bonus?

Sales Manager based in Tampa, FL

• Product experience: Racking, pallet shuttles—and partners with automation team when necessary
• Customer base: Sells mostly through distributor/integrators—into 3PL, Ecommerce, Walmart, etc.
• Added over $2.7 million in sales and $520,000 in gross profit annually
• Top producer across multiple industries. More than doubled sales through distributors in territories while adding new distributors to increase market share
• Year over year sales growth maintained and built by cultivating strong relationships with customers
• Bilingual

Sales Manager based in Austin, TX

• Product experience: Various types of Labeling Cap Ex, like Equipment that does shrink sleeve labeling
• Customer base: Food/Bev like Dairy, Condiments, Canned meat, Sauces, various Bev, also Cosmetics Sells direct B2B 80% of the time, 20% through distributors
• Executed innovative sales strategies, instrumental in surpassing sales targets and driving sustained business growth
• Spearheaded sales efforts across a diverse, multi-state territory, achieving $2.8M in revenue in 2023, exceeding target plan
• Conducted 65 cold calls daily to introduce and educate prospects on solutions
• Overnight travel: 60%+

Solutions Engineer based in Orlando, FL

• Product experience: Conveyors, racking, AGV/AMRs, pick to light, pallet wrappers, auto-baggers, case sealers, cranes, pick modules, forklifts
• Customer base: F&B, pharma, e-commerce, warehousing, freezers, clean rooms
• MS/BS Industrial Engineering
• 3 years in MH: 2 years designing fulfillment centers for major end-user (RIF), 1.5 years as Pre-Sales Eng at MH integrator (RIF)
• First 8 years as Industrial Engineer at major Aerospace manufacturer. Capacity planning, L6S, capital expenditures
• $114K base + bonus, no non-compete

Engineering Manager based in Baltimore, MD?

• Product experience: Material Handling Equipment & Systems Integration- conveyors, sortation, palletizing
• Customer base: E-comm, distribution, post & parcel, food & bev., packaging
• MSME, BSME
• Managing $450M?annual revenue, 90+ engineers with 6 managers - 4 teams in U.S., 1 in Europe & 1 in Asia
• Responsible for: Business strategy, engineering strategy, project management, design
• $175K base, $250K+ OTE
• Open to relocation

Key Account Director based in Jacksonville, FL?

• Currently in 17th?year with a leading oven & foodservice equipment manufacturer
• Culinary degree, foodservice operations and distribution experience prior to current company
• Drives strategic planning and execution to achieve sales targets and identify new business opportunities for revenue growth
• ?Achieved "Sales Person of the Year 2015" and "Chef of the Year 2018," recognized for strategic oversight and contributions to culinary innovation
• Successfully negotiated and secured multi-million-dollar contracts with major clients like Wal-Mart and Tim Horton's
• Road warrior, willing to travel as needed

VP of Sales based in Washington DC?

• Currently Head of Sales with a leading Hospitality focused SaaS platform
• 13 years of sales leadership in the Hospitality Technology space, from SMB to Enterprise level, including 6-years as Director of Mid-Market Sales with another industry leader
• East coast based, open to travel as needed
• AI sales expertise, interested in roles with a strong AI component

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