June 2012.pdf - RCSA

Association news
Life member Profile
Peter Gleeson
FRCSA (Life)
Peter Gleeson, Executive General
Manager – Recruitment, with
Chandler Macleod Group Ltd, was
appointed a RCSA Life Member at
the recent Gala Ball and Awards
night. Peter is well known within
the recruitment
industry and, like
many other
industry leaders,
had not planned
a career in
recruitment.
Originally an
accountant, in
the early part
of his working life, Peter and his
brother established a business
supplying the healthcare sector.
He joined the recruitment industry
in 1990 and over 16 years, Peter
was instrumental in the growth of
white collar search and selection
specialists, Tanner Menzies, from
a three person boutique to an
international operation. In 2002
he guided the company through
its acquisition by Randstad and
remained as CEO until end–2005.
Joining the RCSA as a Councillor
in 1996 he served as Councillor for
ten years, working with both the
Membership and Ethics portfolios.
He was appointed Vice President,
then President, of the RCSA in
NSW, hosting the International
RCSA Conference in Sydney and
building a strong and respected
council. Peter then took a
sabbatical before returning to the
industry to head up Australasia’s
largest specialist franchise
recruitment group, Frontline
Recruitment Group as CEO.
He joined Chandler Macleod in
2008 and was involved in
restructuring the business which
resulted in the last financial year
being the most successful in the
company’s 51-year history. The
recruitment business which Peter
heads up has a turnover in excess
of $640 million of the $1.4 billion
group turnover.
Life after Recruitment
Dawne Kelleher FRCSA (Life)
Dawne Kelleher FRCSA (Life)
founded her own company
Stafffinders in New Zealand
in the 1970s and in the 80s
changed the name to Kelleher
Consulting Group which she
led until her retirement in
2004. This is Dawne’s story …
During my years in the industry, I was elected
Wellington Chairperson of the RCSA, then had
two terms as National President during the
formative years of what was first the Federation of
Personal Consultants (FPS), then the National
Association of Personal Consultants (NAPC), the
Institute of Personal Consultants (IPC), and now
the prestigious professional body it has become
today: the Recruitment & Consulting Services
Association Ltd (RCSA).
It was on my watch in New Zealand that the
Australasian professional ethics became the
standard of conduct that it is now. It was no mean
feat in those days with some members very nervous
and tentative about being given rulings on how
they operate their business. My maxim was.
“We are only as good as our worst practitioner”.
In those days, New Zealand organised our own
conferences with great passion and a desire for
each one to be better than the last. A small group
of business owners and managers spent many
hours after productive days in the office, showing
a real dedication for the exciting industry we were
a part of, working late at night, conceiving and
planning keystone events, and loving every minute.
One year, the night before the Conference, the
highly recommended American keynote speaker
had absconded with her company’s funds,
including our deposit. Should have known better
– she was famous for recommending “taking risks
in business”! What a 24 hours that was, everyone
looking for a new keynote speaker. We found a
good one, too.
Another time, the band for the gala evening
didn’t turn up so we begged and coerced a local
band to step in. Another crisis averted!
What do I do now
It’s very scary when you retire having been
an active and proactive part of the workforce for
almost fifty years. To face
the day unstructured was
a real challenge.
My first thoughts were to
find other work of some
kind, the idea of doing
nothing filled me with
terror. I helped a
colleague with training,
until one day, I thought
“If I wanted to do this,
why did I stop” So, I
finished the task and stopped for good.
The last ten years have been really busy,
learning to live without a diary, not eating and
sleeping “recruitment” 24 hours a day, and finding
out exactly who I am if I’m not Dawne Kelleher of
Kellehers. I’ve learnt many new skills and found
out that the ego is the hardest emotion to
harness, but harness it I have. I’ve learnt to be still
in my head and heart; I swam in the ocean every
day of the year at Palm Beach. I belong to two
book clubs and learnt to play Mahjong. I am
currently auditioning to sing in a New Zealand
gold medal acapella city chorus – and loving
every minute of it. I’m reading and assessing
movie scripts for my daughter who says I’m a
natural. I’ve mentored some interesting people
at their request in their ongoing pursuit of better
management skills. Travelling has always been of
interest, the countries I visited have been fascinating
and colourful. I always have my eye on “where to
go next”
My people skills have helped me greatly in my
own search of absorbing and exciting activities, as
has my ability to be strategic and motivate people.
I really enjoy entertaining and my dinner party
menus are planned with precision. I adore cooking
and I enjoy teaching my grandchildren of 10, 21 and
24, how to cook with passion by demonstrating
all the skills my mother taught me. She was
Lebanese and a renowned cook and my eldest
grandson Zac has our cooking gene and is
studying to be a chef at TAFE.
Now when people ask me what I do all day,
I laugh and say “I don’t know how I ever found
time to work”.
I have two adult children, both at the top of
their chosen professions in the world of film and
television. They fill me with pride when they say
that I am their inspiration ... one can’t do better
than that. But I’m trying!
40
RCSA JOURNAL