Movers & Shakers: Lindsay Dubbeldee, SkyWater Search Partners

Lindsay Dubbeldee brings more than a decade of experience in recruiting finance and accounting talent in the state to her new role as a director at SkyWater Search Partners, the Minnetonka-based executive recruiting firm.

At SkyWater, Dubbeldee said, she is conducting searches in a variety of the firm's practice areas, which include information technology, engineering and operations, sales and marketing, consumer packaged good and human resources.

"Once you get to know the culture of a company they want you to recruit for everything," Dubbeldee said. "They may have felt confident that I could do that before but it was a lot harder when I was just in the accounting and finance specialty. It feels good now to say, 'Absolutely, we'll fill that.' "

With SkyWater, Dubbeldee also works in engaged and retained executive recruiting after previously working only in contingent search.

"I have a large network that would appreciate those types of searches at that C-level," Dubbeldee said.

Dubbeldee is focusing on meeting with human resources leaders to learn how their companies operate and the projects they're working on in addition to their search needs.

Dubbeldee, formerly managing director of a large national executive search firm, has degrees in sales and communications from St. Catherine University.

Q: What brought you to SkyWater?

A: Its reputation. Who wouldn't want to be a part of Minnesota's No. 1 recruiting firm? I have always had a ton of respect for [SkyWater partner] Tony Fornetti and his partners. They view search the same way as I do and you can tell they're in it for the long haul. The sky's the limit with this firm and there's no place I'd rather be.

Q: What appeals to you about recruiting?

A: I love the challenge. I love the flexibility. I love the fast-paced nature of it. I love the pressure. I love delivering. I love feeling like had it not been for me, that pivotal hire, it wouldn't have made it. There's nothing more exciting than when I meet someone and I say, 'I know XYZ is going to hire you' and then three or four weeks later they have an offer in hand and they go to work there and I knew it. I'm a matchmaker.

Q: How is the tight labor market affecting executive search?

A: There are not enough candidates out there so we're busy. SkyWater has a different portfolio but the needs are the same in terms of volume. It's just a hard time to hire. So when you have built a relationship with a firm that knows your company and knows that you're going to bring them good talent, they throw everything that they have on their plate at you, which is great.

Todd Nelson