Stephen Glands, Director at Macdonald & Company
On this week's episode of the Architecture Social Podcast, my guest is the fantastic Stephen Glands who is Director of the Architecture Team at the recruitment consultancy Macdonald & Company.
Stephen and I both worked together for over three years, the perception of a recruitment consultant is not always glowing - however, I admired Stephen Glands' candid and helpful approach to finding the right position for people mid-career onwards.
In our conversation, Stephen shares valuable insight into the traits and techniques he has seen successful people use that have gone onto successful careers as well as what it takes to rise above adversity.
Stephen Glands's Biography
"Hello! I've been recruiting in the design and development space since 2000. Does that make me 'old and wise' in recruitment terms? You decide!
I’d hope that at the very least it means I know what I am talking about. I am fortunate enough to receive lots of referrals and recommendations from both hiring clients and the people I am assisting to find a new job, so I’ll take that as reassurance that I am doing something right!
I have two main streams that I operate in. The first is senior and executive appointments for people from design backgrounds. Anything from Associate up to Partner or Managing Director. The second stream is jobs for people who want to work outside of mainstream design, usually with a developer, main contractor, investor or property consultancy. These roles tend to be Design Management, Technical Management or Head of Design roles.
I seek input and information from others in order that I may advise them correctly. I don’t dress things up to be anything they are not so you’ll always get an honest and useful response from me. I take pride in having an informed perspective on the market so I am able to advise people on the best route to take.
After all these years in recruitment, I still love my work! I enjoy putting people in positions where they can have a positive impact on our built environment. I particularly like working on strategic hires.
Outside of work I like mountain biking, playing badminton, scuba diving, travelling to interesting places and eating out. All of which has come to a distinct halt whist I focus on bringing up two boys!"