Throughout the past 27 years, The Ayers Group has partnered with its clients in bad times as well as good, helping them to deal with the mutability of the national and global economies. We have always done so with a glad heart and a creative mind, continuously adjusting our service-delivery models to reflect the business environment as well as specific situations and unique client needs.

"We're very good at building longstanding client relationships and also establishing new ones, even in a difficult marketplace," observes Bob Deissig, President of Staffing Services at The Ayers Group.  According to Deissig, relationship building is the mission of the firm's new recruiting office, which opened in Rye, NY this past October.  "This move is in response to our growing client base in Westchester and southern Connecticut," he says, noting that the Rye-based staff will continue to support their existing clients in New York City.

January marks the second anniversary of The Ayers Group Information Technology Consulting Practice.  "It's been a difficult time to start a new endeavor," practice head Donna Held acknowledges.  "But we have grown, and the tough marketplace has honed us.  With two years under our belts, we've built awareness of who we are and what we do." 

Industry sectors and geographic regions likely to experience growth, the long-term viability of New York City as the nation's financial capital, and the economic impact of baby-boomer retirement and deflation were among the topics a former Clinton administration economist addressed in a recent teleconference with the Ayers Peak Performance Team.  Dr. Paul London—a visiting fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and former Senior Policy Advisor and Deputy Undersecretary for Economics and Statistics at the Commerce Department—held an hour-long discussion with the team, a small, high-level networking group comprising very senior executives on outplacement with The Ayers Group.

Developing relationships and rapport with candidates on outplacement is a priority at The Ayers Group, and physical surroundings play an important role in that effort.  "The key is to get candidates to use our offices to facilitate their job searches and maximize their success," says Senior Vice President Bob Scumaci, who heads the firm's Parsippany office.  "The more space and amenities we have, the more likely they are to do that.  Our staff works to create a warm atmosphere and make them feel at home.  As Bill Ayers says, once you're part of The Ayers Group process, you're part of a family." 

The satellite offices' move to new facilities took place against a high level of outplacement activity at The Ayers Group.  According to Managing Director Terry Ebert, who heads Career Transition Services, activity was particularly high in the first and fourth quarters of 2002.  During the course of the year, the firm undertook some unusual OP initiatives, a sampling of which follows.

The Norwalk, Parsippany, and Princeton offices of The Ayers Group have now joined headquarters in hosting networking groups for job-seeking HR executives.

The Internet offers job seekers a wealth of options, but finding the right information can be overwhelming. "The Net has been described as the greatest library in the world, but all the books are on the floor," says Ayers Director of Research and Internet Technology David Lockwood. To help the firm's candidates harness its potential, Lockwood has scoured the Net for the best links and created the Internet Resource Center (IRC). 

At a time when job compression and downsizing have made the HR job tougher than ever, The Ayers Group offers services designed to provide some relief.  "Our online reporting system makes it easy for clients to follow the progress of their former employees' outplacement programs, eliminating one more set of papers from the ever-increasing pile," says Terry Ebert, Managing Director of Career Transition Services.

Financial worries can be a serious distraction for anyone involved in a career transition.  Doug O'Connor, a Certified Financial Planner and Vice President at The Ayers Group, specializes in helping senior executives make transitions based on sound financial advice.  

Executives who take on a new position—whether promoted from within or hired from outside—are finding that the honeymoon is over quickly these days.  Expectations are on the rise while the window for achieving results is narrowing.  Assimilation coaching is one of the most effective means of compressing the learning curve and enhancing the probability of success for those taking on new roles.  

The Ayers Group has published a white paper based on what its research has shown to be the most effective management strategies and practices for employee retention.  "Our objective is to help clients prepare for what will happen when the market changes," says Joan Caruso, head of the firm's OEC practice.

The Ayers Group is now offering seminars for candidates who are looking to start consulting businesses, as well as those interested in consulting on a temporary or part-time basis to supplement their income.