Yasiris Espinal joined Development Guild in 2022. We recently spoke with her about how her first few months are going. She shared her tips for success and what her day-to-day looks like as an Executive Search Coordinator.
What brought you to Development Guild DDI?
I was looking to join a company that shared the same values as me. Being a part of a team where I could expand my skill set and draw on my passion for helping others was really important to me. I ended up finding Development Guild through LinkedIn, and was impressed with how consistent and organized the company’s presence was on the platform and on their website. I also appreciated how they showcased the company culture on both; I was really interested in how welcoming and engaged their staff seemed. This all aligned with my career goals.
What does your day to day look like? Who do you collaborate with the most?
My day to day looks like:
- Reading emails from our internal executive search team, clients, and candidates
- Creating and editing agendas for internal and external meetings
- Scheduling interviews with search leads and/or clients
- Putting together candidate interview packets, which include any materials that can be useful for the client – this could include resumes, cover letters, portfolios, and/or notes from calls with the candidate
- Updating our internal executive search database – maintaining this database is really important to our work!
- Attending internal team meetings and client check-in meetings – I have 3-4 meetings a day on average
The most rewarding aspects of my job are interacting with clients and learning from search leads. I’ve enjoyed learning how different search leads tackle different obstacles and manage clients; it’s rewarding to take on an important role in the search process and help the search leads as well.
I collaborate with Tracy Marshall, Senior Vice President, the most. We assign teams to different searches to ensure consistency throughout the process, and Tracy and I tend to end up on the same searches most often. We just successfully placed candidates at two client organizations, the Audubon Society of Rhode Island and Religions for Peace – my first two closed searches since joining Development Guild!
As search coordinator, I also work closely with members of the search teams who do outreach and research. To keep up with the moving parts of the search process, I check in with our outreach specialists to know which candidates will be advancing to meet/interview with the search lead after a phone screen. I turn to our researchers for their input when I’m reviewing resumes from applicants.
What would be your advice for success at Development Guild?
Organize, organize, organize! What has helped me most throughout my 5 months at DG DDI is keeping up with my work planner and calendar and taking lots of notes!
What is a cause you’re passionate about?
Mental health! I’m passionate about bringing awareness to how important mental health is.
What is your favorite part about working remotely?
My dog Shiloh has been the best company!!! Working remote can get lonely at times, so it’s important to take breaks and step away from the screen. Taking Shiloh on walks throughout the day and having him at my feet has been a great way for me to transition into remote work.