Our PeopleDavid Slessar - Managing Partner David Slessar is managing director and founder of The Walford Partnership, one of the foremost executive search firms in the field. He has considerable experience both in professional and managerial fields. After gaining his degrees in Law and Economics/Commerce at Melbourne University, he held professional positions over a ten-year period in Australia and England. These were initially as a Commercial lawyer in the top echelon of commercial firms in Melbourne - Allens Arthur Robinson and in London - Linklaters and subsequently as a Corporate Financial Adviser in leading investment banks in London (Macquarie Bank's then parent, Hill Samuel & Co Ltd) and Sydney (Ord Minnett). David went on to operate as Managing Director of two service sector corporations that were leaders in their fields in Australia. Over the last few years he has successfully built the Firm's pre-eminence in the professional services market in Australia and has been the most successful operative in moving significant numbers of partners in legal, accounting and professional firms and specialist financial institutions. This combination of professional and managerial skills puts him in an outstanding position to both understand and service the needs of clients. He leads a dynamic team of highly skilled professionals with credentials and experience in the law, research, business management and marketing. All team members have significant experience working internationally, and for major Australian and international firms. The combined knowledge bank provides a business-savvy, creative approach to deliver the results clients seek. Aileen BleusAileen Bleus has ten years experience in the executive search / recruitment field during which time she has delivered research for senior positions in sectors including Banking & Finance, Insurance, Legal, Government, Building & Construction and Aviation. Aileen is experienced at providing comprehensive research utilising processes such as networking, database management, published sources and the internet. Prior to her time in executive search, Aileen spent a number of years with Schroders Australia Limited in variety of roles within the Investment Management Division, Cash Management Trust and Retail Products Division. Aileen has also worked at IBM Australia, Swiss Reinsurance and Australian Scholarships Group. Connie Comber Connie Comber has been a senior business advisor for over ten years, with more than 20 years professional experience spanning both the public and private sectors. Connie specialises in business mentoring and leadership, change management and organisational transformation, business and marketing strategies, and stakeholder management. She has solid corporate experience and is adept at operating in professional service firms. Connie has worked in every layer of government, ultimately to policy advisory (Ministerial) level. She has also worked for a number of industry bodies and not-for-profit agencies. Connie has owned and operated several of her own businesses. Broadly, her industry experience spans FMCG, agri-business, industrial/manufacturing, infrastructure, and hospitality. She has worked for Coca-Cola Amatil, Woolworths, Dow Corporation, major government infrastructure bodies, Director roles with Statutory Marketing Authorities, professional service firms and a range of emerging (SME) companies. Connie is an experienced mentor covering most business sectors. Connie has a degree in the Social Sciences and a Postgraduate Diploma in resource management. Simon Van Assche Simon has degrees in Law/Commerce at the University of Melbourne. He was admitted as a Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Victoria in 1979. Simon has been involved in a senior capacity in the investment banking industry for over twenty five years both in Australia and for periods in London, New York and Tokyo. These positions involved opening the London office of DBSM (now UBS), Head of Capital Markets London and New York (BZW), Director International Capital Markets Daiwa (Tokyo), and Director Structured Finance Merrill Lynch. During this period Simon developed expertise over the entire asset class spectrum including debt, equity, property, including structured debt and equity capital markets, structured finance, securitization, infrastructure, equity raisings and property funds management. Simon was also founding director of York Capital Limited and Lamont Capital Limited. These companies are specialist property investment banking conduits. They are the structured financial and legal project manager in large property transactions. They both coordinate and act in a lead role with experts in public property acquisitions. Simon has successfully completed over $650 million of listed and unlisted property management investment schemes over the past ten years. Simon has expertise and experience in a wide range of investment banking, legal and property disciplines. Combining this with his past senior management positions he is in an outstanding position to create solutions for clients and to provide professional search services to the finance and property sectors. Tessa DentonTessa is the research manager of our firm. She is a former journalist with an 18-year career in business reporting for print media. She has worked for the John Fairfax-owned BRW Media Group and News Ltd's national newspaper The Australian. In 2004, Tessa completed a communications degree specialising in information. |
