Our management team has extensive experience of delivering effective client solutions

Charles Whitaker
Charles is the founder and Managing Director of Connaught Search Solutions. He entered the Executive Search industry in 2001 and has held roles ranging from International Consultant to MD, with experience in the financial services, technology, industrial, property, defence and aerospace sectors. His passion lies in delivering the highest quality, ethical propositions to major corporations, whilst saving cost and contributing to competitive advantage via strategic partnership - partnership in the truest sense of the word. He conceived and implemented this innovative and unique senior resourcing model within a FTSE 100 company, and subsequently developed it for the wider market – launching Connaught as the first "Search Solutions" company in the executive recruitment industry. A pioneer in the delivery of strategic senior resourcing solutions to major corporations, Charles specialises in the construction of high performance, cost-effective and high impact services for Clients across global platforms.

Formerly a professional soldier for some 15 years, Charles was educated at Sandhurst and The Staff College, his latter appointments including command of an operational reconnaissance squadron in the Balkans, and Chief of Staff of a Brigade.

Nicholas Bunkum
Nick has more than 15 years experience in recruitment. Starting his career in the IT contract market he spent four years recruiting specialists in both the UK and Europe for EAL, eventually moving to Brussels to manage the European operation. He then joined Integrated Control Systems IMPAC a US Management Consultancy where for the next five years he led the recruitment team as European Recruitment Manager responsible for hiring consultants in twenty-two Countries before joining the consulting division of Cambridge Technology Partners, where, as Functional Head of Recruitment, he held responsibility for recruitment across the business. In 2000 Nick moved into the Executive Search industry as one of five founding partners in a boutique established to provide recruitment services focussed on Technology and E-Commerce sectors, via both Search and Selection. In 2007, excited by the innovative approach developed by Connaught Search Solutions he joined them to lead the delivery of Executive Recruitment to some of its key clients in the Technology sector, working across the European and Emerging Markets theatres. In 2008 he became Customer Services Director of Connaught, where he is responsible for the quality of all the company’s services to its Clients.

Andy Gibb
Andy has been Head of Global Recruitment for Royal Dutch Shell Group, Director of International Resourcing for Ernst & Young International, and Head of Global Resourcing for Man Group, the major FTSE100 Hedge Fund Group based In UK, Switzerland and the USA. At Ernst & Young Andy recruited Partners and future Partners mainly within Europe in Corporate Finance, Tax, Law, and Audit, using active search and research in 8 European countries , and working with the senior leadership teams in each country practice to identify and confirm the business need, and then to recruit the best people. A Fulbright Scholar, Andy is a Chartered Occupational Psychologist, and developed Shell’s recruitment and selection methods. He has 25 years experience with Shell Human Resources including lengthy assignments in the Middle East and Asia covering remuneration and management development. Andy was Director of HR for the world first Shell Middle Distillate Synthesis Plant in Bintulu, which produces clean diesel from natural gas. In Man Group, Andy recruited key individuals in Financial Services during the market turmoil 2008-9, and developed lower cost methods for recruiting using in house and outsourced solutions. Andy joined the Board of Connaught as a Director in early 2010, has been Chair of the British Fulbright Alumni, and is a keen ocean sailor, having sailed around the world in his own boat. He is the author of “Get that Job!” a complete guide to recruitment and selection, has conducted extensive investigations into happiness and well-being at work, and is Director of Work and Live.

Chris Boot
Chris is the Head of Defence & Aerospace Operations. Chris entered the Executive Search industry in 2003 and developed a successful global business by actively working with clients to shape and deliver searches on a global basis. Chris started his career as an aeronautical engineer then fulfilled international assignments for Smith’s Aerospace, which led to a secondment to the Royal Navy to provide avionics technical support on Sea Harrier aircraft. He subsequently held senior positions at aerospace firms including Racal, Thales, Plessey and GEC Marconi. Chris’s international experience was a factor in his appointment as Managing Director at the UK Schunk Group of companies in 1996 and Group Managing Director in 1998. Chris has a passion for people, processes and performance, and joined Connaught in 2009 to spearhead the company’s expansion in search solutions across the Defence & Aerospace global market.

Mike Ritchie-Cox
Mike is the Director of Connaught's Nuclear and Renewables practice. Mike is an experienced executive who has led transformation programmes across a number industries and multiple geographies mainly delivering a step change in skills and competencies. Most recently he has delivered an in-house recruitment programme to create a completely new capability within an established technology player. Mike's early career was shaped first by a short service commission as a British Army officer and then by his passion for environmental science, leading to a number of senior positions in the environmental services industry. More lately he has enjoyed a senior career with Vodafone across the UK, Group, New Zealand and Middle East operations, having re-signed the Government framework agreement (the largest mobile contract in the world) in 2002 he joined Vodafone New Zealand to deliver a critical business transformation programme and run business segment marketing. On his return to the UK joining the One Vodafone team in Group to deliver business change projects that optimised profitability from Vodafone's scale and scope. After a brief break from Vodafone during which he led a business unit of a large Forex business he re-joined to launch its Business to Business operations in the Middle East, from whence he has recently returned. Mike has a passion for values based leadership and people development and joined Connaught to lead its Nuclear and Renewable practice in 2010.

Neal Pickering
Neal is a highly experienced senior international Principal Search Consultant with strong cross-sector depth. Since joining Connaught in May 2007 as a Client Director, Neal has led large scale search operations for Connaught’s strategic clients across the technology, mobile, rail, healthcare and public services sectors throughout Europe, the Gulf and Asia Pacific Regions. He previously led the successful delivery to FTSE 100 & Fortune 500 Clients across a range of senior management roles across Business Development, Operational Management, Finance, Marketing, Sales, Services, Project & Programme Managers, Consulting, Human Resources, Engineering and Engineering Design, Healthcare, Public Relations and Real Estate. Neal is a graduate of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and commissioned into the Royal Army Medical Corps. During his time in the Army he served in the UK and Northern Ireland, Germany and the first Gulf War. Neal is a qualified Medical Laboratory Scientist and has managed medical diagnostic laboratories as well as lecturing in Microbiology, Biochemistry and Haematology. Upon leaving the Army Neal held various Sales and Marketing roles in the pharmaceutical industry and was a Marketing Director prior to moving in to Executive Search.