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In 1966, Russell S. Reynolds, Jr. left a career in banking to join a boutique US search firm. Companies globally were in a period of transition, with economies shifting and advances in science, technology, and engineering creating challenges and opportunities that called for leaders with new kinds of skills.
Russ fell in love with the industry and eventually felt compelled to launch an executive search firm of his own. He raised investments from family and friends, and together Russ and a partner, Lee Getz, opened the first location of Russell Reynolds Associates on Madison Avenue in New York City in 1969.
From the beginning, RRA was a dynamic firm with a culture of mutual respect and strong ethics, and over the next several years, the firm began to gain a reputation in the market for our depth and breadth of specialized expertise as well as our high-touch client approach. This momentum led to incredible growth – first in the US and then internationally. By 1977 RRA was already one of the Big Six in the executive search space, and in the 1990s the firm became the fastest-growing of the major executive search firms. By 2000 we had 35 offices around the world.
Our growth has continued into the 21st century. Today RRA has 47 offices in major cities globally, advising some of the world’s largest and most complex organizations on their most pressing leadership challenges across industries, functions, and geographies.
While the needs of our clients have evolved since we started, the fundamental challenge they face remains: the need for new types of leaders with the skills to shape what’s next, tapping into the opportunities brought by disruptive changes in the market and technology. Across our history, we have remained committed to being a redefiner – to having our fingers on the pulse and to helping our clients stay ahead of the curve by finding and developing future-ready leaders.
The most important thing is to hire people with a good heart, who do the right thing, who put other people’s interests ahead of their own."
– Russ Reynolds
Founder, Former President & CEO, 1969 - 1991
How we help: Empowering our clients by excelling their leadership
Operating as a single global firm, we advise organizations across industries on executive search and succession, and leadership performance.