Executive Talent Services

About Executive Talent Services Our *mission* at Executive Talent Services is to help organizations and individuals recognize, develop and fully leverage their talent for maximum advantage. Our *vision* is to be the first choice for clients who recognize the potential in leveraging talent to drive performance. To achieve this, we provide: high quality management consulting, targeted coaching and expert advice that deliver demonstrable results. We provide a full spectrum of services, from improving performance of individual key talent to developing and integrating an organizational talent management strategy.
Biographies
John Madigan John Sperger Rhonda LoBrutto Bob Volle Loretta Symons Lisa Stafford
John Madigan President & CEO
	John Madigan started Executive Talent Services in 2007 after extensive experience in corporate HR, specifically in the insurance and financial services sector. Most recently, he served as vice president of corporate staffing for The Hartford Financial Services Group. In that role, he led executive and professional recruiting for the enterprise, including field staffing for Property Casualty and Life businesses, college relations, assessment consulting and diversity staffing. Madigan held that position since May 2003. Madigan joined The Hartford in 1996 as director of staffing for the company’s life insurance operations in Simsbury, Connecticut. He was named vice president in 1999 when he was tapped to manage human resources for The Hartford’s company-wide information technology organization.
Prior to joining The Hartford, Madigan spent three years in the executive outplacement business as a vice president at Drake Beam Morin, an international career management and outplacement firm, and nearly a decade in human resources management at Aetna Life and Casualty. Earlier in his career he directed career placement services at the University of Hartford and had been a career counselor at Trinity College in Hartford. Madigan holds a B.A. in psychology, and a Master’s Degree in counseling from the University of Connecticut, where he also completed coursework toward a Ph.D. in adult learning. For additional references, you can view John’s profile on LinkedIn and ZoomInfo. Top of page
John Sperger Vice President, Business Development John brings over 40 years of diverse business management, sales management and business development experience to Executive Talent Services (ETS). Prior to joining ETS, John was Vice President, Client Services for Right Management and the Center for Professional Development (CPD), University of Hartford. Before the CPD, John was Vice President, Business Development for Lee Hecht Harrison (LHH), Vice President, OFI Contract Interiors and Vice President of DaQui Belding Partners, one of Central Connecticut’s premier commercial real estate development companies in the ‘90’s. John’s early career experience included significant responsibilities and accomplishments in business development, marketing, communications and general management with extensive multi-level experience in retail, food service and commercial real estate brokerage. His strengths include listening well and providing appropriate solutions, exceeding goals, an ability to recruit and develop staff, fostering a team oriented work environment and maintaining effective communication with all levels both within and outside an organization. Business/Organizational Leadership Experience He is active with many community organizations serving on boards and in leadership positions. He is a member of the Board of Overseers for The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts, serving on the Annual Fund Committee. He is also a member of the Villanova University Alumni Association, does Fund Raising work for Our Piece of the Pie and is a member of two HR organizations, HRLF-SNE and HRMA. He recently retired from the Board of the Simsbury Historical Society where he chaired the Development Committee. John is very involved with the Hartford Symphony Orchestra (HSO) and the MetroHartford Alliance where he has served on the board, the executive committee, and chaired several ongoing Alliance committees. He is presently a member of the Legislative Affairs Committee. John is also a member of the 180 voice Hartford Chorale the HSO’s chorus for major performances. He is a Vietnam Era veteran having served aboard USS Lester DE-1022 as Engineering Officer. Education John is a graduate of Villanova University where he was awarded a B.S. in Economics with a major in Marketing. Top of page
Rhonda LoBrutto Senior Career Consultant Rhonda Dablain LoBrutto, M.S., has career coaching experience in both Fortune 100 and consulting organizations. As a Senior Consultant for two international human resources firms, she helped hundreds of executives from Fortune 500 companies and not-for-profits reach their goals. Rhonda's clients have distinguished themselves in such fields as medical management, law, engineering, biochemistry, insurance, finance, computer science, education, retail, communications and entrepreneurship. In her own 30-year career, Rhonda has held professional positions in federal, state, college and manufacturing environments. Past employers include the Library of Congress, Pratt & Whitney, People Management, Drake Beam Morin, and Hartford Financial Services Group. Rhonda has also been principal of her own consulting business, CareerFit, in Avon, CT, where she advised executives and entrepreneurs on career management. Rhonda's experience covers all aspects of career counseling, including skills assessment and employment interviewing. A skilled facilitator, she has led workshops on Career Transition, Retirement Planning, Business Writing, Change Management and Selection Interviewing at many Fortune 500 companies. She is co-author of Who's Hiring in Connecticut, which gained her extensive knowledge on the Connecticut job market. Her graduate thesis, Careers in Connecticut International Business, offered further insight into international and federal markets. Rhonda has published many articles in professional journals and newspapers, e.g., "Is Battle Fatigue Sabotaging Your Search?" and “Crossing the Finish Line” for The Wall Street Journal. An honors graduate of St. Joseph College, Rhonda holds a Master's degree in counseling from Central Connecticut State University; she also attended Laval University, Quebec. She has been a member of the American Counseling Association, the Society of Human Resources Management, Connecticut Women’s Council, and World Affairs Council. Rhonda co-founded the Women Executives Healthcare Roundtable; she has also served on the board of STRIVE and volunteered for Prevent Blindness Connecticut and United Way. Top of page
Bob Volle Leadership Development Professional Bob Volle is an experienced manager, trainer and consultant who specializes in leadership development, team effectiveness, and individual career management. He has provided customized coaching for executives and leaders to enhance both individual and team performance, leading to improved business results. With substantial experience in a Fortune 100 insurance and financial services organization, Bob brings sophisticated HR practice and business management expertise to each assignment. Using customized and standardized 360º feedback instruments, Bob identifies individual and team needs and helps craft appropriate developmental responses. He is certified to administer Lominger’s Career Architect and VOICES 360, CCL’s Benchmarks, Skillscope and Prospector, and CPP’s MBTI. Follow-up coaching sessions ensure that both the individual and the team transform learning into action. Bob is also certified in Career Systems International’s programs Career Power and Career Power for Coaches. Bob conducts 360º leadership assessments to help leaders better understand their impact on the organization and improve their performance, facilitates executive transitions into new leadership roles through powerful and effective on-boarding, and helps resolve business-related interpersonal conflicts leading to greater collaboration. As part of an enhanced leadership development approach, Bob works with teams to improve capabilities around communication, problem-solving, decision-making, and planning. In addition, Bob provides individual career management counseling to help people transition into new roles. As a true Leadership Development Professional, Bob is skilled at motivating, developing, coaching, and leading front line, middle and senior level leaders in the delivery of business results. He has successfully delivered leadership programs in Finance, Personal Lines, Human Resources, Information Technology, and Property Casualty Claims. In addition to expertise developed in over ten years in HR and Talent Management, Bob brings sixteen years of experience in managerial and operational roles. Top of page
Loretta Symons Leadership Development Professional Loretta Symons, Center Stone Consulting, has been working with Fortune 500 companies and Non-Profit organizations for over ten years, focusing on Organizational Effectiveness, Leadership and Career Development and Executive Coaching. Her diverse experience, understanding of people and respect for the individual provide insights that her clients find useful both personally and professionally. Executive coaching clients have included senior executives and all levels of management. Loretta’s work with teams and their managers includes a variety of critical development and communication issues in settings such as Financial Services, Health Care, Insurance, Pharmaceutical, Law and Consulting Firms, Manufacturing and a variety of Non-Profit Organizations. She also serves as adjunct faculty with the University of Hartford, teaching Group Dynamics and Leadership and Management classes in the management department, and Building Leadership Skills and Succession Planning for regional non-profit organizations. Loretta brings an interesting perspective to career development work with organizations and individuals. She has worked in the career center at the University of Hartford; in career transition with executives for Drake, Beam, Morin and Career Management of New England, an OI partner. She also played a pivotal role in the development of the Internal Career Center at the Hartford Life Insurance Company. She has consulted with several other organizations on their approach to career development for their employees and managers. Loretta has been certified by Career Systems, Career Architect and the Career Development Team to use their product in training managers. She has also done exciting work enhancing client’s skills and expanding perspective through the use of personality and behavioral style inventories including the Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), DISC and the Enneagram. Her coaching is directed toward bringing out the best in individuals while increasing effectiveness within the requirements and culture of the specific workplace. This approach enables the leader to build on strengths and uncover new ways of operating that fit naturally within the leader’s style and value system as well as the needs and culture of the organization. Symons holds a master’s degree in counseling/psychology with a focus on organizational behavior. Topic areas: Leadership development Strategic planning Communication Managing change and transition Influencing skills Presentation Skills Conflict resolution Stress and coping skills Succession planning Career goals/ life goals Political savvy Understanding corporate culture Giving and receiving honest input Performance management Top of page
Lisa Stafford Senior Associate Lisa Stafford has over 27 years of experience in banking, insurance and academia, from running consumer lending operations to providing leadership coaching to top executives in Healthcare on business planning and human capital strategy and execution. Within insurance and banking, Lisa partnered closely with the direct reports to the CEO, and their staff organizations including Medical, Legal, Investments, Strategy, Finance and Marketing, as well as Regional leadership. Within the medical organization, she developed business/HR plans for cultural transformation and created and implemented organization designs and operating models to increase business effectiveness and employee engagement. Lisa also held leadership positions in HR client areas, Corporate Education, Staffing and Organization Development. In addition to her business experience, Lisa has consulted within the academic arena, including her work with a college president to create a new organization structure that increased customer focus and service delivery. As a professor at Fairfield University and Quinnipiac University (QU), Lisa designs and teaches graduate and undergraduate classes in Business Strategy, Human Resources, and Health Care. She designed, and is now teaching, a new graduate strategic Health Care class at QU. Lisa earned her Bachelor of Science degree from Babson College in Investments and Finance and an MBA from Bryant University in Organizational Development and Human Resources. She holds certifications and/or licenses in MBTI II, Greystone, Lominger 360 and Targeted Management (DDI). Top of page