Executive Search Services

Find your next Leader. Find the Right Fit.

Skills and experience are critical, but could become irrelevant if the “fit” is not right. Moreover, we know from experience that the candidate’s personal fit with the Board and School’s culture and vision is the single most important factor to a successful Administrator placement, and yet can be the most challenging to quantify. It is an art and science best managed and supported by educators who have been “in the trenches,” and who have a deep understanding of the complexities and nuances of achieving this fit. How will you manage this?

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Executive Search Testimonials

“Your visit to our school to conduct an analysis of our Strengths, Weaknesses, Threats and Opportunities (SWOT) and to develop our Leadership Profile was crucial in that it helped us better understand the type of leader our school needed, and it involved the whole community – students, parents, teachers, staff, administrators, senior management and board. This established the legitimacy of our search, made the process transparent, and gave the community a sense of ownership, which will prove invaluable as our new Head of School will assume his position with the enthusiastic support of the whole community.

On behalf of the Board of Trustees of the Lycée International de Los Angeles (LILA), I would like to take this opportunity to express our sincere gratitude for your role in our recent Head of School search. Your invaluable knowledge and experience, practical advice, constant availability, and seamless teamwork helped us to conduct and successfully conclude a complex international search in a very short timeframe.”

- Ms. Taline A. Grigorian, Chair of the LILA Search Committee, USA

"As President of the Board of The John F. Kennedy, The American School of Querétaro, it is my pleasure to recommend Paul DeMinico, of International Schools Services, as a professional with attributes and skills that made our recent search for general Director a wonderful experience filled with tremendous opportunities for the school, for the Board and for every member of our community. We benefitted throughout the search process from Paul’s commitment and knowledge about the American School Systems. Every part of the process was filled with professionalism and ethical standards. Any educational institution would benefit from Paul’s services."

- Angel de Lope Friedeberg, President of the Board, John F. Kennedy School, The American School of Querétaro, Mexico

"I had the opportunity to work with ISS during the recruitment for our new Head of School. We were in a very difficult situation with a divided school. They took great effort to guide us through a time that not only ended in a very successful recruitment but also in a reunited board. ISS is a welcome addition to any team."

- Matthew Sheehan. Board HOS Election Committee, International School of Helsinki, Finland

“The question was, could [the] ISS consultant deliver? Let me assure you that he did indeed…the professionalism of the person we chose to assist us, and the superintendent we were able to hire, demonstrated that we chose the right person for the search. Because of the outstanding service provided us, I recommend the ISS consultant to you enthusiastically and without reservations as a person who will assist you in the most professional manner, but who will also become personally involved in every aspect of your search…”

- Katherine Labanaris, Chair, Search Committee, Manchester (NH) School Board, USA

“…We benefited greatly in so many different ways from ISS’ extensive experiences in the world of international schools. You offered practical and pragmatic advice and responded promptly to questions and requests for additional information. You were always accessible and responsive, no matter where you were in the world. On behalf of AOSR, I am very pleased that once again ISS provided an excellent service in our search…I would highly recommend you and your organization to others looking for highly qualified candidates culminating in a successful search.”

- Beth Pfannl, Head of School, American Overseas School of Rome, Italy

ACS Abu Dhabi has been able to recruit high quality professionals into the critical roles and commends ISS for its support in this process.
- Kevin Taylor, Search Chair

“…The entire Leman Manhattan Prep School community wants to thank you for your masterful facilitation of the successful search for our Upper School Head. Your guidance from the first time I contacted you to your offer of support after the position had been accepted, and every step in between, provided the necessary direction to make this a very positive experience. The obvious wisdom resulting from your experiences as accomplished educational leaders provided much credibility and great comfort to all members of our community. Experienced educators such as you both know the qualities and traits necessary for leadership and it is quite obvious that you were able to tailor this search to meet the demands of our growing and unique school…”

- Drew Alexander, Head of School, Leman Manhattan Preparatory School, NYC, USA

“…Throughout this process our Committee was ably supported by ISS. ISS provided a framework for both searches that became the operating framework and timeline for our Committee and allowed the Committee to manage [the] expectation of our Board and Community via establishing milestones and deliverables. The ISS consultant was always available to talk with the Committee or Board on candidates, compensation benchmarking, arrangements of campus visits and transition management and provided valuable information contributions in this regard. I would also point out that [due to standing firm on the ISS warranty] the services by ISS were done at no cost to ACS. ACS Abu Dhabi has been able to recruit high quality professionals into the critical roles and to commend ISS for its support in this process…”

- Kevin Taylor, Search Chair, American School of Abu Dhabi, UAE

“…I found ISS to be knowledgeable, responsive, insightful, professional, and very generous with its time. They presented our Search Committee with over 50 well qualified candidates…there were no surprises for either the candidates or the school…In sum, I strongly recommend ISS as an Educational Consultant [firm] and would happily work with them in the future.”

- Tom Northrup, Interim Head, Benjamin Franklin International School, Spain

…The success of our search and the high-caliber of our next director can be traced back to our initial decision to work with Paul DeMinico.
- Katherine E. Farrell, Board of Chair

“…I take this opportunity to extend my warm thanks and appreciation for your collective efforts with the Secondary School Principal’s search for our school. Not an easy task to recruit for, especially at this time, but we were provided with a large candidate pool from which to work along with the necessary responsive and attentive ISS approach to the process throughout the journey…thanks again.”

- Peter Nanos, Director General, Bahrain Bayan School, Bahrain

“…I could not be more pleased with the results of our search process. I look forward to working with our two new education colleagues with the YMCA – [Christian College]. And I would strongly endorse International Schools Services to anyone searching for their next school leadership position. Whenever the need arises I would not hesitate to work with ISS again. Their work is exemplary…”

- Ray Purvis, CEO, YMCA of Hong Kong Christian College, Hong Kong

“…In the ISS facilitated board governance training workshop, Dr. Paul DeMinico was a dynamic speaker who is super organized and he kept his audience of more than 100 professionals fully motivated for the whole day. Afterward, feedback was very affirming indeed, and all participants left the whole day feeling up-skilled and invigorated. I highly recommend Paul as an outstanding workshop presenter and we will use him again.”

- Matthew G. Mills, Head of School, Bangkok Patana School (The British International School), Thailand

Experienced educators…able to tailor this search to meet the demands of our growing and unique school…
- Drew Alexander, Head of School

“…In our recent search for a superintendent, I would like to highlight the tremendous supporting role that Dr. Paul DeMinico played in guiding our board search committee through what proved to be a diligent process resulting in an outcome that was both professional and satisfying. His deep knowledge and familiarity with the Middle East added greatly to the ease with which the process was moved forward. Dr. DeMinico not only assisted the Board of Trustees with a systematic and strategic process, but with his professionalism and personality he ensured that all stakeholders had a strong voice. He also conducted a very successful and practical workshop for the Board of Trustees at our campus in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia… Without hesitation, I can state that Dr. DeMinico's experience and professionalism reflect very well on ISS as a specialist educational organization. Subsequently the board was very happy with the entire experience and outcome.”

- Angel H. Lewars, Search Committee Chair, International Schools Group (ISG), Saudi Arabia

“…Dr. Paul DeMinico was clearly the right choice to guide us through the process of finding a new School Director. His insightful questions, depth of experience and personable manner assured us that we could indeed find our way through this formidable challenge. As the Chair, I was particularly concerned that we conduct a search that was inclusive of community concerns, but that clearly remained the Board's responsibility. Paul was very supportive of our approach and during his campus visit conducted focus group sessions that struck exactly the right note… viewpoints were solicited, and a leadership profile developed in the process that helped maintain a community of civility and unity. Paul has always been available to us even on short notice, and even spent a day with the board at our annual retreat in order to better understand our school and our key issues. I appreciated that he helped keep me on track with what needed to happen next and although he must have been busy with many other commitments, I always felt that we were his top priority. I am convinced that the success of our search and the high-caliber of our next director can be traced back to our initial decision to work with Paul DeMinico. It would be a pleasure to work with him again and I highly recommend him to other schools embarking on a Director Search.”

- Katherine E. Farrell, Board Chair, American International School of Guangzhou, China

“...All Board members were very pleased with the process, Paul’s prompt responsiveness to all of their questions, his guidance, both here and remotely in developing the profile, and his professional demeanor throughout the process.  He gave them confidence in what they were doing, and they are very pleased with the result. Before they started, the search committee reviewed proposals from [other search firms] and choose ISS…they unanimously believe that the money was well spent and they will certainly recommend ISS to other school boards as a result.”

- Areta Williams, Head of School, Overseas School of Colombo, Sri Lanka

ISS is a welcome addition to any team.
- Matthew Sheehan, Board HOS Election Committee

"Tarsus American College used ISS for the headmaster recruitment process ...the services that ISS provided were excellent. Right from the start, ISS provided support in establishing an appropriate timeline, developing and running a suitable advertisement, and establishing candidate files complete with references. Furthermore ISS conduced interviews on the school’s behalf and gave immediate and concrete feedback. David Randall was always available for consultation and was a good source of advice which facilitated a complex process. Given our experience, we can certainly recommend ISS for head of school searches."

- Whitman Shepard, Chair Search Committee, Tarsus American College, Turkey

“It is my enormous pleasure to address the attributes and skills that Paul DeMinico of International Schools Services brought to our recent, successful search for a new school Superintendent…Lincoln benefited throughout the search process from Paul’s commitment to quality educational leadership, professional background as an educator, willingness to learn from the Lincoln School community about leadership expectations, and strong network of seasoned professionals and rising stars within the world-wide community of independent, international schools. Paul’s collaborative approach to working with the School Board on recruitment requirements and a search timeline, and with the broader community on the development of a leadership profile to inform the search were among his superlative contributions. His outreach to a global cohort of potential candidates and his work with the Board to screen candidates and prepare for final interviews were exemplary. The qualities Paul brought to the search process are also noteworthy, including the highest degree of professionalism and ethical standards, which were evident in his transparency with the Board and handling of confidential applicant information. Your educational institution would be fortunate to benefit from Paul’s services...”

- Jorge Estrada Mora, President, Asociación Escuelas Lincoln, Buenos Aires, Argentina