Name:  Michael J. Romaniw

Title: President, Chief Search Officer

Office:  On the Atlantic Ocean at 3330 Pacific Ave…really.

Contact:  (800) 446-3037, x.14

Email:  mjr@wedofood.com

Education – The Ohio State University 1972  

                              

                          Major-BA Psychology 

                          Minor-Statistics

 

Why ALCI?  As an upper middle manager with Kraft’s Oscar Mayer Unit I was contacted regularly by “headhunters”, the majority of whom knew next to nothing about the Food Industry.  On one particular call I challenged the recruiter’s lack of knowledge about an assignment.  He retorted, “If you think you can do better, why don’t you open a search firm?”   And I did. 

A typical day:  The search business is half science and art, done well it is difficult, time consuming and rewarding.  We work on a team approach, two or three of us working in tandem.  Our custom search software, ENCORE,  provides our clients with a thorough understanding of who we contacted and their candidate status.  A la Carte is effective because we leave few stones unturned and we can confidently say to our clients we have completed a thorough search.  

The rest of the day is spent in business development and writing reports on finalist candidates.  We also complete all reference and background checks on all finalists candidates. 

Valuable competencies/skills:  Thorough knowledge of the food, beverage and hospitality industries.  A highly evolved sense as to when a candidate’s core competencies and personality are a match for a client’s specific needs.  Excellent voice-mail communicator, backed up by reasonably proficient computer skills.  Finally, the valuable assistance of the team of professionals I am associated with at A la Carte.  They make me Look Good! 

F.Y.I. - The person behind the voice on the phone
(subject to change constantly!) 

Favorite Website:  www.yahoofinance.com 

Favorite Shop/Retailer:  www.sierratradingpost.com 

Favorite Recent Film:   Casino Royal 

Favorite Book:  Lonesome Dove 

Favorite Artist:  Rene Magritte

Favorite City:   Chicago

Favorite Restaurant in that City:  MK's (Try the French Fries with white truffle sauce)

Favorite Industry Function:  :NRA Show

Favorite Quote:  “Life is a banquet, go and feast”.  

Currently Reading: "I am Charlotte Simmons, Tom Wolf

What's in my CD player right now? "The Stones Top 40 Hits".

Hobbies:  Golf, Tennis, Motorcycling (I have two-95 Fatboy & ST1100), Physical Conditioning 

What's ahead? Continued demand for great people...particularly for Unit Managers, Supply Chain, Culinary,  Marketing and National Accounts.

If you want my advice… “If you are involved in a merger or acquisition, do not worry about your place in the new organization…concentrate instead on making the emerging “new” company the best it can be.  You will come out a better person in the end and probably have a great job as a result.”