About Us
Why McDermott & Bull?
We think like you do.
We SUPPORT your entire organization.
McDermott & Bull works to find talent for all levels of your firm. We do not limit our searches to only senior executive positions. That would place our interests before yours. We resourcefully excel at recruiting talented middle managers just as we do in our senior management search engagements. By serving your needs in this area, we help you recruit the next generation of key executives.
We FIND leaders that are crucial to your organization.
McDermott & Bull has developed a network that has the extended reach to insure that the standards you set for key executives are met by all the candidates we provide for you.
We PROVIDE value by tying compensation to performance.
McDermott & Bull structures its fees so that they are tied to how we perform for you. Our fees make sense for your business, your budget, and your recruiting objectives.
We REPRESENT you, not the candidate.
Many Human Resource managers bemoan being sold on the candidates placed before them. In contrast, we allow the experience, demonstrated track records, and cultural compatibility of our candidates to speak for themselves.
We understand the URGENCY in your search for qualified candidates.
McDermott & Bull has developed a network that has the extended reach to insure that the standards you set for key executives are met by all the candidates we provide for you.
We take the time to UNDERSTAND your organization.
McDermott & Bull takes the time to understand your organization, from the Core Values and Culture to the quarterly performance objectives.We meet with peers, superiors and subordinates to fully understand your entire organization and all the dynamics, and then prescreen potential candidates, to determine his or her suitability.We know that just skills or talent will not make the right fit for you. More often, cultural compatibility with the entire team becomes the most critical attribute of a candidate.
We PROVIDE more than just Candidates
In instances where you are looking for information about the talent in your market, including current compensation and experience levels, McDermott & Bull provides you with a wealth of market intelligence.
We work to ENHANCE your company image.
Having McDermott & Bull represent your organization in the market is good public relations and an effective calling card. It tells the business community and prospective candidates that your company takes recruiting seriously. And the reality is; there is a certain cachet that comes with having a firm of our stature approach senior executives – it elevates the status of the position in their eyes. Higher-level executives do know the difference.
What We Stand For
Meet Our People
Management
Chris Bull
Managing Partner
Office: (949) 753-1700 ext. 306
Email: Bull@MBsearch.net
Chris Bull serves as a Co-Founder and Managing Partner of McDermott & Bull, based in Irvine, California. He is responsible for overseeing the majority of the firm’s Search Consultants, as well as training and development. Formerly, Chris was an Executive Vice President in the Orange County office of DHR International, the nation’s 6th largest executive search firm. Earlier in his career, Chris spent six years operating the company he founded: American Liberty Capital Corporation. American Liberty combined cutting edge technology with the standards of commercial and residential mortgage banking retail services to become one of the largest privately held consumer finance companies based in Southern California.
Chris currently serves on the Board of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Orange County and on the Ambassadors Board of Talk About Curing Autism (“TACA”) and has recently served as a Board Member for the Association for Corporate Growth. He currently resides in Laguna Hills, California, with his two children. Chris received a Bachelors Degree in Economics and Finance from the University of Texas at Austin in 1985.
Rod McDermott
Managing Partner
Office: (949) 753-1700 ext. 308
Email: McDermott@MBsearch.net
Rod McDermott serves as a Co-Founder and Managing Partner of McDermott & Bull Executive Search, overseeing the firm’s Operations, Recruiting function, and some of the firm’s remote Search Consultants.
Prior to establishing McDermott & Bull, Rod was Executive Vice President and Managing Director of the Technology and Emerging Growth practice at DHR International, Inc., the nation’s sixth largest and fastest growing executive search firm. At DHR’s Irvine, California office, Rod is credited with building a significant executive search practice catering to high profile technology clients such as Toshiba, Gateway, America Online, ACER and Boeing. Prior to joining DHR International, Rod served as Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Dartron Inc., a leading manufacturer of computer peripherals and computer security devices under the brand AnchorPad. Rod led the company’s efforts in developing a national dealer network comprised of computer resellers and distributors, including major relationships such as Dell Computer, Micro Warehouse, and Merisel Corporation.
Rod currently serves on the Boards of THINK Together, Partners Bank of California, and The Mission Hospital Foundation. He has served on the Boards of Monarch Staffing, Inc., The American Electronics Association, and The Orange Coast Venture Group. He resides in Coto de Caza, California, with his wife Laura and their four children. Rod received a Bachelors Degree in Economics and Business from the University of California, Los Angeles.
Search Consultants
Jeff Black
Partner
Office: (949) 753-1700 ext. 310
Email: Black@MBsearch.net
Jeff Black serves as a Partner for McDermott & Bull Executive Search. Prior to joining McDermott & Bull in 2003, Jeff served as Vice President, Commercial Services, for Raytheon Technical Services Company, a $2B global services subsidiary of the Raytheon Company. Previously, Jeff served as Vice President of Hughes Technical Services Company, leading growing operating divisions of up to $130M in revenue and 1000 employees serving U.S. and foreign government clients performing technology development and support services programs. The early part of Jeff’s career was spent at Hughes, working in their manufacturing and engineering businesses.
Jeff is active with the Forum for Corporate Directors in Orange County, serves on the Board of Directors and Executive Committee of the YMCA of Orange County, supports character education through The Ethical Edge, and is founder of The Trusted Partners. He is married with two children and currently resides in Yorba Linda, California. Jeff received a Bachelors Degree in Business Management in 1980 and an MBA in Finance in 1984, both from California State University, Fullerton.
Craig Lipus
Partner
Office: (949) 753-1700 ext. 311
Email: Lipus@MBsearch.net
Craig Lipus serves as a Partner for McDermott & Bull Executive Search. Prior to joining McDermott & Bull in 2003, Craig served as Vice President, Sales and Marketing for Aura Systems Inc. Craig led the Sales and Marketing team that pioneered Aura’s unique and patented energy solutions. Previously, Craig served as Business Unit Manager and Director of Sales for Interlink Electronics, a global leader in the design and manufacturing of intuitive interface technologies and wireless solutions, where for eight years he was instrumental in the growth of this technology start-up. Prior to that Craig spent ten years with Polaroid Corporation holding numerous management positions in their Industrial, Commercial and Electronic Imaging business.
Craig is a member of the Board of Directors at Concept 7, a nonprofit agency serving foster kids in Orange County, Los Angeles, and the Inland Empire. Craig is married with three children, and resides in Trabuco Canyon, California, with his wife. Craig received a Bachelors degree in Marketing in 1979 from California State University, Fullerton.
Meiko Takayama
Principal Consultant
Office: (424) 202-3663
Email: Takayama@MBsearch.net
Meiko Takayama serves as a Principal Consultant for McDermott & Bull in Los Angeles and is the head of McDermott & Bull’s IT Practice. In addition to IT searches, Meiko has also conducted multiple searches on behalf of Sales, Marketing, Operations, and Finance executives. Meiko also chairs the Women’s Summit in Los Angeles and Orange County, a regular gathering of senior-most corporate executive women in CEO, CFO, COO, HR, Sales/Marketing, and IT positions.
Meiko previously was a Managing Director at the Corporate Executive Board where she was a leader in the IT Practice, responsible for launching the CIO Executive Board and similar membership groups on behalf of senior IT leaders. In addition, she has worked with CFOs, General Counsels, and heads of HR, Sales & Marketing, and Procurement from the Fortune 1000 across her 11 year tenure at the company. Meiko has also been a leading fundraising executive and worked at the Museum of Modern Art and the Guggenheim Museum in New York and the Victoria & Albert Museum in London.
Meiko lives with her husband and two children in Studio City, California. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in History of Art from Bryn Mawr College in Bryn Mawr, PA.
Brandon Biegenzahn
Principal Consultant
Office: (949) 753-1700 ext. 338
Email: Biegenzahn@MBsearch.net
Brandon Biegenzahn serves as a Principal Consultant for McDermott & Bull in their Irvine, California headquarters. His practice focuses primarily on private equity portfolio holdings. Brandon is a corporate attorney by trade having practiced with Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton, and Buchalter Nemer in their corporate finance and real estate finance departments, respectively. As corporate counsel, he advised his clients in the areas of mergers and acquisitions, asset-based financing, and real property purchase and sale transactions.
In addition to his work at McDermott & Bull, Brandon sits on the Board of Junior Achievement, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to educating students about entrepreneurship, financial literacy, and work readiness, through experiential, hands-on programs. Additionally, he is the vice-chairman of membership at Orange County Young Executives, a collection of professionals and executives making a direct impact on Orange County through philanthropy and development of the business community.
Brandon received his Bachelor of Arts from the University of Southern California and his Juris Doctorate from Penn State. Brandon is licensed to practice law in California.
de Winter Stewart
Senior Vice President, MB Interim Leaders
Office: (949) 753-1700 ext. 405
Email: Stewart@MBinterim.com
de Winter L. Stewart serves as the Senior Vice President for MB Interim Leaders and is responsible for driving the strategic growth of that division of McDermott & Bull. MB Interim Leaders is the definitive interim executive leadership resource for companies seeking to address immediate challenges, by adding critical staff for specific projects or to temporarily add knowledge capital and expertise at the executive ranks. For more information, please visit www.mbinterim.com.
Previously, de Winter was a Regional Vice President with Robert Half International, the global staffing firm where he oversaw greater Los Angeles operations for Management Resources, a $21M division that provided C-level clients with strategic finance and accounting professionals for resource-based consulting engagements. He also worked in Goldman Sachs’ Private Wealth Management division in New York and San Francisco. His clients included corporate executives and entrepreneurs whom he counseled on customized investment strategies. He began his career with GlaxoSmithKline and Allergan. de Winter’s corporate experience is complemented by 10+ years of entrepreneurial experience in service industries, including a specialized leadership consulting firm whose clients included the Los Angeles Dodgers and Wells Fargo.
de Winter holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial & Labor Relations from Cornell University and an MBA from Columbia Business School. He serves on the Board of Directors of the Columbia Business School Alumni Chapter of Los Angeles and Orange County. He is married and lives in Los Angeles, California.
Staff
Brian Selvey
Recruiting Manager
Office: (949) 753-1700 ext. 331
Email: Selvey@MBsearch.net
Brian Selvey serves as the Recruiting Manager for McDermott & Bull Executive Search. He oversees the firm’s internal Research & Recruiting team. Brian joined the firm in 2009 as a Senior Recruiting Associate, working closely with the Principal Consultants on executive level searches for a number of the firm’s clients. Prior to working with McDermott & Bull, Brian was an Accounting & Finance Recruiter with multiple local firms, including Accountants International and Ledgent. Brian started his career placing Accounting & Finance professionals on interim and project engagements in the Orange County market.