What I’ve learned in my first 100 days at Venari Partners

Almost nine years after he started his own company, Felix Meller recently joined us as Managing Director. It’s been a hectic few months, but now he has had time to reflect on what he’s taken away from this early period at Venari Partners. Read on for Felix’s thoughts on navigating difficult times, company culture, and more!

I recently reached a small milestone in my new position as Managing Director at Venari Partners: 100 days in the role. I started around the same time as a certain world figure’s return to power, and I think it’s safe to say that he and I have different opinions about what constitutes effective leadership. Nonetheless, I thought 100 days serves as a useful opportunity to reflect. So, what I have I taken away from this initial period, and what can we look forward to as a company?

Chaotic times on the world stage – but we’ve been here before

As mentioned above, my starting at Venari came at a time of no small amount of geopolitical turmoil, which has had significant impacts on business worldwide. It was certainly an interesting time to start a new chapter, as it has coincided with a tricky period for the recruitment industry as a whole. It would be easy to be doomy about the market’s prospects of a turnaround, but apart from enjoying a challenge, I take a certain amount of solace from having seen and worked through downturns before. My first was the 2008 crash just after I started a business, then I ran another startup through the pandemic followed by the slump after the initial post-COVID hiring boom. In other words, this isn’t my first rodeo!

I’ve had younger colleagues ask me what some of these events were like to work through – and without wanting to downplay the very real challenges, once you’ve seen and survived such turbulence happening far outside your control as a business, it helps you build resilience and plan for the future. Furthermore, it is Venari Partners’ aim to be a reassuring presence for our customer base. When clients are navigating uncertainty themselves, we wish to act, effectively, as their intelligence arm – that is, to let them know what we’re seeing from the market so as to aid their planning as best we can. I believe unreservedly in the importance of showing up and showing grit in tough times. Apart from anything, these moments are also a chance to cement relationships and offer support; we will bring all of our experience and expertise to help customers however we can.

Adjustment periods are an opportunity for a reset

It might sound obvious, but the new role has made me reflect on how easy it is to take connections at work for granted – especially at a company you’ve built up yourself. Over the course of nearly nine years at my last startup, I knew everyone and had a wide overview of the different connections among my colleagues there. It makes sense, then, that the most significant adjustment for me has been coming into an environment where interpersonal dynamics are well established.

Just to be clear, I don’t say that as a bad thing. After all, my whole approach to leadership and management is focused on EQ and understanding people. If anything – and minor headaches about things like cost lists and finding out how to work the alarm aside – the new start has been a good opportunity for a hard reset. Though I have to say, my new colleagues have done their all to make this easy for me...

 Small gestures make a big difference

I want to take an opportunity to plug the great people I have joined at Venari Partners. I have been really struck by just how friendly and welcoming everyone has been since my arrival in January. I’ve known James Parker for years, so working with him again has been one of the quickest and easiest transitions. But even still, it’s not always easy to start at a new company, and I can also appreciate that change to leadership structures can take time to get used to for current staff as well. However, you’d never know it from working here.

Now, I know how all that might sound. ‘Well, of course he’d say that,’ you may be thinking. ‘Of course people are going to be nice to the new MD.’ I can understand why that would occur to you – but I would caveat that we’ve had a number of other new starters since I joined, and each has made a point of telling me, independently, how welcoming everyone has been. I’ve been thinking a lot about how when you start a new role, it’s the simplest, gentlest show of kindness and support, rather than a grand gesture, that really helps you to settle. Simple, genuine acts add up to much more than the sum of their parts, which I think is a key facet of the culture at Venari Partners.

They say every day is a school day. Turns out it’s true

It’s been wonderful to spend time with such a friendly bunch who are also truly passionate about their specific areas of expertise. I’ve found it’s easy to get used to your own space – my previous background was very consumer sector-focused, which I really enjoyed. But now, every day I get to learn about topics as disparate as airplane engineering and US transportation to digital health breakthroughs and cutting-edge sustainability strategy. This exposure to sectors I was previously unfamiliar with is really enlightening, and the enthusiasm for them is infectious. Long may it continue!

Too much of a good thing? Not exactly

I’ve been really impressed by just how proactive everyone is. It’s something that runs throughout the company; ‘support’ functions like HR, finance, and marketing are push factors for new activity, not ‘wait-and-see’ operations.

It’s a good problem to have, but I’d say that the only downside of being surrounded by lots of optimistic and energetic people comes down to managing time and expectations. As much as I always want to give people my undivided time and attention, it is not always possible in a larger business that is inherently complex. But I don’t want to complain – it’s been a fascinating journey, and exposure to a larger, truly international client base is great for broadening your horizons. I’m a people person above all – for me, the wider your lens on humanity, the more fun the task!

Looking ahead at Venari Partners

This is a truly exciting time for the company. Our Aviation & Travel practice has recently expanded to take in new hires based abroad: Emily Matthews, in Madrid, and Nelamar Piñeiro, in Miami. Their additions underline our continuing commitment to an exceptional end-to-end experience by bringing us geographically closer to clients in key markets. It’s a new phase, but still only the beginning.

I plan to share further details about our plans and direction soon. In the meantime, if this piece has resonated with you, I’d love for you to share your thoughts. You might be a senior figure keen to engage with leadership content; a candidate thinking about taking on a management position; a hiring manager looking to refresh your organisation’s leadership strategy; or simply an interested onlooker. Feel free to get in touch – and stay tuned for further updates from me!