Edward W Kelley & Partners - About Us

“We believe there is room in the market for a global boutique that operates in the true spirit of partnership externally with its clients and internally with its own people. We are that firm.”
— Ed Kelley

Edward W Kelley & Partners is managed by an Executive Committee of accomplished international professionals from around the globe, each with a unique background, perspective and area of expertise. The depth of international experience among our leadership team uniquely positions them to lead a new firm with our strong global outlook. Our Executive Committee has extensive professional experience in the emerging markets of Asia, the Middle East and Eastern Europe, and most specifically in India and China. We are committed to building a firm that is greater than the sum of its parts, a firm that will provide clients with a real alternative to what is currently available in the marketplace, a firm with both a global and local perspective.

Members of the Executive Committee and their areas of responsibility include:

Richard Hutchinson: CFO Richard Hutchinson is a chartered accountant with an extensive background serving as the CFO, financial director, and controller for a number of businesses, and he has led and participated in a number of acquisitions and sales of companies within the UK and on a pan-European basis. A significant amount of his career has been associated with the search and recruitment industry. Upon leaving Arthur Andersen where he worked as a trainee chartered accountant, Hutchinson established himself as a self-employed financial manager for businesses on a part-time consultancy basis and he has continued in that style to the present day. One of his first clients was Korn/Ferry, where he eventually rose to be appointed the CFO for Europe. He was extensively involved in negotiating and then integrating the major acquisition of Carré Orban. Ed Kelley: CEO Ed Kelley is recognized internationally as a leader and visionary in the executive search industry with more than 30 years of international experience in the consulting and executive search industry. He worked for Korn/Ferry for 15 years, most recently as president for Europe, as well as serving on its board of directors. At Korn/Ferry, he was responsible for taking the firm into the emerging markets of Eastern Europe, Russia, Turkey, the Middle East and India. During his tenure at Korn/Ferry, Mr. Kelley also led the merger of Carré Orban & Partners, at the time the largest merger in the search industry. Prior to this, he served for 10 years as an international partner with Booz Allen Hamilton. He has extensive international professional experience in Western & Eastern Europe, Russia, the Middle East, Africa, Australia, South East Asia and India. Mr. Kelley was educated in the United States and holds both British and U.S. citizenship. Ray Kelly: South Asia Ray Kelly has a combined 30 years of international experience in management consulting and executive search, most recently serving as an independent management consultant working with clients in North America, Asia, Europe and the Middle East. He has consulted extensively on a broad range of strategic, organizational, operational, HR and communications issues. Previously, Mr. Kelly was a managing partner of Korn/Ferry International and was also a member of that company's worldwide executive and European management committees, as well as the manager of its operations in the United Kingdom and Middle East. His career prior to that comprised a number of international roles with General Electric (USA), SRI International (formerly the Stanford Research Institute) and Arthur D Little, Inc. A dual US/UK citizen, Kelly has an MA from Oxford University. Beth Knight: Western Europe Elizabeth (Beth) Knight has global experience across the telecommunications, networking, software and IT services industries. Ms. Knight joined A.T. Kearney Executive Search in Hong Kong in 1996 serving clients across Asia, and now is headquartered in the firm's London office. Prior to entering the executive search field with A.T. Kearney Executive Search, Ms. Knight spent 12 years in engineering, operations and senior line management with Nynex Corporation (now Verizon), a U.S. telecommunications provider. Terry Scherck Henry J. Scherck (Terry) brings more than twenty years of senior-level experience in the areas of general management, strategy development, marketing and sales leadership and consulting services, serving both multinational corporations and emerging, high-growth, early stage companies. Since entering executive search in 1991, he has recruited senior executives in the pharmaceutical, biotech and device industries for a range of positions, including chairman of the board, president, chief executive officer, chief financial officer, senior vice president of marketing and sales, head of research and development and head of business development. Before entering executive search, Terry’s career included more than 15 years in the pharmaceutical and consumer products industries as a senior executive. Georg Unger: Central and Eastern Europe With more than 12 years of international executive search experience, Georg Unger was previously a senior client partner of Korn/Ferry most recently based in London, and prior to that in Vienna. Unger joined Korn/Ferry in 1994 and later became the managing partner of the office in Vienna. Prior to working in the executive search industry, Unger spent 12 years of his professional career in advertising, where he developed from an account director working with international clients to the worldwide chief financial officer of an advertising group based in London. Later, he acted as co-chief executive officer of a group of Austrian-based companies. Michael A. Wellman Michael A. Wellman is a 22-year veteran of executive search, having conducted over 400 engagements that include Board and C-level positions. Before joining Edward W Kelley & Partners, Mike served as the Technology Practice Leader and a Managing Director of Diversified Search/Ray & Berndtson's New York office. Previously, he served as Korn/Ferry International's first President of Global Specialty Practices, Managing Partner of the Northeast Region and New York Flagship Office, and as a Board Director. Mike has served public and privately owned clients, including Global Fortune 500 companies, middle-market enterprises, and emerging new ventures. His client industries encompass advanced technology, defense/aerospace, consumer, industrial, and private equity portfolio companies. Mike enjoys tackling the critical "key executive" search assignment, and prefers to work with clients where a sustained relationship can be built through extraordinary results and service.

“We believe there is room in the market for a global boutique that operates in the true spirit of partnership externally with its clients and internally with its own people. We are that firm.” — Ed Kelley

“We believe there is room in the market for a global boutique that operates in the true spirit of partnership externally with its clients and internally with its own people. We are that firm.”
— Ed Kelley