Founders Bio's
Christopher J. Shea
Prior to establishing Cross Hill Partners in 1999, Chris spent fifteen years in executive search working his way "up-the-ranks" from junior associate to Partner working on some 200 assignments during this time.
From 1992 to 1999, he was a Partner with Ingram & Aydelotte Inc., a high end boutique positioned as alternative to the major firms. While with Ingram & Aydelotte, Chris worked at senior levels with some of America's leading companies (American Express, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Viacom, Johnson & Johnson, Citigroup etc.) as well as with a number of emerging growth companies.
Chris' more recent experience is concentrated in the financial services industry and he has completed assignments for global financial services concerns in New York, Moscow, London, Jakarta and Hong Kong. His focus has historically been in the infrastructure areas: Finance (accounting, control, treasury, tax), information technology, business development, marketing and operations. His financial services clients have included "Bulge Bracket" investment banks, global money center banks, property casualty insurers, and services providers.
Chris' experience in the financial services industry is balanced with significant experience in software, business services and the media/ entertainment industries. His exposure to both content providers, and services firms both before the "dot-com" bubble bust in 2001 and afterward, provides him with valuable insights and perspective to the evolving business models of the "Web 2.0" world.
Chris began his career in 1984 with Bruce Raines Associates (now Raines International), focusing on financial management assignments within the financial services, consumer products and manufacturing, industries. In 1987, shortly after the stock market crash, he joined KPMG Peat Marwick as a consultant in the executive search practice.
KPMG Peat Marwick's executive search practice was the seventh largest executive search practice in the world at the time.
While at KPMG, he worked with foreign banks, retailers and media companies primarily in finance, operations and information technology functions. In 1990, KPMG Peat Marwick elected to exit the executive search business resulting in a management buyout of the practice led by Dwight Foster, the Managing Partner of the practice. Chris stayed with the successor firm, D.E. Foster Partners, until 1992, when he joined Ingram & Aydelotte.
Born and raised in Westchester County New York, Chris received a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from Fordham University. He is a member of the Westhampton Yacht Squadron and Knollwood Country Club. He resides in Remsenburg, New York with his wife, Diane, and their two children.
Diane Loeffler Shea
Prior to establishing Cross Hill Partners in January 1999, Diane spent fifteen years in executive search with one of the largest search firms, two boutique firms and as sole proprietor of an executive search/research consulting firm. Throughout, her primary focus has been on financial services.
From 1993 to1999, as sole proprietor of TCO Consulting, she provided unbundled search/"hired gun associate" services to a diverse group of corporate and search firm clients including Heidrick & Struggles, SpencerStuart, Highland Search Group (now TMP Worldwide), and several search boutiques throughout North America
Diane began her career in executive search in 1984 at Bruce R. Raines Associates (now Raines International) as one of two professionals dedicated to the Investment Banking/Investment Management practice.
Her clients included First Boston, Morgan Stanley, Kidder Peabody and Chemical Bank. In 1986 she joined the "bulge bracket" search firm of Russell Reynolds Associates, Inc.
During the next six and a half years, she served as a research associate, Director of Research for the New York Headquarters office, and as a line recruiter. During this time, she gained a unique perspective on the resources available to the search professional and perhaps, more importantly, on the pressures inherent in conducting search at a major global search firm. She participated in the design and implementation of an AS-400 based, then state-of-the-application database which tracked over 200,000 executives and she recruited, trained and managed an eleven-member research department.
As a member of the financial services practice for five of those years, Diane worked in investment banking, capital markets, securities analysis, investment management and insurance. She spent just over one year deployed to the burgeoning Health Care practice headquartered in the Stamford, Connecticut office, and worked with clients in pharmaceuticals, biotechnology/medical devices and managed care/health care services.
Diane joined Norman Broadbent International, Inc. in early 1992. This firm was headquartered in London and had been a spin-off of the Russell Reynolds financial services practice there some years before.She left the organization in 1993 to establish TCO Consulting.
Diane holds a B.A. in Political Studies from Adelphi University and a J.D. from the Marshall-Wythe School of Law at the College of William and Mary. Born and raised in Garden City, New York, she resides in Remsenburg with her two children, and their father, Christopher.
Note
In July of 2007, after 23 years focused on financial services, Diane decided she wanted to apply her executive search skills to the not-for- profit world. Though she is not active in Cross Hill Partners, we still benefit from her perspective and considerable network of contacts.
