canadian headhunter

I Did Not Recruit That Woman!

Leadership & Defiance

Hari Kari

Back in the day, if you were in a leadership role and you goofed up in a big way, someone would leave a gun in your room so you could make a painless exit.

Even in Margaret Thatcher's time we saw the British Foreign Secretary, Lord Carrington, resign after Argentina invaded the Falklands. He wrote:

It was not a sense of culpability that led me to resign . . . the country felt angry and humiliated. I felt the same myself . . . the disgrace must be purged . . . the person to purge it must be me.”

Bill Clinton

There is, however, another way to handle error and that's by defiance. When Bill Clinton was caught with his pants down he refused to shrivel up and die.

I'll never forget his video-taped testimony about the Lewinsky affair. Like him or not, this guy had fighter written all over him.

Davey Kassie

Likewise, David Kassie, the founder of Genuity Capital Investments. His senior executives have been accused of stealing people and information from CIBC.

The case was cracked by probing the suspects' electronic communications. Their email has Genuity's DNA splashed all over it. But Kassie is defiant.

Sources close to Genuity said Mr. Kassie was infuriated that CIBC "ambushed" the upstart firm when it served it with its lawsuit. He was shocked that the bank had included personal e-mails from departed bank executives.

He "flatly denied that anyone at Genuity took confidential information from CIBC".

Asked if he was surprised by the bank's legal tactics, Mr. Kassie flushed, bowed his head and tersely replied "It has been disappointing."

Is Davey going to get away with it?

Here's The Globe & Mail:

Genuity and its founders have been embroiled in a nasty lawsuit with CIBC...the crush of media attention arising from the battle has legitimized Genuity as a credible threat on Bay Street long before it's even done its first deal....

....industry sources speculate the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement Board will be a significant investor in the firm's funds.

"Genuity is probably the most talented group of people ever to [form] a startup in my opinion," said Peter Brown, chairman and CEO of Canaccord Capital Corp...

"I think the biggest challenge is recruiting great people, and these guys have put together the best startup team in the history of Canada."

See Also: Genuity Gang Strikes Back -- CIBC Recruiting Scandal -- David Kassie, Kingpin -- David Kassie's Dream -- Dan Daviau -- Earl Rotman -- Kassie Defiant -- Phil Evershed -- Hirst, Morrison, Eggertson -- Marie Cordero -- Bad 4 Recruiters -- Sweet Marie -- The Kassie Cult -- Kassie Honoured -- Hunkin's Millions -- BlackBerry Got 'Em -- Kassie Family Hunted -- Blackberry Mystery Solved -- The Genuity Revolution -- Technorati Tag: Genuity