Dallas-based management consulting firm Embark has appointed Russell Weaver as its chief people officer. With more than 25 years of experience leading recruitment and talent functions across global markets, Russell brings extensive experience in talent acquisition transformation, workforce innovation, and developing the infrastructure required by high-growth organizations, the firm said.
Embark CEO Felice Gorordo said Russell’s experience in “building and leading world-class talent acquisition strategies at global companies and across the professional services industry makes him exactly the right leader for our people function at this stage of Embark’s growth.”
“His deep expertise in attracting, developing, and retaining top talent is precisely what we need as we scale across our markets and continue to raise the bar for our clients and our people,” he added in a statement.
As CPO, Weaver will lead Embark’s talent acquisition and people strategy, guiding the optimization of people, process, and technology for faster hiring, excellent quality of talent, and diversity within the firm’s growing workforce. His appointment comes at a critical time for Embark, which has grown to over 500 employees in 26 U.S. markets.
With continued expansion in the future, Weaver will play a central role in developing the teams that “power Embark’s next phase of growth,” the company said.
Building talent infrastructure
Most recently, Weaver served as head of talent acquisition at Paramount, a leading global premium content company, where he oversaw enterprise-wide recruiting strategy. Before that, he spent 20 years at EY, building a talent infrastructure designed for complex, high-growth professional services organizations, the company said.
His Embark post signals a return to the industry he knows best. Over the course of his career, he has led recruitment teams across Asia, Europe, Africa, North and South America, and the Caribbean, working in more than 30 countries and bringing a global perspective to talent challenges.
“What drew me to Embark was the combination of clear momentum and a genuine commitment to its people,” Weaver said. “I’m excited to build the talent infrastructure that supports this next chapter of growth and to help create an environment where top performers want to build their careers.”
He continued, “But if I’m being honest, it was the people that made this decision easy. The humanity, trust, and genuine care I felt from Felice Gorordo, CEO, and Joey LoSurdo, President, and the broader team aren’t just values on a wall; they align with the ‘why’ I’ve carried throughout my career, and they were a significant reason I said yes.”
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