History

“Without continual growth and progress, such words as improvement, achievement, and success have no meaning.”
– Benjamin Franklin

JW Michaels & Co. was founded in April 2010, by Jason Wachtel, Justin Mandel, Joe Kelly and Bill Lewis.

As the firm put roots down in a small office space in Midtown Manhattan, the goal was to become a preeminent executive search and high-end consulting firm. JW Michaels & Co. was initially focused on the legal & compliance space with the goal of developing strong relationships and developing complimentary verticals.

The firm’s blueprint for success was to hire the most talented people and support them with uncommon systems and processes that have resulted in a best-of-breed firm.

Over the last eight years, JW Michaels has grown from a single 300 SqFt office to a six-market diversified search and consulting firm operating within three specialized brands: JW Michaels & Co., Compliance Risk Concepts (CRC) and ExecuSource. These three brands service a diverse range of clients providing talent in Accounting & Finance, Human Resources, Information Technology, Security, Investment Professionals, Sales & Strategy, Law Firm Associates, Partners & Groups, Legal, Compliance, Regulatory Affairs, and Legal Staffing.

Since the beginning, the firm has prioritized hiring the best talent. The operating culture and model lends itself to attracting and retaining gifted partners, divisional leaders, and team members, including CRC CEO Mitch Avnet and ExecuSource CEO Frank Green, who have played significant roles in developing their respective specialty brands.