Andy Steinem
CEO, Dahl-Morrow International

As head of the successful international executive search firm, with offices in Reston, Virginia and London, Ms. Steinem specializes in senior executive placement, interim management and organizational development consultancy in the high tech, IT, satellite/wireless, telecommunications and defense industries.

Starting her career on Washington's political epicenter Capitol Hill, she brings the experience of several successful careers to her leadership in the executive search arena, where she has emerged as an innovator in the field. For more than fifteen years Ms. Steinem has worked across borders and around the world to foster international business partnerships, searching the globe to make strategic executive placements and building teams on a multinational scale. This established CEO believes success lies in knowing the many cultural dynamics of the client, from the individual corporate climate, to industry trends and regional customs.

She's a frequent guest lecturer at esteemed academic institutions, including Harvard and the Saïd Business School at Oxford, and is often quoted in business and industry publications. Ms. Steinem has served as both board member and president of the Society of Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) and has worked with the non-profit organization Sister 2 Sister.

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1) How did you get started in the satellite business?

Barbara Steinem, our President, went into the recruiting business in the late 70's. At the time, one of the growing sectors was satellite communications. In fact, Barbara worked extensively with clients like SBS, COMSAT and the like. When she came to Dahl-Morrow in 1991, she brought that rich knowledge base and understanding of the segment with her, so naturally, many of her clients followed her. Satellite and Space has been a core strength and focus area for DMI since our origination.

2) How have you been involved in changes brought about in or by this business (innovations, technologies, services)?

We were intimately involved in the identification of talent companies needed to ensure their growth and success within the sector. We monitored the trends (e.g. telemedicine, remote site, search and rescue, and ISR applications) and technological advancements to see where the industry was headed and we worked with our clients to project the technical skills and practical experience required of successful candidates. This was particularly important for the VP, Engineering and Operations positions as well as the Product Managers, Project Managers, Engineers, etc.

3) What do you think was the greatest event/situation/opportunity you experienced?

We are fortunate to have experienced many exciting opportunities, but one of the greatest was the chance to work with a Senior Management Team to build out an entirely new company, Cidera. We worked so closely with management and were so intimately aware of their growth goals and strategic objectives that we could anticipate needs, build harmonious teams in Customer Support, Sales, and Engineering. It is a marvelous thing to work with a blank slate and be such an integral part of the formation of a company.

4) What was the greatest obstacle?

In the past, the greatest obstacle was finding the right people with the right skill set. It was a challenge to find folks because the industry was growing at such an exponential rate and anyone with satellite experience was in great demand.

5) What do you see happening in the next five years in this industry?

We see continuing contraction in the satellite communication space, especially in the Mobile Satellite Communications space. We are not seeing the demand for the Product Developers, Engineers and Scientist that indicate new growth via new applications. However, we do see great potential in the more mass-consumer market sector as the cost, time to market and availability of services is improved.

6) What advice do you have for women interested in entering the industry?

There is still much excitement and many possibilities and opportunities in the Space industry. We believe this sector will require dynamic individuals with a fresh perspective and broad view of the nexus points between communications, information technology and growth application areas such as ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance), sensors, biometrics, Search and Rescue, Humanitarian and Telemedicine.

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